#ASCO18: Sellas has high year 1 survival rate for Phase 1 ovarian cancer med

SELLAS Life Sciences announces interim Phase 1 data of GPS in combination with nivolumab in patients with WT1+ ovarian cancer in second or third remission after salvage chemotherapy at the 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting. The presentation, “A phase I study of concomitant galinpepimut-S, or GPS, in combination with nivolumab in patients with WT1+ ovarian cancer in second or third remission,” is being delivered by Roisin E. O’Cearbhaill, M.D., Gynecologic Medical Oncology Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, during the “Gynecologic Cancer” session from 1:15 to 4:45 p.m. CT. The primary endpoint of the study is safety and assessment of toxicity, and treatment is continued until disease progression or toxicity. The secondary endpoint is immune response, and the exploratory endpoints include landmark 1-year PFS rate compared to historical controls and correlative analyses between clinical and immune responses. Exploratory efficacy interim data from this open-label Phase 1 investigator-sponsored trial showed that GPS, when combined with a PD-1 inhibitor, demonstrated PFS of 64% at one year in an intent to treat group of 11 evaluable patients with WT1+ ovarian cancer in second or greater remission. Among patients who received at least three doses of GPS in combination with nivolumab, PFS at one year was 70%. With regard to clinical and immune responses: in 11 evaluable patients, the landmark 1-year PFS rate was 64% in the ITT group and 70% in the ten patients who received at least three doses of GPS + nivolumab. Historical rates do not exceed 50% in this disease setting; serum levels of antigen-specific IgG, against both individual WT1 peptides within GPS and the full-length WT1 protein, were induced in 86% of patients; achievement of high titers of WT1-specific IgG post-GPS results from Immunoglobulin M to IgG class switching, the latter being a surrogate marker of induction of activated T-helper cells after vaccination.

https://bit.ly/2Jf3hHg

Cantor Fitzgerald Taps Spinal Stocks: 4 Top Picks

Spine stocks were steadied with supportive coverage from the Street this week.

The Ratings

Cantor Fitzgerald analysts Craig Bijou and Jordan Abrams initiated coverage on:

• Globus Medical Inc GMED 0.72% with an Overweight rating and $65 price target;
• K2M Group Holdings Inc KTWO 0.72% with an Overweight rating and $28 price target;
• Orthofix International NV OFIX 1.35% with an Overweight rating and $62 price target; and
• SeaSpine Holdings Corp SPNE 0.59% with an Overweight rating and $16 price target.

They also initiated on Mazor Robotics Ltd – ADR MZOR 0.55% and NuVasive, Inc. NUVA 0.18% with Neutral ratings and respective targets of $57 and $54.

The Thesis

The analysts consider the spine segment — a $9-billion global opportunity — to be the largest orthopedic market and one of the biggest medical device end markets.

“While the spine market has faced a bevy of headwinds and challenges over the last 18 months that [have] suppressed growth, we believe that spine is still an important and relevant market,” Bijou and Abrams said in a note.

In the near-term, the analysts said they expect the Overweight-rated stocks to secure sales and seize share through their differentiated technology, appeal to surgeons and emphasis on growing niches around the spine.

https://bit.ly/2sDFgSX

Biotech week ahead: #ASCO18 dominates

A few FDA approvals and the impending 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting gave some impetus to the biotech space in the week ending June 1.

The FDA greenlighted Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE)’s sNDA for Xeljanz, while TherapeuticsMD Inc(NASDAQ: TXMD) finally secured a FDA nod for its vaginal pain medication Imvexxy.

The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (ETF) (NASDAQ: IBB) has been higher for the week.

Here are a few catalytic events biotech investors should watch in the unfolding week:

Medical, Health Care And Biotech Conferences

• 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting: June 1-5, McCormick Place, Chicago.
• Jefferies 2018 Global Healthcare Conference: June 5-8 in New York City.
• American Society for Microbiology 2018 meeting: June 7-11 in Atlanta.

Clinical Trial Outcomes

• Cidara Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: CDTX) is due to present Phase 2 data for its candidemia treatment rezafungin IV at the ASM meeting at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 8. The data from Cidara’s STRIVE study released in March showed that the study met the primary objectives.

