Imugene welcomes receipt of US Department of Defense grant for City of Hope cancer researchers
Imugene Limited (ASX:IMU) has revealed that City of Hope researchers Yanghee Woo, MD and Yuman Fong, MD have received a $564,173 US Department of Defense Grant for the oncolytic virotherapy CF33 in gastric cancer.
Background
The CF33 oncolytic virus was developed at City of Hope, a world-renowned independent research and treatment centre for cancer, diabetes and other life-threatening diseases based in California.
Imugenes proposal to license CF33 from City of Hope is awaiting satisfaction of customary conditions precedent and shareholder approval at the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to be held on November 18, 2019.
Focus on gastric cancer
The grant focuses on the area of stomach (gastric) cancer (GC), a disease that disproportionately affects US military service members, veterans, and their beneficiaries who have increased exposure to hazardous environmental risk factors, such as H. pylori, Epstein-Barr viral infections, radiation, and tobacco smoking.
Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) is a fatal evolution of GC for which there is no effective treatment.
Across military families and the general population, over 60% of all patients with GC will develop peritoneal disease as the most common manifestation of recurrence or metastatic presentation.
The progression of primary GC to PC is facilitated by the unique peritoneal tumour microenvironment, where metastatic peritoneal seeding requires evasion of anti-tumour immunity and maintenance of a highly immunosuppressive microenvironment.
The researchers rationalize that a combined approach using Imugenes proposed license for novel oncolytic virus CF33 armed to express an anti-PD-L1 antibody as immune moRead More – Source
