Approval Received for Clinical Trial with Genetically Modified Adult Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Cancer Treatment

apceth GmbH & Co. KG has received approval to conduct a clinical cancer trial with its genetically modified, adult mesenchymal stem cells. This is an entirely new approach for the treatment of advanced types of cancer for which there is currently no effective treatment available.

The multicentre, open-label trial will recruit patients suffering from advanced adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract. This innovative therapy is based on mesenchymal stem cells harvested from the patient's own (autologous) bone marrow, which are processed, genetically modified and re-infused into the patient. The stem cells thus modified specifically target the tumour and the cytotoxic gene product is selectively activated at the site of the tumour or its metastases to increase local efficacy and to reduce systemic toxicity, one of the main problems of systemic chemotherapy. This unique principle is also applicable to other cancer types.

This clinical trial will be initiated at the University Hospital Grosshadern in Munich in the next few weeks in collaboration with experts from the National Center of Tumor Diseases (NCT) in Heidelberg and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.

Also other leading cancer centres in the USA have already expressed their interest, such as the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.

This unique and innovative approach to the treatment of cancer is part of apceth's corporate strategy of developing sustainable cell-based therapeutics. Other clinical trials are already testing the treatment of advanced vascular diseases, while other cellular drugs are under development.

Besides its own internal research and development programs, apceth also collaborates with international pharmaceutical and biotech companies, who are showing increasing interest in cell- and gene therapeutics as a next-generation treatment option and entering the emerging field of 'regenerative medicine'.