So far, the wonders of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy have only been seen in blood cancers. Investigators at Moffitt Cancer Center report findings that show a potential target in solid tumors.
Investigators from Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida, have published results identifying a potential target for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies in solid tumors—which could be step toward bringing this game-changing treatment beyond blood cancers.
In Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, a publication of the American Association of Cancer Research, the Moffitt team present the identification of OR2H1, an olfactory receptor that they demonstrate inhibits growth in lung and ovarian tumors.
The creation of individualized CAR T-cell therapy involves genetic modification of a patient’s own T cells, which are collected through apheresis and then put through a manufacturing process; the cells are modified to include a gene for the T cell receptor that allow them to hunt down the cancer in the body when the treatment is infused back into the patient.
Finding tumor markers that will make this process work in solid tumors has been a huge challenge. The Moffitt team, led by Jose Conejo-Garcia, MD, PhD, has zoned in on proteins—the olfactory receptors—that are expressed in the nose but are also found in many solid tumors, and very few normal cells.
The investigators created CAR T cells specific to the OR2H1 protein, which were able to kill lung and ovarian cells that expressed OR2H1—but did nothing to healthy cells. The same effect was seen in mice implanted with human tumors with varying levels of OR2H1.
“Our work demonstrates the applicability of this therapy to a wide variety of patients, given the expression of OR2H1 in a subset of solid tumors across multiple histologies, including high-grade serous ovarian cancers, lung carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma, prostate cancer and ovarian cancers of multiple other histologies,” Conejo-Garcia, chair of Moffitt’s Department of Immunology, said in a statement. “Targeting a molecule that is not expressed in vital tissues would allow us to further engineer T cells to overcome immunosuppression at tumor beds, if needed.”
Reference
Martin AL, Anadon CM, Biswas S, et al. Olfactory receptor OR2H1 is an effective target for CAR T cells in human epithelial tumors. Mol Cancer Ther. Published online May 2, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-21-0872
Dr Kathryn Lindley Explains the Importance of Cardio-Obstetrics in Fellowship Programs
December 5th 2023Kathryn Lindley, MD, FACC, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, talks about why it’s important to incorporate cardio-obstetrics training into cardiovascular disease fellowship programs.
Read More
Oncology Onward: A Conversation With Thyme Care CEO and Cofounder Robin Shah
October 2nd 2023Robin Shah, CEO of Thyme Care, which he founded in 2020 with Bobby Green, MD, president and chief medical officer, joins hosts Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, and Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, to discuss his evolution as an entrepreneur in oncology care innovation and his goal of positively changing how patients experience the cancer system.
Listen
Dr Guru Sonpavde: Nivolumab Plus Gemcitabine-Cisplatin Holds Promise in Urothelial Cancer
November 30th 2023Urothelial carcinoma has long been treated with chemotherapy as the frontline standard of care, but recent trial results in the space have potential to add to the treatment armamentarium and improve outcomes for the first time in decades.
Read More
Nathan Walcker Discusses Value-Based Oncology Care Initiatives at FCS
September 8th 2023Nathan Walcker, CEO at Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute (FCS), highlights some of the recent partnerships and initiatives at FCS to improve community-based oncology care from a value-based perspective.
Listen
In this interview with The American Journal of Managed Care®, Katie Queen, MD, addresses the complexity of obesity as a medical condition, pivoting to virtual care while ensuring that patients who lived in a rural location continued to receive adequate care, and the importance of integrating awareness of obesity and chronic disease prevention into local food culture.
Read More
The FDA has approved pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in combination with fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-containing chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of adult patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic, HER2-negative gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.
Read More