DCTD’s Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program Convenes 2020 Early Drug Development Meeting

On October 15-16, 2020, the Investigational Drug Branch of the Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program (CTEP) sponsored its annual Early Drug Development (EDD) meeting. This is an educational event focused on enhancing communications between the NCI and the network of CTEP-supported Experimental Therapeutics Clinical Trials Network (ETCTN)-funded early clinical trial investigators.

This year, the EDD meeting was held virtually with more than 250 clinical investigators and related health care personnel involved in early drug development from academia, government, and pharmaceutical companies attending. The meeting consisted of a keynote address, clinical trial update presentations, the Michaele C. Christian Oncology Drug Development Award & Lecture, and a biomarker education session (agenda).

Meeting Focus

Prioritize investigational agent selection and targeting, novel trial designs, and development and implementation of translational studies, as well as new therapeutic and imaging modalities

Meeting Highlights

Immunotherapy Session

• Keynote Address: Jarushka Naidoo, MBBCh, Johns Hopkins University
  Coordinated management of immunotherapy toxicities and recognition of emerging adverse events
• William Gillanders, MD, Washington University
  Assessment of neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy in triple-negative breast cancer patients
• Andrea Apollo, MD, NCI
  Early phase trials of urothelial cancer patients combining an immunomodulatory kinase inhibitor with immune check-point inhibitors

Clinical Updates of Phase I and II Clinical Trials

• Sumanta Pal, MD, City of Hope
  Preliminary results of a novel trial evaluating three MET kinase inhibitors in the treatment of papillary renal carcinoma, which may provide a new standard of care
• Shrivandana Akshintala, MD, NCI
  Results of a phase II study of cabozantinib monotherapy in the treatment of a spectrum of pediatric tumor types with notable responses in osteosarcoma patients that warrant further assessment

Educational Workshop on Building Effective Biomarker Plans
Four laboratory experts in performing correlative studies for clinical trials led the presentations and breakout sessions, with the following objectives:

• Enable investigators to design effective biomarker plans for their trials, especially with respect to timing and prioritization
• Identify appropriate laboratory collaborators for the implementation of the plans

The Fourteenth Annual Michaele C. Christian Oncology Drug Development Award and Lectureship

This award, honoring a mid-career oncology investigator was given to Taofeek K. Owonikoko, MD, PhD, Winship Cancer Center of Emory University. Dr. Owoniko gave the annual lectureship: “In Search of New Treatments for Small Cell Lung Cancer.”

Read summaries of the 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 EDD meetings.