The multi-center randomized Phase 3 double-blind clinical trial of Zolinza (vorinostat) or placebo in combination with Velcade (bortezomib) will be opening soon. The study will be conducted under Dr. Sundar Jagannath, Chief of the Multiple Myeloma Program at St. Vincent’s Comprehensive Cancer Center in New York.

In combination with the recently announced Phase 2B open-label clinical trial of Velcade plus Zolinza, Dr. Jagannath hopes that this Phase 3 trial will help to explore the effects of combining Zolinza and Velcade.

Zolinza, a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, is already approved …

The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) announced Friday that it will partner with Merck & Co. to initiate Phase 2B clinical trials of Zolinza (vorinostat) in combination with Velcade (bortezomib). The trial is currently open for the enrollment of patients with relapsed multiple myeloma.

Zolinza, an oral histone deacetylase inhibitor that increases the cellular proteins that prevent cancer, has previously been approved for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Velcade has been previously approved for the treatment of multiple myeloma.

As a Phase 2 trial, …

An oral anticancer agent, CX-4945, is now undergoing a Phase 1 clinical trial in patients with multiple myeloma, advanced solid tumors, or a disorder involving non-cancerous tumors called Castleman’s disease.

CX-4945 is first in its class of CK2 inhibitors.  CK2 is an enzyme that plays a role in the development of cancerous cells through many cellular processes such as cell cycle regulation, signaling events between cells, blood vessel formation, inflammation, and cellular proliferation.  Since CK2 is involved in many processes that lead to the development of cancerous cells, CX-4945 may be …

Clinical trials using a new, highly targeted radiotherapy are currently being carried out in the United Kingdom. This new treatment will allow patients to be given a higher dose of radiation to destroy cancer cells in the bone marrow without harming healthy cells. The two-year trial at South General Hospital will involve 80 patients, half who will receive the new radiotherapy with chemotherapy and half with just chemotherapy.

There are several types of radiation treatments commonly used with multiple myeloma. Local radiation in high doses (often used in conjunction with chemotherapy) is …

The development of second-generation heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitors has reached Phase 3 trials of these agents in several types of cancer.  The success of the second-generation Hsp90 inhibitors is paving the way for major advancements with the third-generation Hsp90 inhibitor drugs.

Heat shock proteins protect cells stressed by elevated temperatures by assisting in protein folding. Hsp90 helps proteins that are associated with the underlying causes of various cancers, including the insulin growth factor-1 receptor in myeloma. Hsp90 inhibitors degrade tumor cells containing mutant forms of specific proteins and are effective …