Neoadjuvant intratumoral immuno-gene therapy for non-small cell lung cancer

Non-small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) remains a deadly disease despite aggressive treatment protocols which incorporate chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. These traditional approaches have reached a plateau in therapeutic benefit. There is emerging evidence suggesting that immunotherapy can serve as an alternative treatment modality for NSCLC. Our group has nearly two decades of experience involving immuno-gene therapy with Ad.hIFN-α and Ad.hIFN-β in human mesothelioma trials, and has observed both safety and efficacy in treatment of Thoracic malignancies. We have expanded the scope of our work and have obtained encouraging pre-clinical evidence suggesting a role for immunotherapy as a surgical adjuvant for NSCLC cancers. By combining immunotherapy with surgery, synergistic results have been observed. Based on these observations, we have prepared a Phase I Clinical Trial that pairs Ad.hIFN-α with surgery for patients with resectable NSCLC. Patient enrollment is likely to begin in the Summer of 2016. We hope that this trial will serve as a platform for future trials aimed at pairing immunotherapy with surgery for patients diagnosed with NSCLC.