ASCO Presentations Pick Up Steam

Sunday, June 3

• Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MRK) is presenting the following:
• Phase 3 data from KEYNOTE-042 study for non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC.
• Phase 2 data for a Keytruda and chemo combo for first-line non-squamous NSCLC.
• Data for Keytruda and carboplatin-paclitaxel or nab-paclitaxel from the KEYNOTE-407 study evaluating the combo for squamous NSCLC.
• Data for MK-3475-189 from the KEYNOTE-180 study that evaluated the pipeline candidate for treating first-line metastatic non-squamous NSCLC.
• Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG): Updated Phase 1 data for Lico-cel in B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma
• Novartis AG (ADR) (NYSE: NVS): Phase 3 data for LEE011 from MONALEESA-3 study that evaluated for breast cancer in post-menopausal women.
• TESARO Inc (NASDAQ: TSRO): Phase 1 data for niraparib-keytruda combo for treating triple-negative breast cancer or ovarian cancer.
• Calithera Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ: CALA): Phase 1/2 data for CB-839 and panitumumab for treating colorectal cancer.
• MacroGenics Inc (NASDAQ: MGNX): Phase 2 data for margetuximab in combination with Keytruda to treat gastric cancer.
• Incyte Corporation (NASDAQ: INCY): Phase 1 data for DPX-survivac vaccine therapy and epacadostat for recurrent ovarian cancer.
• ARMO Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ: ARMO): Phase 1b data for AM0010 in solid tumors
• Roche Holdings AG Basel ADR Common Stock (OTC: RHHBY) is presenting the following:
• Phase 3 data for venclexta for treating relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
• Updated Phase 3 data for alecensa for treating ALK-positive metastatic NSCLC.
• Pfizer is presenting the following: 
• Phase 3 data for ibrance from the PALOMA-3 study in breast cancer patients.
• Phase 2 data for ibrance in treating head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.
• Other companies due to present data June 3 include:
• Immunomedics, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMMU)
• Epizyme Inc (NASDAQ: EPZM)
• Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXEL)
• NewLink Genetics Corp (NASDAQ: NLNK)
• AbbVie Inc (NYSE: ABBV)
• Syndax Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: SNDX)
• Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPPI)
• Seattle Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGEN)
• FibroGen Inc (NASDAQ: FGEN)
• Tyme Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: TYME)
• Five Prime Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: FPRX)
• Zai Lab Ltd (NASDAQ: ZLAB)

Monday, June 4

• Roche is presenting:
• Phase 3 data for tecentriq and cb and pac/nab-pac from the Impower 131 study that evaluated for squamous NSCLC.
• Phase 3 data for tecentriq from the Impower 150 study in patients with non-squamous NSCLC.
• Infinera Corp. (NASDAQ: INFN): Phase 1 study of IPI-549 and opdivo for treating solid tumors.
• Agenus Inc (NASDAQ: AGEN): A Phase 1/2 study of AGEN2034 in cervical cancer and Phase 1 data for AGEN1884 in solid cancers.
• Acceleron Pharma Inc (NASDAQ: XLRN): Phase 2 study of luspatercept for myelodysplastic syndromes.
• Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR): Phase 1/2 data for NKTR-214 and tecentriq in solid tumors.
• Eli Lilly And Co (NYSE: LLY): Phase 3 data from the REACH-2 study that evaluated its ramucirumab for hepatocellular carcinoma.
• ImmunoGen, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMGN): Phase 1/2 data for mirvetuximab soravtansine in the FORWARD II study that evaluated it in ovarian cancer and relapsed endometrial cancer.
• Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (NYSE: BMY) is presenting:
• Phase 3 data of CM-227 (opdivo-yervoy combo) for first-line NSCLC.
• Phase 2 data for opdivo and rubraca in castration-resistant prostate cancer, along withClovis Oncology Inc (NASDAQ: CLVS).
• AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE: AZN) – Phase 2 data for lyparza and Keytruda for castration-resistant prostate cancer.
• Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: REGN) & Sanofi SA (ADR) (NYSE: SNY): Phase 1 data for cemiplimab in NSCLC
• Celgene and Acceleron: Phase 2 data for luspatercept in myelofibrosis.
• Pfizer: Phase 3 data on dacomitinib for treating NSCLC.

