Elizabeth A Reap, Carter M Suryadevara, Kristen A Batich, Luis Sanchez-Perez, Gary E Archer, Robert J Schmittling, Pamela K Norberg, James E Herndon, Patrick Healy, Kendra L Congdon, Patrick C Gedeon, Olivia C Campbell, Adam M Swartz, Katherine A Riccione, John S Yi, Mohammed K Hossain-Ibrahim, Anirudh Saraswathula, Smita K Nair, Anastasie M Dunn-Pirio, Taylor M Broome, Kent J Weinhold, Annick Desjardins, Gordana Vlahovic, Roger E McLendon, Allan H Friedman, Henry S Friedman, Darell D Bigner, Peter E Fecci, Duane A Mitchell, John H Sampson
Median survival for glioblastoma (GBM) remains <15 months. Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigens have been identified in GBM but not normal brain, providing an unparalleled opportunity to subvert CMV antigens as tumor-specific immunotherapy targets. A recent trial in recurrent GBM patients demonstrated the potential clinical benefit of adoptive T-cell therapy (ATCT) of CMV phosphoprotein 65 (pp65)-specific T cells. However, ex vivo analyses from this study found no change in the capacity of CMV pp65-specific T cells to gain multiple effector functions or polyfunctionality, which has been associated with superior antitumor efficacy...
January 1, 2018: Cancer Research