Bristol-Myers Squibb, MD Anderson Collaborate On Immunotherapies

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS) has forged a new partnership with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The collaboration, announced in a press release, will evaluate immunotherapies for acute and chronic leukemia and other hematologic malignancies. Agents to be studied include Opdivo (nivolumab) and Yervoy (ipilimumab). BMS also announced that it will partner with Novartis to study Opdivo in combination with Novartis’ oncology therapies.

MD Anderson President Ron DePinho, M.D., said, “Immunotherapy is an extremely promising area of research and a key area of focus for MD Anderson’s Moonshots Program. Partnerships between academia and industry have the potential to significantly advance the application of new discoveries to cancer treatment.”

BMS and MD Anderson Agreement

The agreement between BMS and MD Anderson calls for MD Anderson to conduct up to ten Phase 1 and 2 trials. The studies will use multiple agents for hematologic malignancies. Researchers will deploy the immune-based therapies alone and in combination. Of interest to the partners are acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), and myelofibrosis (MF). The partners may elect to conduct further studies later.

Opdivo

Opdivo (nivolumab) is a PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor, which prevents tumors from hiding, thereby exposing them to the immune system response. The agent binds to the checkpoint receptor PD-1 expressed on activated T-cells. BMS is running more than 35 trials on Opdivo enrolling more than 7,000 patients worldwide. The investigations span multiple tumor types and include small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), melanoma, and renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

Yervoy  

Yervoy (ipilimumab) is a CTLA-4 immune checkpoint inhibitor that blocks CTLA-4 and its interactions with its ligands—a key process in T-cell activation and proliferation. In blocking these interactions, the drug stimulates the immune system response. Yervoy is approved in more than 40 countries and BMS is continuing its development program and investigating the agent for multiple tumor types, including prostate and lung cancers.

BMS and Novartis Partnership

In addition to its partnership with MD Anderson, BMS also announced a new collaboration with Novartis. The two companies intend to investigate Opdivo in combination with Zykadia (ceritinib), INC280, and EGF816. Novartis will conduct the Phase 1 and 2 trials for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).