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IMMUNOTHERAPY

Immunotherapy trials in mesothelioma — promising results, but don’t stop here

In the past few years, several studies have addressed the possibility of using immunotherapies to treat patients with mesothelioma. Herein, we discuss two recent trials, one testing the immune-checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab and the other testing a mesothelin-directed therapeutic vaccine, and reflect on the advances and challenges remaining in this research area.

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Acknowledgements

The research of A.K.N. is supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council Centre for Research Excellence Grant.

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Correspondence to Anna K. Nowak.

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A.K.N. has been a paid consultant or adviser for Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, MSD and Roche; has been a consultant or adviser with fees to her institution for Atara, Douglas and Pharmabcine; has received travel funding from AstraZeneca and Boehringer Ingelheim; and her institution receives research funding to institution from AstraZeneca and Douglas Pharmaceuticals. P.M.F. has been an unpaid consultant or adviser for Abbvie, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS), EMD Serono, Inivata, Janssen, Merck and Novartis, and his institution receives research funding from AstraZeneca, BMS, Corvus, Kyowa and Novartis.

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Nowak, A.K., Forde, P.M. Immunotherapy trials in mesothelioma — promising results, but don’t stop here. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 16, 726–728 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41571-019-0291-4

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