Jane de Lartigue, PhD

Articles

Perseverance Is the Name of the Game With HER3 Research in Solid Tumors

February 5th 2020

Despite a reasonable expectation that expression of HER3 and its ligand heregulin would be predictive biomarkers for HER3-targeted therapy, their usefulness in clinical trials has been hit-and-miss. Nevertheless, investigators have persevered, and new types of drugs have largely supplanted the first generation in clinical trials.

Targeting the Hedgehog Pathway Holds Promises and Pitfalls

January 18th 2020

Although small molecule inhibitors of the Hedgehog signaling pathway have transformed the treatment paradigm for advanced basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer, efforts to expand their use to other tumor types have proved elusive.

Liquid Biopsies Move Closer to Broad Clinical Adoption

December 1st 2019

Liquid biopsy technologies have made substantial headway in recent years, sparking booming commercial interest in the development of potential clinical applications.

Yale Radiation Oncologist Searches for the Elusive "Abscopal" Effect

November 21st 2019

Allison Campbell, MD, PhD, discusses the synergy between immune checkpoint inhibitors and radiation therapy and the challenges facing ongoing clinical development.

Emerging Immunotherapy Combos Seek to Capitalize on the Powers of RT

November 20th 2019

A growing appreciation of the immunomodulatory properties of radiation therapy (RT) and their role in the rare, but highly sought-after “abscopal effect”—whereby localized RT elicits systemic antitumor effects—is fueling excitement in the radiation oncology field.

IDO Inhibitor Development Shows Fresh Signs of Life Across Tumor Types

October 31st 2019

In the ongoing search for novel immunotherapies that might rival or surpass the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors, drugs targeting IDO1—a key enzyme in tryptophan metabolism—have been a major focus in recent years.

Novel Immunotherapy Combos Target GITR to Step on the Gas

October 22nd 2019

Immunotherapies designed to exploit the host immune system to specifically target cancer cells exploded onto the oncology scene in the mid-1980s, when the first such agents started to show success in melanoma and renal cell carcinoma.

New Strategies Generate Optimism for Targeting "Undruggable" KRAS

October 9th 2019

Investigators are starting to make headway in their quest to develop therapies that counteract oncogenic mutations in the KRAS gene, a high-priority target in precision medicine that has long been deemed “undruggable.”

Therapeutic Vaccines Lead the Charge in HPV-Driven Cancers

September 24th 2019

The development of therapeutic vaccines for patients with cancers associated with the human papillomavirus has emerged as a leading strategy in continuing research efforts to address the growing public health threat posed by the virus.

Search for New Prostate Cancer Targets Yields a Profusion of Options

September 11th 2019

Despite the introduction of novel therapies over the past decade, advanced prostate cancer remains an incurable disease in need of new strategies to overcome drug resistance.

Expert Anticipates Expansion of Targeted Therapies Aimed at Resistance in Breast Cancer

September 11th 2019

New strategies to address resistance in patients with estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer are in the works, thanks to a greater understanding of the cell-signaling networks activated during the course of disease.

Resistance Shapes New Therapeutic Options in ER-Positive Breast Cancer

August 19th 2019

Although hormonal manipulation was an established part of breast cancer treatment long before the underlying biology of the disease was characterized, advancements in the understanding of estrogen receptor signaling are rapidly changing the therapeutic landscape.

Therapeutic Utility of Germline Variants Is an "Open Question"

July 5th 2019

Although heritable mutations have been implicated in cancer risk, the role that these abberations play in the development of malignancies with acquired mutations is a question that will require studies of large data sets of patients.

Genome Sequencing Studies Shake Up Views on the Cancer Mutation Landscape

July 2nd 2019

Emerging findings from the most expansive studies of tumor genomes ever conducted are building a case for integrating all aspects of germline and somatic mutations into the analytical paradigm as a logical next step for precision oncology.

PSMA Emerges as Versatile Target in Prostate Cancer and Beyond

June 19th 2019

Named the medical invention of the Year by TIME magazine at the turn of the millennium, positron emission tomography/computed tomography has changed the landscape of cancer diagnosis, facilitating earlier detection and more accurate staging of a range of tumor types.

TLR Agonists Emerge as Potential New Partner for Checkpoint Inhibitors

May 15th 2019

Toll-like receptors, a group of proteins that are components of innate immunity, are emerging as promising targets in a new wave of immunotherapies under development.

ATR Inhibitors Offer New Line of Attack on DNA Repair Network

April 12th 2019

Cancer cells that manipulate the DNA damage response to foster the genomic instability that underlies many of their hallmark processes become heavily reliant on intact pathways for their survival, creating a targetable Achilles heel that can be exploited therapeutically.

Chemokine Offers Tempting Target in Tumor Niche

March 19th 2019

Chemokine receptor type 2, a major recruiter of circulating monocytes that subsequently develop into a protumoral type of macrophage within the tumor microenvironment, has emerged as a promising therapeutic target.

Microbial Metabolomics: A Search for the Missing Link to Cancer

February 8th 2019

Thanks to technological advances, the past several decades have witnessed a blossoming appreciation of the varied composition of these microbial communities, their complex and dynamic relationship with the host, and the way they affect health and disease.

Finding a Place for Stimulatory Immune Checkpoint Antibodies

January 7th 2019

When it works, immunotherapy can dramatically outperform standard of care—for some cancer types, in ways thought unattainable a decade ago.