Posts by: Iqra Mumal, MSc

Iqra Mumal, MSc

Iqra holds a MSc in Cellular and Molecular Medicine from the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Canada. She also holds a BSc in Life Sciences from Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada. Currently, she is completing a PhD in Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology from the University of Toronto in Toronto, Canada. Her research has ranged from across various disease areas including Alzheimer’s disease, myelodysplastic syndrome, bleeding disorders and rare pediatric brain tumors.

March 26, 2018March 26, 2018

Venclexta-Rituxan Combo Delays Disease Progression in Lymphocytic Leukemia, Trial Results Show

News

Treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia with a combination of Venclexta (venetoclax) plus Rituxan (rituximab) significantly extended the time a patient lived without signs of disease progression, ... Read more

February 9, 2018February 14, 2018

PD-1 Inhibitors May Help Children with Certain Form of Aggressive Brain Cancer, Study Says

News

Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting the PD-1 pathway could be a promising approach in treating certain children with an aggressive form of brain cancer known as supratentorial pediatric ependymoma, researchers suggest. Their ... Read more

November 22, 2017November 22, 2017

Seattle Children’s Launches 2-Pronged CAR T-Cell Therapy Trial in Refractory Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

News

Seattle Children’s Hospital has launched a new clinical trial, PLAT-05 (NCT03330691), and is currently recruiting participants to test a new CAR T-cell immunotherapy targeting two proteins expressed on cancer cells of certain ... Read more

November 7, 2017November 7, 2017

Super T-cells that Launch Dual Attack on Cancer Cells Enter Clinical Evaluation

News

Researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in upstate New York have started a Phase 1/2a clinical trial to evaluate the use of “super T-cells” for the treatment of solid-tumor cancers. The trial ... Read more

August 31, 2017

Canakinumab Reduces Incidents of Lung Cancer and Associated Mortalities, Study Finds

News

Targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway through the use of the anti-inflammatory drug canakinumab (ACZ885) led to a significant reduction in lung cancer and lung cancer mortality, new study shows. ... Read more

August 29, 2017August 29, 2017

Novogen to Initiate Phase 2 Clinical Trial of GDC-0084 Therapy for Gliobastoma by Year’s End

News

A Phase 2 trial evaluating Novogen‘s GDC-0084 therapy in glioblastoma patients should begin by year’s end, the Australian company announced. “The GDC-0084 study is on track to commence this year, in ... Read more

August 19, 2017

First Patient with BPDCN Receives UCART123 Dose in Phase 1 Clinical Trial

News

The first patient with Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasms (BPDCN) has received a dose of Cellectis’ UCART123 in a Phase 1 clinical trial. UCART123 is a gene edited T-cell drug that ... Read more

August 18, 2017August 18, 2017

Scientists Examine How Anti-CTLA-4 and Anti-PD-1 Checkpoint-Blockade Therapies Fight Cancer Cells

News

Researchers have known that the checkpoint blockade therapies CTLA-4 and PD-1 inhibitors have been clinically successful in treating cancer patients. But they didn’t fully understand how these inhibitors function. A ... Read more

July 22, 2017July 23, 2017

COX-2 Inhibitors May Improve Cancer Immunotherapy Response

News

A new study shows that tumors that constantly express the protein IDO1 (indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase) are sensitive to COX-2 inhibitors, which may provide an increase in T-cell anti-tumor function. The study ... Read more

July 12, 2017

Gene Expression Analysis Helps Determine Sensitivity to Immunotherapies

News

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have discovered that variations in gene expression levels can provide insight into mechanisms that allow tumors to respond to immunotherapies. The study, “Transcriptional Mechanisms of ... Read more