Trial Shows

• Een mRNA-vaccin toonde potentieel in een onderzoek met 16 patiënten met alvleesklierkanker, waarbij het risico op terugkeer na een operatie werd verminderd, volgens het tijdschrift Nature. • Acht patiënten reageerden positief, wat leidde tot langdurige immuunresponsen, zoals vermeld door Forbes. • Alvleesklierkanker heeft een vijfjarige overlevingskans van 12%; indien opgeschaald, zou dit de uitkomsten kunnen transformeren voor de 66.000 jaarlijkse gevallen in de VS.

• Onderzoekers van UCL en UCLH voerden een studie uit waarbij patiënten met stadium 2 of 3 colorectale kanker slechts negen weken pembrolizumab-immunotherapie kregen vóór de operatie, wat het standaardprotocol van chirurgie gevolgd door maanden chemotherapie uitdaagt. • Vroege resultaten lieten zien dat bij 59% van de patiënten geen detecteerbare kanker aanwezig was na voltooiing van de immunotherapie en de operatie; na 33 maanden follow-up heeft geen van deze patiënten een recidief ervaren. • Deze uitkomst vertegenwoordigt een significante verschuiving in de behandelprotocollen voor colorectale kanker en suggereert dat korte kuren van gerichte immunotherapie vóór de chirurgie duurzamere resultaten kunnen leveren dan conventionele postoperatieve chemotherapieschema's.

Relacorilant, typically used to treat Cushing’s syndrome, could improve outcomes in platinum-resistant casesA drug originally used to treat a rare disease could extend the lives of patients with an aggressive form of ovarian cancer, according to a clinical trial.Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer occurs when the disease progresses within six months of starting platinum-based chemotherapy. This form of chemotherapy is different from other types because it uses compounds that contain platinum to destroy cancer cells by preventing them from dividing. Continue reading...

• Eisai and Biogen announced positive top-line results from CLARITY AD trial extension on April 7, 2026, with lecanemab reducing cognitive decline by 27% over 18 months in 1,795 US patients. • Drug cleared 59% more amyloid plaques vs. placebo, with ARIA side effects in 12.6% of participants; full data at June AD/PD conference. • Approval could expand to mild cases, addressing 6.7 million US Alzheimer's sufferers; analysts predict $2.4 billion annual sales.

Fifty ‘founder’ bilbies were released in fenced breeding area in 2019 with the aim of establishing first wild population there in a centuryGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastEfforts to reintroduce bilbies in the far south-west of New South Wales are showing signs of success, with numbers climbing to almost 2,000, seven years after the first breeding trial at Mallee Cliffs national park.Fifty “founder” bilbies, including 30 from Thistle Island off the coast of South Australia, were released in a fenced breeding area in 2019 with the aim of establishing a wild population in the Mallee Cliffs habitat for the first time in a century.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

• A Phase 2 clinical trial led by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center demonstrated that engineered CAR-T cells targeting mesothelin showed a 52% overall response rate in 89 patients with advanced pancreatic and ovarian cancers. • The trial, results published March 19 in Cancer Cell, showed durable responses lasting over one year in 68% of responding patients, compared to historical response rates below 20% with conventional chemotherapy. • CAR-T therapy has revolutionized blood cancer treatment but remained ineffective against solid tumors until recent engineering advances, potentially opening a new therapeutic avenue for 400,000 Americans diagnosed with pancreatic and ovarian cancers annually.