Highlights from ASH: Conversations with Christopher Heery and Srdan Verstovsek

 In this episode of The Onco'Zine Brief, Peter Hofland talks with two experts about their research and the impact the outcomes from these studies may have on the treatment of patients diagnosed with cancer.

First, Hofland talks with Christopher Heery, MD.

Dr Heery is a board-certified medical oncologist with primary expertise in the translational and clinical development of immunotherapies, including, but not limited to PD-L1 inhibitors, therapeutic cancer vaccines, immune suppressor modulator, adoptive NK cells, and other therapeutics.

As the chief medical officer at Arcellx, he is responsible for medical oversight, clinical strategy, medical affairs, and regulatory strategy for the company’s pipeline of novel – investigational drug.

In the second half of the program, Hofland talks with Srdan Verstovsek, Dr Srdan Verstovsek, MD, PhD., a Medical Oncologist and Professor in the Department of Leukemia at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, about some of the developments in the treatment of myeloproliferative neoplasm, which are types of blood cancer that begin with an abnormal mutation or change, in a stem cell in the bone marrow. These change leads to an overproduction of any combination of white cells, red blood cells and platelets – and results in a number of diseases, including:

• Essential Thrombocythemia (ET) Is a rare blood disease in which the bone marrow produces too many platelets;
• Myelofibrosis, a rare disorder in which abnormal blood cells and fibers build up in the bone marrow;
• Polycythemia Vera (PV) – a disease in which too many red blood cells are made in the bone marrow and, in many cases, the numbers of white blood cells and platelets are also elevated.

 In a new episode of The Onco'Zine Brief, Peter Hofland talks with David M. Cognetti, MD, a Professor and Chair in the Department Head and Neck Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.

Hofland and Cognetti talk about head and neck cancer and a novel treatment approach called Photoimmunotherapy.

Head and Neck Cancer
According to the American Cancer Society, Head and neck cancer accounts for about 4% of all cancers in the United States. In the United States in 2023, an estimated 67,000 people will be diagnosed with head and neck cancer and about 15,000 patients are expected to die of the disease.

Today, many cancers of the head and neck can be cured, especially if they are found early. And while eliminating the cancer is the primary goal of treatment, preserving the function of the nearby nerves, organs, and tissues is also very important.

Beyond Current Treatment
Photoimmunotherapy is a recently developed hybrid cancer therapy to treat diseases by linking specific antibodies with photosensitizers to form photoimmunoconjugates.

But let’s go back to the beginning.

Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy have dominated the treatment of oncologic. These therapies aim to eradicate cancer cells but, unfortunately, do that at the expense of normal, or healthy cells/ In turn, this can lead to severe and sometimes lethal side-effects.

Overall, the success of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy is measured by what we call a ‘therapeutic index.’

This ‘therapeutic index’ compares the potential benefits of treatment to the potential risks associated with treatment.

Unfortunately, the unintended, off-target side effects of these therapies can have profound effects on the health-related quality of life of patients.