Other companies due to present data on June 4 include:

• Stemline Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: STML)
• Verastem Inc (NASDAQ: VSTM)
• CytomX Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: CTMX)
• OncoSec Medical Inc (NASDAQ: ONCS)
• Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (NASDAQ: CORT)
• Protalix Biotherapeutics Inc (NYSE: PLX)
• MEI Pharma Inc (NASDAQ: MEIP)
• Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: PTLA)
• Agios Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: AGIO)
• Molecular Templates Inc (NASDAQ: MTEM)
• Mersana Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: MRSN)
• Adaptimmune Therapeutics PLC – ADR (NASDAQ: ADAP)
• Calithera Biosciences
• Miragen Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: MGEN)
• AbbVie Inc
• Dynavax Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: DVAX)
• ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIOP)
• Tesaro
• TG Therapeutics Inc common stock (NASDAQ: TGTX)
• Sellas Life Sciences Group Inc (NASDAQ: SLS)
• Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: MACK)
• Idera Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: IDRA)

Earnings

Thursday, June 7

• Advaxis, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADXS)

IPO Calendar

MeiraGTx Holdings, a gene therapy company that focuses on disorders of the eye and salivary gland, is set offer 5 million shares at an estimated price range of $14-$16.

The company seeks to list its shares on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol MGTX.

Quiet Period Expirations

Evelo Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ: EVLO) listed its shares on the Nasdaq on May 8, with the stock closing its debut session at its offer price of $16. The stock is currently trading at a discount to the offer price.

https://bit.ly/2Llio2f

Rise in lifestyle-related cancers over past decade spotlights need for prevention

Lifestyle-related cancers, such as lung, colorectal, and skin cancers, have increased globally over the past decade, according to the most comprehensive analysis of cancer-related health outcomes and patterns ever conducted.

“While the increase in lung, colorectal, and skin cancers over the past decade is concerning, the prevention potential is substantial,” said Dr. Christina Fitzmaurice, Assistant Professor of Global Health at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, whose organization coordinated the study. “Vital prevention efforts such as tobacco control, dietary interventions, and broader health promotion campaigns need to be scaled up in response to this rise in lifestyle-related cancers.”

The study, published today in JAMA Oncology, covers 1990 to 2016; it is part of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study, a comprehensive effort to quantify health internationally. Researchers reviewed 29 cancer groups, including lung, breast, prostate, skin, colorectal, pancreatic, stomach, and liver cancers, as well as leukemia and other cancer groups (full list below). The study provides findings by age and sex for 195 countries and territories.

While lifestyle-related cancers saw a universal increase from 2006 to 2016, several cancers from infectious causes—including cervical and stomach cancers—decreased over the same time period.

Study estimates were analyzed using a Socio-demographic Index (SDI) based on rates of education, fertility, and income. SDI is more comprehensive than the historical “developed” versus “developing” nations framework. Countries with high SDI have high levels of income and education and low fertility, whereas low-SDI countries have low levels of income and education and high fertility.

Large disparities in cancer incidence and death persist between high- and low-SDI countries. Researchers found rates of cancer incidence and death remained higher in high-SDI countries in 2016. For example, the odds of developing breast cancer over the course of one’s lifetime were the highest—at 1 in 10 women—in high-SDI countries, but only 1 in 50 for women in low-SDI countries.

Conversely, the largest and fastest increase in new cancer cases between 2006 and 2016 occurred in middle-SDI countries. And women in low-SDI countries are nearly four times more likely to develop cervical cancer than women in high-SDI countries, and in 2016, cervical cancer was the most common cause of cancer incidence and death in low-SDI countries.

“Ensuring universal access to health care is a vital prerequisite for early detection and cancer treatment,” said Fitzmaurice. “And improving access to advanced diagnostic technologies not commonly available in low-SDI countries is a critical step toward achieving health equity globally.”

Additional key findings include:

• In 2016, there were 17.2 million cancer cases worldwide, an increase of 28% over the past decade. There were 8.9 million cancer deaths the same year.
• While cancer death rates decreased in a majority of countries from 2006 to 2016, incidence rates conversely increased.
• Breast cancer was the leading cause of cancer death in women.
• Lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer death in men; it was also the leading cause of cancer mortality globally, accounting for nearly 20 percent of all cancer deaths in 2016.
• Prostate cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer incidence and death in men, in both high- and low-SDI countries, but especially in sub-Saharan Africa.

