Avid Bioservices Inc (CDMO)

[Protector]

north, no it is not really speculation: see here your original:

3) A short Q&A session followed. It ended with an invitation for those who had further questions to step to the front to ask them before the reception began.

For my part, I took the opportunity to remind Dr. Wolchok of the question I had asked him the year before at Wistar[CP's question]. He nodded he remembered that question.

I then renewed that question to ask, in light of the year of further experience, data collection, posters presented at 2017 AACR[e.g. #1651] and 2017 SITC by PPHM and MSKCC, his discussion re CAR-T[my summary in paragraph 1) above], and clinical trials begun by other NCCN members[one by JHU, another by MGH and D-F], if anything had been done by MSKCC to initiate a clinical trial in human patients?

He answered by stating that an experimental design had been completed for such a trial...for what indication(s) he did not say, nor did I ask.

Rather, I asked "when will that trial design be implemented"? He said "that depends on the company." as he left the auditorium.

You remember him PS-Targeting first, then set his mind to his CAR-T presentations, then ask him about clinical trials and SPECIFIC: HUMANS and MSKCC related. He said "an experimental design had been completed for such a trial..."

That same evening he also talked about GILD/KITE/CAR-T and the toxicity problems:

1) Dr. Wolchok did discuss more extensively the CAR-T therapy he discussed only briefly during his Wistar presentation a year earlier. He noted the FDA had approved CAR-T therapies for use in humans, specifically that of KITE. He pointed to the recent acquisition of KITE by GILD, and also the acquisition of the private company discussed in post #s 320239 and others[e.g.,'264, '256, '273],all in an attempt to improve the safety of such therapies that have been found unpredictably toxic--sometimes fatal as in trials by KITE and JUNO--by reason of cytokine storms. He cautioned that the administration of such therapy to patients must now be accompanied by readiness to quickly administer a mitigating steroid to control those toxicities.

So set in that context what other clinical trial for humans could he have been speaking of in relation to PS-targeting (which you remembered him off first) and then in a setting about CAR-T and his presentations earlier this year at ASCO on CAR-T with PS-Targeting. What other BP may be running that test if KITE was the company delivering the CAR-T technology (I think they are even mentioned somewhere would under a paper or presentation in a 'thanks').

And further: The 3rd NCCN trial is not by Sloan Kettering as far as I remember. So Dr. Wolchok must have been talking about yet another clinical trial on humans. And we know PPHM since at least after the appearance of RONIN was NOT going to run any NEW clinical trials anymore and sponsored MSK for pre-clinical work.

So why would Wolchok think he is waiting for an answer of 'the company'?

but north, I agree that the above isn't watertight because it wouldn't be the first time that company A runs with B and on good results suddenly teams up with company C to continue. However, the fact that GILD bought KITE, last week another CAR-T company and that GILD is know for deep and high quality D&D before they step into something but then go 1000% for it, strengthens me in believing that GILD/KITE/PS-targeting for solid cancers is what is coming our way. But yes that remains educated speculation.

AIMO