Seattle Genetics (NSDQ:SGEN) said today that the FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to its antibody-drug conjugate Adcetris in combination with chemotherapy for treating patients with advanced classical Hodgkin lymphoma. The approval was based on positive top line results from the company’s phase 3 Echelon-1 clinical trial, which were announced in June. The Bothell, Wash.-based company said […]
Oncology
ASTRO ’17 Round-up: Novocure touts five-year results for Optune, chemo combo in newly-diagnosed glioblastoma patients
Novocure (NSDQ:NVCR) touted data today from the Phase III pivotal trial of its Optune device in combination with temozolomide for the treatment of newly-diagnosed glioblastoma. The analyses were presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s 2017 annual meeting in San Diego. The company’s EF-14 trial showed unprecedented five-year survival results in patients with newly-diagnosed GBM, […]
Study: Women with esophageal cancer fare better than men
The survival rate for esophageal cancer is, according to Dr. K. Robert Shen, bleak. Last year, there were 17,000 Americans diagnosed with the disease and nearly 16,000 of them died, the Mayo Clinic cardiothoracic surgeon told Drug Delivery Business News. “It’s almost reached an epidemic,” Shen said. “It doesn’t get a lot of airplay and […]
CIRSE 2017 Round-up: Delcath touts second-gen hemofiltration system in percutaneous hepatic perfusion
Delcath Systems (NSDQ:DCTH) touted data today from a study of its second-generation hemofiltration system in patients undergoing percutaneous hepatic perfusion with melphalan hydrochloride. The New York-based company presented the results from its study at the Cardiology and Interventional Radiology of Europe annual meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark. The investigational product, an injectable melphalan hydrochloride for use with […]
FDA approves Ipsen’s lanreotide depot injection for carcinoid syndrome
Ipsen (EPA:IPN) said today that the FDA approved a supplemental indication for its Somatuline depot (lanreotide) injection for the treatment of carcinoid syndrome. “The new indication for Somatuline depot offers patients in the U.S. a valuable treatment option for debilitating carcinoid syndrome associated with neuroendocrine tumors.,” Ipsen’s VP of R&D and chief scientific officer, Dr. Alexandre Lebeaut, […]
Theraclion PI details breast cancer immunotherapy, ultrasound combo
The co-lead investigator for a metastatic breast cancer trial combining Theraclion‘s focused ultrasound technology and immunotherapy discussed the design and rationale of the study, the France-based company reported today. Dr. David Brenin, chief of breast surgery at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, said that although immuno-oncology has been gaining steam as a way to […]
Medtech stories we missed this week: September 8, 2017
From BrainScope’s pediatric traumatic brain injury assessment device to EOS Imaging releasing new surgery planning software, here are seven medtech stories we missed this week but thought were still worth a mention. 1. BrainScope to develop pediatric traumatic brain injury assessment device BrainScope announced in a Sept. 7 press release that it will immediately start creating […]
Lumicell launches breast cancer, prostate cancer trials with Lum image-guided system
Lumicell said today that it is launching clinical studies in breast cancer and prostate cancer with its Lum image-guided cancer surgery system. The breast cancer trial is a pivotal study following an initial training period with surgeons, the Wellesley, Mass.-based company reported, and the prostate cancer study is a first for Lumicell and its technology. […]
Delcath readies for reverse stock split
Delcath Systems (NSDQ:DCTH) said today that it inked a deal to extinguish its 2016 convertible notes with the unnamed holder of the majority of the notes. But the agreement is contingent upon the company effecting a reverse stock split – a move that shareholders voted down in June. The company’s board urged shareholders to this time […]
‘Body-on-a-chip’ device screens human heart cells for drug toxicity
Researchers at Kyoto University‘s Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences have developed a ‘body-on-a-chip’ device that can evaluate the side-effects of drugs on human cells, according to a study published today in the Royal Society of Chemistry Advances. The device was used to test the toxicity of doxorubicin, a cancer-killing drug, on human heart cells. The researchers […]