by Christopher Outcalt | Colorado State University SOURCE
Researchers at Colorado State University have developed an innovative new cancer immunotherapy and will begin enrolling ovarian cancer patients by the end of this year to test the treatment in the first phase of a human clinical trial.
The therapy involves extracting and exposing a patient’s own tumor cells to vitamin B2 and ultraviolet light, a process that renders the cells “quasi-dead.” Those cells, which can no longer divide and are not harmful, are then injected back into the patient. Although the cells are inactive, they help stimulate a patient’s immune system to develop a stronger immune response to attack the cancer in their body.
PhotonPharma, a startup led by CSU Professor Raymond Goodrich, developed the technology and treatment, which was recently patented in the U.S.
“It was a huge milestone to be able to say we now have intellectual property protection on this,” said Goodrich, who is PhotonPharma’s chief science officer. “I’m very excited about this going forward; we’re able to give patients the ability to better immunize themselves against their own tumor.”
The process of treating the tumor cells is relatively straightforward and involves a somewhat simple machine that resembles a home office printer. If the therapy is shown to be effective in humans, it could lead to more widely accessible treatment for cancer patients. The devices could be deployed at regional centers and hospitals making it more accessible to patients where they live.
“Our goal is to make these treatments available more broadly, opening up better access for patients,” Goodrich said. “When more people have access to technologies like this, everyone benefits.”
Effective in initial tests
The process has been effective throughout multiple stages of testing, including in human tissue samples and a pilot study in companion dogs with naturally occurring cancers. The study in dogs was conducted with the consent of their owners at CSU’s world-renowned Flint Animal Cancer Center. Previous testing has shown the treatment can work on multiple types of solid organ cancers, decreasing the amount of cancer cells and the size of tumors as well as increasing survival rates.
Goodrich has been working on this treatment since 2018, when he first arrived at CSU to lead the University’s Infectious Disease Research Center in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Goodrich previously developed a similar technology used to “clean” blood prior to it being used for transfusions.
“There’s a lot of work that’s been done on this – it’s not just one study or one experiment or one piece of data,” said Goodrich, who has received more than 50 patents for work throughout his career. “There’s a lot pointing in the right direction; that’s what gives me confidence as we get ready to try this in people.”
Showing a difference
The Phase 1 trial is designed to first test if the therapy is safe in humans. PhotonPharma is working with the City of Hope, a leading cancer treatment center in southern California, to enroll six ovarian cancer patients for the trial. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already cleared the study, and Goodrich said he hopes to begin enrolling patients by the end of the year.
City of Hope treats all types of cancers, including roughly 500 ovarian cancer patients each year. This study will focus on patients who have relapsed.
The PhotonPharma team targeted ovarian cancer for the Phase 1 trial for multiple reasons, Goodrich said, including that many existing chemotherapies are not effective for these patients.
There are about 20,000 new cases of ovarian cancer each year and about 13,000 deaths annually, according to the American Cancer Society. About 50% of patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer will relapse within three to five years.
Other types of cancers, including breast, lung and colon cancer, are more common. However, Goodrich said, that also means there is more competition to develop therapies for those cancers because they are highly studied, including by large pharmaceutical companies. Goodrich said that focusing on a lesser-occurring cancer with fewer existing treatment options provides more of an opportunity for PhotonPharma technology to stand out.
“We really felt that if our technology was going to make a significant difference,” Goodrich said, “this is a space where as a small biotech company we could show that difference.”
The first phase of the trial will last for one year. If the therapy is shown to be safe after a year, Goodrich said, they would then enroll an additional 12 patients for a second year of testing. The goal in the second phase of the trial would be to examine if the treatment is working by looking at factors such as whether a patient’s tumors are shrinking and if they are living longer. If the treatment works in ovarian cancer patients, it could eventually be used on other solid organ cancers, Goodrich said.
PhotonPharma was created with the help of CSU STRATA, a nonprofit that supports intellectual property management at the university, as well as funding from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Improving the health of animals, people and the planet has been central to CSU’s land-grant mission since its founding, and that vision remains at the heart of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences today. The College offers bachelor’s degrees in biomedical sciences and neuroscience and has a robust graduate student program, which includes the renowned Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program. CVMBS faculty explore a variety of pivotal issues in infectious disease, orthopedics, neuroscience, cancer biology, animal reproduction and translational medicine.
