Immunotherapy before surgery very successful in treating colorectal cancer, trial finds (Yervoy with Ipdivo)

A short course of immunotherapy was found to be highly effective in a subset of patients with colon cancer. The treatment, which consisted of two cycles of immunotherapy prior to surgery, was effective in almost all patients. In two-thirds of patients, there were no longer any live tumor cells at the time of surgery. The patients' immune systems had cleaned up the cancer cells.

Patients with colon cancer with a specific genetic makeup, known as mismatch-repair deficient (dMMR) or microsatellite instable (MSI), were treated with one cycle of ipilimumab and two cycles of nivolumab. In 95% of patients, the tumor was either complete or almost completely gone, which was measured as 10% or less cancer cells found at the time of surgery. In 68% of patients there were no live cancer cells.

"This specific type of colorectal cancer contains a high number of DNA errors, which means that the tumor cells are more easily detected by the immune system," Myriam Chalabi says. Equally important, none of the patients had developed metastases in the average of two years that they have been followed so far.

Immunotherapy given before surgery is known as neoadjuvant immunotherapy. It is intended to prevent cancer from spreading or returning, and in cases of larger tumors, to make surgery easier. The main idea behind treating before surgery is that the immune system can interact with more tumor cells and more of the DNA errors.

Chalabi remarks, "Now, more than two years after treatment, none of the patients saw recurrence even though many had high-risk tumors. The results are unprecedented. The efficacy as well as the side-effects are much better compared to chemotherapy before surgery, a treatment that only works in 1 out of 20 patients."

There's a lot of money to be made by making people sick. It almost sounds as if the American Cancel Society can't wait until 2050. Just saying....

War on cancer is now 73 years old and counting....

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"Cancer cases diagnosed in people under 50 have increased globally by 79%. In the United States, the American Cancer Society (ACS) reports that the demographics of cancer patients are shifting from older people to middle-aged people. A British Medical Journal investigation found that the number of people under 50 diagnosed with cancer has increased by almost 80% since 1990.

Overall cancer cases The ACS reported that new cancer cases increased from 1.9 million in 2022 to over 2 million in 2023. The American Cancer Society also predicts that by 2050, the number of people with cancer could rise 77% to 35 million cases.

Yale Medicine What to Know About Rising Rates of 'Early-Onset' Cancer > News > Yale Medicine Mar 4, 2024 Nature Why are so many young people getting cancer? What the data ...

Mar 13, 2024 — Statistics from around the world are now clear: the rates of more than a dozen cancers are increasing among adults under the age of 50. This rise varies from country to country and cancer to cancer, but models based on global data predict that the number of early-onset cancer cases will increase ...

CNN Cancer cases in younger people are rising sharply ... - CNN Apr 18, 2024 — In a disturbing worldwide trend, new cancer cases among young people have been increasing sharply. Early-onset cancers, defined as cancer cases diagnosed in people under 50, increased globally by a staggering 79%. In the United States, the American Cancer Society reported that the demographics of cancer patients are increasingly shifting from older individuals to middle-aged people. While adults older than 50 experienced a drop in overall cancer incidence from 1995 to 2020, there was a notable increase in people younger than 50.

Washington Post Opinion | Cancer rates are rising among younger people ... Apr 4, 2024 — A sweeping investigation published in the British Medical Journal last year documented a nearly 80 percent increase in the number of people younger than 50 diagnosed with cancer since 1990. This was accompanied by a 27 percent increase in cancer deaths among adults in their 40s, 30s or younger.

moffitt.org Cancer Cases To Jump 77% by 2050, Report Says May 6, 2024 — As the population ages and increases, the number of cancer cases will rise. A new report published by the American Cancer Society (ACS) predicts that by 2050, the number of people with cancer could rise 77% to 35 million cases.

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