Hope Springs Eternal: Cancer Research to Get Excited About

To say there is accelerated growth in the field of cancer research is an understatement. The landscape of oncology is brimming with so many innovative therapy options, it’s exhilarating. During my own journey with HER2+ breast cancer, I received cutting-edge, targeted therapy drugs like Herceptin and Perjeta as part of my treatment plan. I was so acutely aware that these therapies were unavailable a little more than a decade ago. Without them, my prognosis would otherwise have been bleak.

It’s no surprise that this journey has profoundly deepened my interest in learning about the latest cancer research developments. In fact, the Cancer Besties team is working on creating tools to help anyone stay on top of emerging research, empowering patients like me to advocate effectively for our best treatment options. (Stay tuned!)

I’ve always been a podcast junkie, so naturally I shifted to listening to podcasts around cancer research. With that, I want to share a few episodes that left me teary eyed and so hopeful for better outcomes for all.

🎙️Podcast Episode: The Vaccine That Could End Breast Cancer (Target Cancer)

Exploring Breakthrough Cancer Research with Anixa Biosciences’ Novel Vaccine Approach

If you haven’t seen him on TikTok already, meet Dr. Sanjay Juneja, who has the distinct ability to distill all the news around cancer and cancer research for all us non-medical folk. His dance moves aren’t bad either! On a more serious note, he hosts a podcast called Target Cancer where he talks with industry leaders about the latest cancer research. In my opinion, this podcast is best consumed in video form (on Youtube). In this latest podcast episode, he interviews Dr. Amit Kumar, CEO of Anixa Biosciences.

Anixa Biosciences is working on a novel breast cancer vaccine targeting triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients first. TNBC is one of the most aggressive and lethal forms of the disease. The vaccine uses a unique approach by focusing on “retired” proteins, specifically α-lactalbumin, which is typically absent in normal, aging tissues post-lactation but is present in most TNBC cells. He mentions that, in fact, α-lactalbumin shows up not just in TNBC but all other types of breast cancer cells. This strategy aims to train the immune system to recognize and destroy emerging breast tumors that express this protein, potentially preventing the development and recurrence of cancer. In other words, take out the cancer cells before they can form.

What this means for breast cancer patients now:

The Phase 1 clinical trial of this vaccine has shown encouraging results, focusing on preventing recurrence for TNBC. However, this could be expanded to earlier treatment phases along with other therapies. Their hypothesis is that this vaccine could potentially last for a lifetime and not require booster doses.

What this could mean for other cancers:

Dr. Kumar talks about Anixa’s current studies which use the same method in identifying retired proteins to create vaccines for other cancers such as ovarian, lung, colon, and prostate cancer.

🎙️Podcast Episode: The Biggest Challenge in Medicine with Neil deGrasse Tyson & Dr. Linda Malkas (StarTalk)

Exploring Promising Cancer Therapy: AOH-1996 and the Revolutionary Approach of Dr. Linda Malkas on StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson

Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts a super fun podcast called StarTalk where he expands his guest list beyond the world of astrophysics. In this episode, he brought on Dr. Linda Malkas from City of Hope Cancer Treatment Research Center to talk about their team’s work to develop a new drug which has the potential to treat all solid tumors.

They’ve created AOH-1996, a type of cancer therapy that targets a specific protein in cancer cells called proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), which is essential for DNA replication, repair, and scaffold functions in the cytosol. Dr. Malkas compares PCNA to an airport terminal, a hub. And if you can shut down the hub, you also shut down the connections, thereby taking down a network. She and her team have identified the region of PCNA in cancer cells that make it different from the PCNA in normal cells. AOH-1996 works by blocking PCNA associated with cancer cells. By inhibiting PCNA, AOH-1996 prevents cancer cells from replicating and repairing themselves, effectively stopping their growth. This means that it selectively affects cancer cells while minimizing damage to normal cells, potentially reducing side effects compared to traditional chemotherapy.

What this means for brain cancer patients now:

Dr. Malkas shared their Phase 1 clinical trial which began in 2022 where patients received AOH-1995 in pill form. At the time of this posting, they are no longer recruiting.

What this could mean for cancer patients in the future:

As this strategy is agnostic to specific tumor types, this has the potential to work with many types of solid tumor cancers.

🎙️Podcast Episode: Beating brain cancers with.. sound waves? (Target Cancer)

Revolutionizing Brain Cancer Treatment: Dr. Ely Benaim’s Breakthrough Approach at SonALAsense with Dr. Sanjay Juneja

In this podcast episode, Dr. Sanjay Juneja interviews Dr. Ely Benaim from SonALAsense and their latest methods for treating brain cancers. If you know anything about glioblastoma (a form of brain cancer), the survival is extremely poor with approximately 40% survival in the first year post-diagnosis and 17% in the second year. And having someone in my close circle of friends with glioblastoma, I made sure I listened to it, three times by now.

Dr. Benaim goes on to describe their noninvasive treatment approach combining SONALA-001, a drug formulation of aminolevulinic acid (5ALA), with magnetic resonance (MR)-guided focused ultrasound. The therapy specifically targets cancer cells by inducing them to absorb the drug, which is then activated by ultrasound-generated light, leading to selective tumor cell destruction without harming surrounding tissues. 🤯

What this means for brain cancer patients now:

Dr. Ely Benaim talks about their current Phase 1 & 2 clinical trial for patients with recurrent glioblastoma. Early results from phase 1 have shown that this therapy can induce rapid tumor cell death and is well-tolerated by patients. 🤯

SonALAsense also has a Phase 2 clinical trial in progress treating pediatric patients with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). The therapy showed signs of reducing tumor size by at least 25% in 40% of the patients treated and maintained stable disease in another 40%. Additionally, some patients exceeded the median survival expectation of 9-11 months post-diagnosis. 🤯

What this could mean for brain cancer patients in the future:

There is a current movement by families of DIPG patients to categorize super-rare oncological diseases such as DIPG to allow for expanded access to otherwise inaccessible therapies. Currently, this category exists for only non-oncological diseases.

If all of this doesn’t paint a bright picture for the future in the face of rising cancer rates, I don’t know what will! Get excited and stay hopeful, Cancer Besties!

XOXO,

Alice