NEW CASES PER 100,000 PEOPLE (AGE-ADJUSTED), 2016″Worst” and “best” countries and global

1. Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer: North Korea (56.9), Kenya (4.2), global (30.2)
2. Colon and rectum cancer: Netherlands (57.5), The Gambia (4.3), global (25.9)
3. Breast cancer: Luxembourg (61.8), Niger (5.8), global (24.1)
4. Non-melanoma skin cancer: Australia (300.4), Bangladesh (0.7), global (23.2)
5. Prostate cancer: Dominica (113.1), North Korea (2.4), global (22.1)
6. Stomach cancer: South Korea (44.5), Namibia (2.7), global (17.3)
7. Liver cancer: Mongolia (108.4), Morocco (1.9), global (14.6)
8. Other neoplasms: Malawi (39.6), Syria (2.6), global (10.9)
9. Cervical cancer: Somalia (34.0), Qatar (1.1), global (7.0)
10. Leukemia: New Zealand (20.3), Zambia (2.0), global (6.8)
11. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma: Canada (21.2), Kyrgyzstan (1.5), global (6.7)
12. Bladder cancer: Lebanon (31.1), Nigeria (1.2), global (6.7)
13. Esophageal cancer: Malawi (25.2), Syria (0.7), global (6.6)
14. Pancreatic cancer: Czech Republic (12.5), India (2.6), global (6.4)
15. Uterine cancer: Latvia (23.1), Bangladesh (0.8), global (6.0)
16. Lip and oral cavity cancer: Pakistan (22.1), Sao Tome and Principe (1.0), global (5.5)
17. Kidney cancer: Latvia (20.5), Nepal (1.0), global (5.0)
18. Brain and nervous system cancer: Iceland (20.8), Namibia (1.4), global (4.6)
19. Malignant skin melanoma: Australia (55.6), Nepal (0.2), global (4.1)
20. Ovarian cancer: Estonia (9.3), Niger (1.2), global (3.6)
21. Thyroid cancer: Iceland (18.7), Ghana (0.2), global (3.3)
22. Gallbladder and biliary tract cancer: Chile (11.5), Uzbekistan (0.6), global (2.8)
23. Larynx cancer: Cuba (8.8), The Gambia (0.6), global (2.7)
24. Other pharynx cancer: Hungary (7.3), Palestine (0.2), global (2.4)
25. Multiple myeloma: Barbados (6.3), Tajikistan (0.4), global (2.1)
26. Nasopharynx cancer: Malaysia (5.1), Mali (0.1), global (1.3)
27. Hodgkin lymphoma: Greece (5.3), Syria (0.1), global (1.0)
28. Testicular cancer: Chile (6.4), Mozambique (0.04), global (0.9)
29. Mesothelioma: United Kingdom (2.9), Palestine (0.1), global (0.5)

DEATHS PER 100,000 PEOPLE (AGE-ADJUSTED) IN 2016 “Worst,” and “best” countries and global

1. Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer: North Korea (61.7), Egypt (4.8), global (25.8)
2. Colon and rectum cancer: Hungary (31.3), Sri Lanka (5.0), global (12.8)
3. Stomach cancer: Mongolia (44.0), Maldives (3.2), global (12.6)
4. Liver cancer: Mongolia (114.7), Morocco (2.0), global (12.1)
5. Breast cancer: Tonga (24.7), Oman (4.0), global (7.9)
6. Other neoplasms: Malawi (37.6), Syria (2.6), global (6.4)
7. Esophageal cancer: Malawi (32.4), Syria (0.8), global (6.2)
8. Pancreatic cancer: Uruguay (12.8), Bangladesh (2.5), global (6.2)
9. Prostate cancer: Dominica (54.9), North Korea (1.9), global (6.1)
10. Leukemia: Syria (15.3), Bangladesh (1.9), global (4.6)
11. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma: Grenada (11.0), Kyrgyzstan (1.4), global (3.6)
12. Cervical cancer: Zimbabwe (28.7), Syria (0.6), global (3.5)
13. Brain and nervous system cancer: Palestine (8.3), Japan (1.2), global (3.2)
14. Bladder cancer: Malawi (11.8), Albania (0.9), global (2.9)
15. Lip oral cavity cancer: Kiribati (14.6), Syria (0.6), global (2.6)
16. Gallbladder and biliary tract cancer: Chile (11.3), Uzbekistan (0.6), global (2.5)
17. Ovarian cancer: Lithuania (5.9), United Arab Emirates (0.9), global (2.4)
18. Kidney cancer: Czech Republic (7.1), Bangladesh (0.5), global (2.0)
19. Other pharynx cancer: India (6.1), Syria (0.2), global (1.7)
20. Larynx cancer: Cuba (5.3), Japan (0.4), global (1.6)
21. Multiple myeloma: Dominica (5.9), Tajikistan (0.4), global (1.5)
22. Uterine cancer: Grenada (5.4), Maldives (0.5), global (1.3)
23. Malignant skin melanoma: New Zealand (6.6), Bangladesh (0.2), global (0.9)
24. Nasopharynx cancer: Malaysia (3.7), Chile (0.1), global (0.9)
25. Non-melanoma skin cancer: Zimbabwe (4.5), Bangladesh (0.2) global (0.8)
26. Thyroid cancer: Zimbabwe (2.3), Syria (0.2), global (0.6)
27. Mesothelioma: United Kingdom (2.6), Palestine (0.1), global (0.5)
28. Hodgkin lymphoma: Afghanistan (2.2), Japan (0.1), global (0.4)
29. Testicular cancer: Kiribati (1.0), Maldives (0.02), global (0.1)

