State of Cancer Immunotherapy

 

Immunotherapy Has a Long History1-5

Immunotherapy has been under evaluation for more than a century, but only recently has it entered a renaissance phase with approval of multiple agents for the treatment of cancer.
History of Immunotherapy – Fight Cancer with Immunotherapy

Adapted with permission from Lesterhuls WJ, et al2 and Kirkwood JM, et al. J Clin Oncol. 2008;26(20):3445-3455.
BCG=Bacillus Calmette-Guérin; CA=cancer

 
FDA-Approved Immunotherapies*,1,4,6-8
Class Approvals
Monoclonal antibodies 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009
Checkpoint inhibitor 2011
Cytokines 1986, 1992, 1995,
1998
Therapeutic vaccine 2010
*Not inclusive of all immunotherapy classes.
 

The Future of Immunotherapy

Clinical research in immunotherapy is rapidly increasing:

  • From 2009 to 2012, abstracts at major conferences have doubled9
  • There are approximately 800 ongoing clinical trials in various phases for cancers such as breast, colon, head and neck, and kidney10

Learn More About Clinical Considerations

References

  1. Kirkwood JM, Ferrone S, et al. CA Cancer J Clin. 2012;62(5):309-335.
  2. Lesterhuis WJ, Punt CJ, et al. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2011;10(8):591-600.
  3. Krummel MF, Allison JP. J Exp Med. 1995;182(2):459-465.
  4. Lotze M. In: Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. 2011.
  5. Leget GA, Czuczman MS. Curr Opin Oncol. 1998;10(6):548-551.
  6. Mellman I, Dranoff G, et al. Nature. 2011;480(7378):480-489.
  7. Sondak VK, Hauschild A, et al. In: Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. 2011.
  8. Robinson MK, Weiner LM, et al. In: Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. 2011.
  9. SeekingAlpha.com. http://seekingalpha.com/article/667581-immunotherapy-comes-of-age-at-asco-2012. Accessed January 4, 2013.
  10. ClinicalTrials.gov. http://clinicaltrials.gov/. Accessed January 4, 2013.