https://www.euronews.com/health/2022/06/07/this-breakthrough-drug-trial-saw-cancer-vanish-in-every-patient [ ] * Health * Healthcare * Nutrition * Wellbeing * Series[ ] Series + Smart Health * * * * Visit Euronews Home*Health*Health news* This breakthrough drug trial saw cancer vanish in every patient Four people who were successfully treated for rectal cancer in the Memorial Sloan Kettering trial join the trial's two principal investigators. Four people who were successfully treated for rectal cancer in the Memorial Sloan Kettering trial join the trial's two principal investigators. - Copyright Photo courtesy of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center By Nicole Lin Chang Published on 07/06/2022 - 13:48*Updated 17:21 Share this articleComments Share this articleClose Button facebookFacebookfacebooktwitterTwittertwitterflipboardFlipboard flipboardsendSendsendredditRedditredditmessengerMessengermessenger linkedinLinkedinlinkedinvkVKvk The cancer patients saw their tumours disappear after the treatment, and have been cancer-free for two years. [logo-euronews-180x22-gre]ADVERTISEMENT More than a dozen rectal cancer patients in the United States have seen their cancer disappear after undergoing experimental immunotherapy, in what doctors are calling an astonishing result. The patients, who were part of a small clinical trial led by researchers from New York's Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center, saw their tumours vanish after being treated with an experimental drug called dostarlimab. Close advertising Details of the trial were published on Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine. The paper described the results of 12 patients with rectal cancer, all of whom saw their cancer vanish after treatment with dostarlimab. Participants received a dose of dostarlimab every three weeks for six months, with the idea being that they would need to undergo standard treatments of chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery following treatment. However, researchers found that in every case, the cancer was cleared through the experimental treatment alone. A first in cancer treatment The trial has been hailed as a first in cancer treatment, with one of the paper's authors, Dr Luis Diaz Jr of Memorial Sloan Kettering, telling the New York Times that he knew of no other study in which a treatment completely obliterated a cancer in every patient. "I believe this is the first time this has happened in the history of cancer," he said. * Hidden cost of COVID: How millions of Europeans with cancer are being impacted by the pandemic * These surgeons have performed the first 'net-zero' cancer operation * AI can detect breast cancer signs that radiologists don't see, new study finds Immunotherapy harnesses the body's own immune system to identify and destroy cancer cells. The trial focussed on a subset of rectal cancer patients whose cancer had a specific mutation, MSK said in a statement. This sort of rectal cancer, known as "mismatch repair-deficient" (MMRd) rectal cancer, tends to respond poorly to standard chemotherapy regimens. In the trial, researchers wanted to investigate if immunotherapy alone could beat rectal cancer that had not spread to other tissues, the organisation said. The research, which is ongoing, has seen at least 14 patients "and counting" have their tumours disappear, with none of them experiencing significant side effects, it added. There was no need for standard treatments of radiation, surgery, or chemotherapy, and the cancer has not returned in any of the patients, who have been cancer-free for up to two years, it said. "It's incredibly rewarding to get these happy tears and happy emails from the patients in this study who finish treatment and realise, 'Oh my God, I get to keep all my normal body functions that I feared I might lose to radiation or surgery'," said Dr Andrea Cercek of Memorial Sloan Kettering, who co-led the trial. How does this immunotherapy work? Inspiration for the study came from a previous trial led by Dr Diaz, which saw patients taking a drug called pembrolizumab, the New York Times reported. That trial, which involved patients with advanced cancer that resisted standard treatment, saw participants' tumours stabilise, shrink and even vanish. In the current trial, researchers wanted to see what a similar drug, dostarlimab, would do if used before the cancer cells had a chance to spread. This sort of treatment focuses on particular proteins called checkpoints, which are made by some types of immune system cells as well as some cancer cells, according to the US National Cancer Institute. The checkpoints, which keep immune responses from being too strong, can sometimes prevent immune cells from effectively killing cancer cells. Like pembrolizumab, dostarlimab is a "checkpoint inhibitor": It essentially "releases the brakes" on an immune cell, freeing it to recognise and attack cancer cells, according to MSK. [logo-euronews-180x22-gre]ADVERTISEMENT "When the brakes are taken off the immune cells, MMRd cells look especially strange because they have so many mutations. So the immune cells attack with much more force," Dr Cercek said. More research needed The results have provided "what may be an early glimpse of a revolutionary treatment shift", Dr Hanna Sanoff, an oncologist at the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of North Carolina, who was not involved in the trial, wrote in an editorial accompanying the paper. However, she added that although the results are "cause for great optimism", such an approach "cannot yet supplant our current curative treatment approach". * Davos 2022: Can lessons learned from the COVID pandemic prevent the next global health crisis? * Immune system wonder: Food allergy provides protection from COVID, NIH study finds "Whether the results of this small study conducted at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center will be generalisable to a broader population of patients with rectal cancer is also not known," she said. "In order to provide more information regarding which patients might benefit from immunotherapy, subsequent trials should aim for heterogeneity in age, coexisting conditions, and tumour bulk". [logo-euronews-180x22-gre]ADVERTISEMENT The clinical trial is continuing to enrol patients and is growing, the MSK researchers said. They are also investigating to see if the same method can beat other cancers, and are looking at patients with gastric (stomach), prostate, and pancreatic cancers. Share this articleComments You might also like European Union Commissioner for Health Stella Kyriakides at EU headquarters in Brussels, Feb. 3, 2021. Now playing Next Europe News European Commission unveils new guidelines to boost cancer screenings The US Food and Drug Administration building Now playing Next Health news ALS drug removed from US market after trial shows it doesn't work Irish pharmacist Emer Cooke is the Executive Director of the European Medicines Agency since November 2020. Now playing Next Health news EU Policy. Agency chief seeks help from pharmacos with medicines shortages Health Research on cancer Cancer Disease Science [logo-euronews-180x22-gre]ADVERTISEMENT Top stories Scientists are studying in the lab to see if cannabis could be a future treatment for skin cancer. Now playing Next Could this cannabis extract become a future treatment for skin cancer? Disability Now playing Next Where is it hardest to live in Europe with a disability? European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen takes off her protective face mask as she prepares to deliver a statement at EU headquarters in Brussels, July 2021. Now playing Next 40% of Europeans say EU's impact on COVID pandemic was positive - poll Man protesting marijuana legalisation with sign saying "We don't want to be criminals!" Now playing Next Germany legalises limited amounts of marijuana The US Food and Drug Administration building Now playing Next ALS drug removed from US market after trial shows it doesn't work [logo-euronews-180x22-gre]ADVERTISEMENT Most read Why are Nordic countries so happy and what can we learn from them? Human brains are increasing in size. Could this reduce dementia risk? Could a smartphone app help to detect early signs of dementia? World's first pig kidney transplant recipient discharged from hospital Study says e-cigarette users had similar cheek cell changes to smokers [ ] * Health * Healthcare * Nutrition * Wellbeing * Series Terms and ConditionsCookie PolicyModify my cookies choices - English EnglishFrancaisDeutschItalianoEspanolPortuguesRusskiiTurkce EllenikaMagyarfrsyl`rby@ShqipRomanak`art`ulib'lgarskiSrpski * * * * Visit Euronews * Health * Healthcare * Nutrition * Wellbeing * Series[ ] Series + Smart Health * * * * [English ]# Visit Euronews Facebook