Key Takeaways
- Clinical trials like the ones featured here build on decades of science discoveries and valuable patient participation.
- The OVATION-3 study could mark a turning point in ovarian cancer care. The medication IMNN-001 may move frontline treatment beyond chemotherapy alone and toward an approach that enlists the immune system as a lasting ally in keeping ovarian cancer under control.
- Even though new combinations of radiation, chemotherapy and immunotherapy have helped in the first round of treatment, many patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) eventually see their cancer come back. The two medicines being studied in a new trial may offer hope.
Hope for women with advanced ovarian cancer
Standard treatment for advanced ovarian cancer includes a combination of aggressive surgery (cytoreduction) and chemotherapy. While refinements in surgical techniques and medication regimens have helped some women live longer, overall survival rates for advanced ovarian cancer have not improved as much as patients and gynecologic oncologists have hoped.
A phase III clinical trial enrolling patients at Providence Cancer Institute could change that trajectory. Instead of relying solely on standard therapy to fight ovarian cancer, researchers are adding an immune-based treatment called IMNN-001, which is designed to help the body attack the disease from within.
The study, known as OVATION-3, follows the earlier OVATION-2 phase I/II trial that also included patients enrolled at Providence Cancer Institute. The results from OVATION-2 suggested that adding IMNN-001 to standard chemotherapy helped patients live longer compared to chemotherapy alone.
How the therapy works
IMNN-001 delivers instructions for making interleukin-12 (IL-12), a naturally occurring and powerful protein. IL-12 can activate key immune cells and reshape the tumor environment, making it harder for cancer cells to hide.
By delivering IMNN-001 directly into the abdominal cavity where ovarian cancer most often spreads, researchers aim to boost effectiveness while limiting side effects.
Two-arm study design
Participants with newly diagnosed epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer will be randomly assigned to receive either:
- Standard chemotherapy (carboplatin and paclitaxel), or
- Chemotherapy plus intraperitoneal IMNN-001.
Both groups may also go on to receive maintenance therapy, as is standard today. All participants undergo interval cytoreductive surgery (a procedure that removes as much tumor tissue as possible) after the first three cycles of treatment.
Researchers will measure overall survival, tumor response to chemotherapy and surgery, time until additional treatment is needed and other clinical outcomes. An independent safety committee will oversee the study.
Why this study is important
What makes this study unique is not only the therapy itself but also the rigorous way it’s being tested. If successful, OVATION-3 could mark a turning point in ovarian cancer care. IMNN-001 may move frontline treatment beyond chemotherapy alone and toward an approach that enlists the immune system as a lasting ally in keeping ovarian cancer under control.
Providence Cancer Institute is the only site in Oregon enrolling patients in OVATION-3. Christopher Darus, M.D., MS, is the principal investigator.
Get more information about the study: A Randomized Phase 3 Trial Evaluating the Safety & Efficacy of IP IMNN-001 Administered in Combination w/ Standard Neoadjuvant & Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Newly Diagnosed Patients w/ Advanced EOC, Fallopian Tube or Primary Peritoneal Cancer
To refer a patient to this trial:
- Call 503-215-1979
- Send us an email
Study explores dual targeted therapy in relapsed small cell lung cancer
A new clinical trial is open for people with advanced stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC) whose disease has returned after treatment. The study is currently enrolling patients at Providence Cancer Institute.
This study is important because treatment options for relapsed SCLC are limited. Even though new combinations of radiation, chemotherapy and immunotherapy have helped in the first round of treatment, many patients eventually see their cancer come back. At that point, existing medicines often work only for a short time.
The two medicines being studied in this trial may offer hope.
MK-6070 helps the body’s immune system target cancer cells more directly, and ifinatamab deruxtecan (I-DXd) delivers a cancer-killing agent straight to tumor cells, sparing healthy tissues. Since they work in different ways, researchers believe these medicines may be especially powerful together.
What are MK-6070 and I-DXd?
MK-6070 is a trispecific T-cell engager, a medicine designed to target three different proteins at once, including DLL3, which is often found on the surface of SCLC cells. By binding to both DLL3 and T cells, MK-6070 helps direct the immune system to recognize and destroy cancer. This mechanism allows immune cells to more efficiently attack cancer cells.
I-DXd takes a different approach. This antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) binds to B7-H3, another protein frequently overexpressed in SCLC. Once attached, it delivers a potent chemotherapy payload directly to the cancer cell, triggering its destruction.
Early studies of each medication alone have shown encouraging results for shrinking tumors.
How the study is organized
This phase 1 study is structured in multiple parts with several treatment arms. In the first part, researchers are testing different doses of MK-6070 and I-DXd in combination, as well as I-DXd alone in a separate group.
The second part will focus on evaluating MK-6070 alone in participants in Japan and China. A third portion of the trial will look at MK-6070 combined with durvalumab, an immunotherapy drug that helps boost immune response against cancer cells.
The main study goals are to evaluate safety and tolerability, as well as to see how well the treatments shrink tumors and how long these responses last. By combining MK-6070, which activates the immune system, with I-DXd, which delivers targeted chemotherapy, the hope is to create a more powerful response against relapsed SCLC than either medication alone.
Providence Cancer Institute is enrolling patients with advanced SCLC, following at least one prior line of systemic therapy that included platinum-based chemotherapy. Rachel Sanborn, M.D., is the principal investigator.
To refer a patient to this trial:
- Call 503-215-1979, or
- Send us an email
About Providence Cancer Institute of Oregon
Providence Cancer Institute is a leading provider of cancer care in Oregon and a global leader in immuno-oncology. Through its research division, the Earle A. Chiles Research Institute, patients have access to state-of-the-art genomic sequencing, adoptive cellular therapies and groundbreaking clinical trials.
If you or someone you know is interested in participating in a clinical trial, talk with your physician. Participating in research not only offers access to emerging therapies but also helps move science forward for others facing the same diagnosis.
Find out about other clinical trials at Providence Cancer Institute.
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