NEW CANCER CASES PER 100,000 PEOPLE (AGE-ADJUSTED) IN 2016

Highest rates

1. Australia (743.8)
2. New Zealand (542.8)
3. United States (532.9)
4. Netherlands (477.3)
5. Luxembourg (455.4)
6. Iceland (455.0)
7. Norway (446.1)
8. United Kingdom (438.6)
9. Ireland (429.7)
10. Denmark (421.7)

Lowest rates

1. Syria (85.0)
2. Bhutan (86.0)
3. Algeria (86.7)
4. Nepal (90.7)
5. Oman (94.9)
6. Maldives (101.3)
7. Sri Lanka (101.6)
8. Niger (102.3)
9. Timor-Leste (105.9)
10. India (106.6)

CANCER DEATHS PER 100,000 PEOPLE (AGE-ADJUSTED) IN 2016

Highest rates

1. Mongolia (272.1)
2. Zimbabwe (245.8)
3. Dominica (203.1)
4. Hungary (202.7)
5. Grenada (201.0)
6. Uruguay (190.6)
7. Tonga (189.7)
8. North Korea (188.7)
9. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (183.1)
10. Croatia (180.2)

Lowest rates

1. Syria (67.4)
2. Algeria (67.5)
3. Oman (69.2)
4. Maldives (72.0)
5. Sri Lanka (74.7)
6. Bhutan (78.6)
7. Uzbekistan (80.6)
8. Nicaragua (80.9)
9. Morocco (81.0)
10. Qatar (81.6)

 Explore further: Study estimates global cancer cases, deaths in 2015

More information: Global Burden of Disease Cancer Collaboration, Global, Regional, and National Cancer Incidence, Mortality, Years of Life Lost, Years Lived With Disability, and Disability-Adjusted Life-Years for 29 Cancer Groups, 1990 to 2016, JAMA Oncology (2018). DOI: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.2706

https://bit.ly/2Jd7ZFi

#ASCO18: Targeted cancer treatments far outperform traditional methods

Cancer treatments that attack tumors based on their individual genetic traits—not their location in the body—far outperform traditional methods, extending survival for twice as many patients, a study said Saturday.

The precision medicine field of targeted therapy involves testing tumors for clues about their genetic mutations, and matching patients with new drugs designed to block cancer’s growth on a molecular level.

Targeted options for patients have risen dramatically in the last two decades—and one day tumor testing and cell-free DNA analysis may become the standard of care, said lead investigator Apostolia Tsimberidou, professor of investigational cancer therapeutics at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas.

“I am optimistic that in the next few years we will dramatically improve the outcomes of patients with cancer with increasing implementation of precision medicine,” she told reporters at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago, the world’s largest annual cancer conference.

Tsimberidou and colleagues began studying the impact of these therapies in 2007, after seeing the success of Gleevec (imatinib)—a breakthrough drug approved by US regulators in 2001 that showed huge success against chronic myeloid leukemia.

Their study, called IMPACT, is the first and largest to look at survival across a host of cancer types and many different targeted therapies.

More than 3,700 patients at Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center enrolled from 2007 to 2013.

All had advanced cancers, or “end-stage disease,” involving cancers of the gastrointestinal tract, breast, or lung. Melanoma and cancer of the female reproductive tract were also included, along with more rare types of cancer.

Those enrolled had typically tried at least four—and sometimes up to 16—other treatments that failed to halt the growth of their cancer.

More than 1,300 were found to have tumors with at least one genetic change. Of these, 711 received a treatment that matched the biology of the tumor. Another 596 received a treatment was not matched, often because no matched treatment for the patient was available at the time.

