The US Food and Drug Administration, FDA, recently approved the use of a new biological drug, based on research by the Weizmann Institute of Science, to treat patients with a certain type of lung cancer. This is the third drug for the treatment of cancer based on research done at the Institute in the research group of Prof. Michael Sela from the Department of Immunology at the Weizmann Institute.
The US Food and Drug Administration, FDA, recently approved the use of a new biological drug, based on research by the Weizmann Institute of Science, to treat patients with a certain type of lung cancer. This is the third cancer treatment drug based on research done at the institute in the research group of Prof. Michael Sela From the Department of Immunology.
The three drugs are based on a combination of antibodies that block a receptor for a tumor factor called EGFR, which is displayed on the surface of the membrane of certain cells, and plays a central role in the formation and spread of cancer tumors. Blocking the EGFR receptor inhibits this unwanted process. Several years ago, Prof. Sela, Dr. Ester Pirk, and Dr. Ester Harvitz discovered that certain antibodies that block this receptor, in combination with chemotherapy drugs, activate anti-cancer mechanisms creating synergy; That is, this combination creates an effect that exceeds that of each of the drugs separately.
says Amir Nyberg, CEO of the company "knowledge", which promotes technological and medical applications based on the inventions of Weizmann Institute of Science scientists: "This is a very great achievement in the field of technology transfer: one patent led to three agreements with pharmaceutical companies, and the launch of three different cancer treatments."
The new drug, "Portrazza", manufactured by Eli Lilly and Company, is given as an infusion, in combination with chemotherapy drugs, to treat metastatic squamous non-small cell lung carcinoma. It is very difficult to cure this type of cancer, and the treatment options for these patients are very limited. In advanced clinical trials, Portrazza, along with the other drugs, extended the lives of patients with this disease.
The first drug developed in the past based on the same research by Prof. Sela is "Arbitox", produced by the companies "Merck" and "Ily Lilly". This is an EGFR-blocking antibody, which in many countries has been approved for treatment, in combination with chemotherapy or radiation, in certain types of head and neck cancer, and in metastatic colon cancer.
The second drug that was based on the same study is "Vectivix", which is produced by the "Amgen" company. This antibody is approved for the treatment of metastatic colon cancer. It is used in combination with chemotherapy or without combination with other drugs, after the treatment with these drugs has failed.
The three EGFR receptor-blocking antibodies are given to patients with cancer types with predefined genetic characteristics. These drugs save the lives of hundreds of thousands of cancer patients worldwide.
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Good.