CHECKvacc (HOV3, CF33-hNIS-anti-PD-L1), the next medical revolution against cancer

Abstract

Despite advances in modern treatment, many cancers have evolved to bypass the immune system. The immune system either cannot perceive the tumor as foreign or the immune response is hindered. Oncolytic viruses are designed to infect and kill cancer cells. A huge variety of oncolytic viruses have been produced and tested over the last 30 years. The presence of 9 different virus strains in the cells (mouse) at the same time allowed the genes from the different strains to be rearranged via homologous recombination to generate unique chimeric daughter viruses. CHECKvacc is a genetically engineered oncolytic virus (CF33) that is equipped with the human sodium iodide symporter (hNIS) and an anti-PD-L1 antibody. The novel modified viruses will be examined as a monotherapy or in combination with pembrolizumab to determine the safety and efficacy of the treatment regimens. The first patient was dosed in a phase 1 clinical trial to assess the treatment's safety in people with advanced solid tumors. The medicine will be administered either directly into the tumors or intravenously.