A Phase II clinical trial assessing the impact of adding a cancer vaccine to second-line immunotherapy treatment for pleural mesothelioma has revealed that the approach provides a significant benefit for patients. According to an announcement from clinical-stage biotechnology company Ultimovacs, the 118 pleural mesothelioma patients included in the study demonstrated a positive impact on both overall survival and objective response rate.
Mesothelioma Study Combined Cancer Vaccine with Immunotherapy Treatment
The study set out to assess the effect of adding the UV1 cancer vaccine to second-line treatment with ipilimumab and nivolumab, the immunotherapy combination that was recently approved by both American and European agencies for the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma.
The 118 mesothelioma patients randomized for the trial were treated between June 2020 and January 2023 at six university hospitals across Denmark, Australia, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. The investigator-initiated multi-center study was sponsored by Oslo University Hospital and supported by Bristol-Meyers Squibb and Ultimovacs.
Mesothelioma Study Falls Short of Primary Objective but Achieves Secondary Objective
Though the study found that the treatment fell short of its primary objective, which was achieving a clinically meaningful progression-free survival benefit for mesothelioma patients following first-line chemotherapy treatment, the vaccine-immunotherapy combination did demonstrate benefits for overall survival and objective response rate, with patients with the epithelioid subtype of mesothelioma experiencing further improvement.
The press release revealing the mesothelioma trial’s results concluded, “The safety profile of the combination of UV1 plus ipilimumab and nivolumab observed in the trial was consistent with that of ipilimumab and nivolumab alone, confirming the good safety profile for the UV1 vaccine.”
If you’ve been diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma or any other asbestos-related disease, the work that clinical researchers are doing provides significant hope. For more information on access to clinical trials, treatment, or any other resources, contact the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net today at 1-800-692-8608.
