Immuno-oncology to become mainstay of cancer treatment, notes report

The latest report from business information and analytics provider, GlobalData, has indicated that immune-oncology (IO) will become the fifth pillar of cancer treatment, joining surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and other targeted treatments.

To generate actionable insights, GlobalData’s health team analysed more than 4,000 clinical trials and over 800 IO products in Phase I–III clinical trials. The report, ‘Pharma Focus Visual Analysis of Immuno-Oncology Development and Opportunities’, focuses mainly on developments in active immunotherapy products based on their molecular targets and molecule types. Additionally, immune checkpoint modulators, along with 18 solid tumour types and eight blood cancers, were assessed.

A vast majority of IO treatments use the immune system to achieve an anti-tumour response for disease stabilisation and potential remission. They work through inhibiting or blocking the immune checkpoint proteins, with PD-(L)1 inhibitors being the most rapidly adopted as a result of their comparative survival benefit and safety profiles.

“Beyond PD-(L)1 and CTLA-4, 18 other IO targets are currently being explored in Phase I–III clinical trials,” said Maxime Bourgognon, senior healthcare analyst at GlobalData. “However, agents targeting emerging checkpoint targets will not represent a threat to the uptake of existing PD-(L)1 checkpoint modulators, as most agents will be combined with already marketed immune checkpoint modulators.”

The excitement surrounding this field has been driven by IO therapies’ ability to use the body’s natural immune system to treat cancer. IO teaches the immune system to recognise and destroy cancer cells.

Drugs within IO are now in a position to compete as monotherapies against traditional standard of care chemotherapy regimens, according to GlobalData. Additionally, these treatments offer efficacy with less toxicity in a variety of indications.

“Despite all the initial setbacks and challenges in IO, researchers and drug developers have now found innovative ways to successfully augment the immune response against cancer,” continued Bourgognon. “In the near future, it is hoped that the combination of IO agents with other IO agents, targeted therapies, or chemotherapy regimens will lead to improved long-term survival outcomes for even more cancer patients.”