Pancreatic promise from the Parker Institute

The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, launched in 2016 with $250 million from Silicon Valley billionaire Sean Parker, has unveiled its very first results — and they look promising.

The Phase 1 trial showed tumor shrinkage in metastatic pancreatic cancer, thanks to a multi-drug regimen administered to patients with the disease. The patients were treated with a combination of gemcitabine and Abraxane — commonly used for pancreatic cancer — and an experimental antibody called APX005M. Half were also given the checkpoint inhibitor Opdivo.

A little more than half of the 24 evaluable patients showed a partial reduction of their respective tumors — with the best responses observed in patients treated with all four of the drugs.