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Helping the Immune System Find and Fight Cancer

An anti-cancer compound that works to activate the immune system is effective in reducing mortality from two different types of cancer.

Two articles in The New England Journal of Medicine regarding a new class of anticancer drugs show substantial benefit.

Nivolumab [pronounced nye vol’ ue mab] is a monoclonal antibody that blocks a protein called programmed cell death or PD-1. The brand name is OPDIVO.

Hodgkin’s Lymphoma

In one study, patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma who had relapsed or were resistant to existing treatments were given nivolumab. The infestigators reported a substantial therapeutic effect with 17% of patients demonstrating a complete response and 70% experiencing a partial response.

Metastatic Melanoma

The other article reported patients with metastatic melanoma also benefit from nivolumab. Patients who had not been previously treated survived longer if they got nivolumab rather than a standard melanoma chemotherapy, dacarbazine. At one year, 72 percent of the nivolumab-treated patients were still alive, compared to 42 percent of those who had received dacarbazine.

An editorial accompanying this research was titled “Release the Hounds! Activating the T-Cell Response to Cancer.” Immunotherapy for cancer is finally coming of age.

[NEJM, Jan. 22, 2015]

photo credit: Yale Rosen https://www.flickr.com/photos/pulmonary_pathology/ cc license cropped

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About the Author
Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist who has dedicated his career to making drug information understandable to consumers. His best-selling book, The People’s Pharmacy, was published in 1976 and led to a syndicated newspaper column, syndicated public radio show and web site. In 2006, Long Island University awarded him an honorary doctorate as “one of the country's leading drug experts for the consumer.”.
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