Replies to post #31945 on Ayala Pharmaceuticals Inc (ADXS)

[terry hallinan]

Keytruda is in ten trials for prostate cancer right now. Only one other trial pairs it with an antigen (vaccine): Biological: pTVG-HP Plasmid DNA Vaccine. The results of this weak vaccine by itself have not even shown stable disease

Friendofthedevil,

What manner of vaccine do you figure a do-little antigen is?

Certainly there are vaccines with no adjuvant like the iconic virulent smallpox vaccines that never needed an adjuvant to rouse the immune system but you propose a weak antigen as a real vaccine.

Aren't you twisting language a bit?

In the past cancer vaccines that had presumably only a supposed stabilizing effect without obvious shrinkage did have adjuvants to stimulate the immune system - and the pairings have long failed to achieve satisfactory results.

Can we agree Keytruda is not a vaccine adjuvant like the Listeria platforms?

Best, Terry

[terry hallinan]

Friendofthedevil,

pTVG-HP plasmid DNA vaccine

A cancer vaccine containing plasmid DNA encoding human prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) (pTVG-HP) with potential immunostimulatory and antineoplastic activities. Upon administration, pTVG-HP plasmid DNA vaccine may stimulate the host immune system to generate a cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response against PAP-expressing prostate cancer cells. PAP or prostatic specific acid phosphatase (PSAP) is a tumor associated antigen (TAA) that may be overexpressed in prostate cancer.

https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-drug?cdrid=638423

The way I read this is that this vaccine does theoretically have both the effect of an antigen bird dog pointing out the enemy and a vaccine adjuvant effect that is so inadequate it has never demonstrated any protective or therapeutic effect.

That's a vaccine???

It's a Brave New World I guess. :-(

Best, Terry

[DewDiligence]

… in prostate cancer, the tumor doesn't have to shrink before survival is positively affected.

In metastatic CRPC, virtually all patients being treated will already have had a prostatectomy. So, there is no primary tumor on which to measure shrinkage in the usual manner.