Important article about immunotherapy and survival in ovarian cancer
In a recently published study from CCBIO and Helse Bergen HF, Luka Tandaric, Line Bjørge, and her research group have investigated how immunotherapy with two specific drugs – oleclumab (anti-CD73) and durvalumab (anti-PD-L1) – affects immune cells in the blood of patients with ovarian cancer during treatment.
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All patients were part of a clinical treatment study called NSGO-OV-UMB1/ENGOT-OV-30, which was conducted in collaboration with Nordic Society of Gynaecological Cancer - Clinical Trial Unit. Blood samples from the patients revealed interesting differences: Patients who lived longer after treatment had different patterns of immune cells compared to those with shorter survival. In patients with shorter progression-free survival, the researchers observed an increase in a type of immune cell (M-MDSC) that can suppress the immune response, while important T-cells decreased.
The research also showed that patients with higher levels of CD73 and IDO1 in their immune cells before treatment had better long-term outcomes. During treatment, it was observed that PD-L1 expression on T-cells increased in all patients.
Using an advanced technique called single-cell mass cytometry, the researchers gained deeper insights into how the treatment affects the immune system. These findings provide important new knowledge about how the body responds to immunotherapy and could lead to better, more tailored treatments for patients with ovarian cancer in the future.