After three years, 15 percent of people treated with targeted cancer therapies were alive, compared to seven percent in the non-targeted group.

After 10 years, six percent of the targeted group was alive, compared to just one percent in the other group.

Still far from a cure

On the whole, targeted therapies led to an average of four months of life without the cancer advancing, known as progression-free survival, and nine extra months of overall survival.

Those who were treated with traditional approaches lived just under three months without cancer growing, and 7.3 months longer overall.

Targeted therapies “significantly improved overall survival,” said Catherine Diefenbach, an oncologist at New York University (NYU) Langone.

This method of molecularly profiling tumors, understanding their genetics and how to act on that “is the wave of the future,” added Diefenbach, who was not involved in the study.

For Diefenbach, the study illustrates a paradigm shift in cancer treatment, whereby cancers are no longer treated on the “neighborhood” of the body in which they arise.

“Prior to precision medicine, patients were treated based on what kind of cancer they had,” she told reporters.

“But a breast cancer patient, as we have heard, can have a cell that is much more like a lung cancer patient, genetically, than another breast cancer.”

Diefenbach also pointed out that “most of these patients received drugs that were already (US Food and Drug Administration) FDA-approved or in advanced clinical trials, so people did not have to go out and reinvent the wheel to treat these patients in a completely new way.”

The field of precision medicine has grown immensely since the study began, said Tsimberidou, recalling that back in 2007, “we tested for no more than one to two genes.

“Now patients are being tested for hundreds of actionable genes, amplifications and mutations, as well as for immune markers,” she said.

 Explore further: Precision oncology in advanced cancer patients improves overall survival

https://bit.ly/2JanQsg

How Not Working At Trading Can Help Your Trading

Think of working out in the gym.  There is time when you work the muscles, and there is time when you rest them.  The cycle of workout and rest increases blood flow to those muscles and enables them to grow in a sustainable fashion.  If you only rested, you would never build your muscles.  If you only worked, you would overtax yourself and break yourself down.  Growth occurs over multiple cycles of work and rest.

This is an important lesson of the Sabbath in the world’s religious traditions.  After a period of creation, we rest and renew.

Some traders fail because they work too hard.  Others fail because they hardly work.  Performance is achieved when we effectively alternate effort and renewal.  Growth occurs in the cycles of doing and reflecting that comprise deliberate practice.

Thanks to a savvy portfolio manager who passed along this article on how the Golden State Warriors make use of their halftime to dominate the third quarter of their games.  It is fascinating to see how the coaches plan for the halftime during the game, collecting videos that will help the team build their confidence and focus on the right things in the second half.  The period of rest during halftime becomes an integral part of improved performance for the remainder of the game.

Mike Bellafiore, in a recent blog post, notes that this same dynamic occurs on the trading floor.  Traders keep running “playbooks” of their best trades and use breaks during the trading day to review their plays and share insights with other traders.  When I worked at Kingstree in Chicago, traders would formally divide their trading day into morning and afternoon sessions, with a break in between.  They allocated separate risk (loss limits) to the two sessions, effectively creating two trading “days” in one.   Midday served as a halftime, a period of rest when they could learn from what they did right and wrong, update market views, share insights with colleagues, and rejuvenate.

What are your halftime drills?  How are you utilizing periods of rest in your trading?  In your life?

When we increase the frequency of cycles between “performance” and “halftime”, we speed our deliberate practice and development.

How we rest is as important as how we work.

https://bit.ly/2JqEfIw

Clovis, Immunomedics to collaborate on cancer combo med

Clovis Oncology (CLVS) and Immunomedics (IMMU) announced their intent to enter into a clinical collaboration to investigate the combination of Clovis’ Rubraca, a poly polymerase inhibitor, and Immunomedics’ lead antibody-drug conjugate product candidate, sacituzumab govitecan, as a treatment of patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer and metastatic urothelial cancer. The planned phase 1/2 study will include an initial safety cohort followed by expansion cohorts in each of mTNBC and mUC. In preclinical studies, the combination of sacituzumab govitecan and rucaparib in TNBC cell lines in vitro resulted in synergistic growth inhibition regardless of BRCA1/2 status. In addition, the combination of sacituzumab govitecan and a PARPi also demonstrated significant antitumor effects above that observed with monotherapy in BRCA wild-type and mutant animal models of TNBC.

https://bit.ly/2sE7TPY