Morphotek Announces Sponsored Research Agreement With Fox Chase Cancer Center To Study Immunosuppressive Effects Of Tumor Shed Antigens To Improve Future Patient Therapies

Morphotek^®, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Inc., announced today that it entered into a Sponsored Research Agreement (SRA) with Fox Chase Cancer Center (FCCC) to expand its research efforts into the immunosuppressive effects elicited by tumor shed antigens on the efficacy of immune-based therapies.

The collaboration will utilize primary human organoid cultures derived from various cancer types using optimized assays developed by ongoing research in the laboratory of Dr. Wafik El-Deiry, Deputy Cancer Center Director, Translational Research Program and Co-Leader, Molecular Therapeutics Program at FCCC. The research will focus on expanding knowledge of the biological pathways involved in suppressing patients’ immune responses to tumors prior to and during immune-based therapeutic exposure. These efforts aim to identify tumor molecular and cellular signatures that can aid in identifying patients who may respond to immune-based therapies, including monoclonal antibodies targeting specific tumor cell surface antigens.

“We are excited to enter into this collaboration with researchers at FCCC in this innovative field of applying primary human organoids to the study of tumor-mediated immune suppression,” stated Luigi Grasso, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Morphotek. “We continue to expand our efforts to understand the mechanisms by which tumors evolve in order to evade immune surveillance, which may enable us to develop novel therapeutic agents and innovative clinical designs to overcome these mechanisms and aid patients with various cancer types.”

Read the full article here.

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