Intralesional Virtual Summit

SITC Summit on Intralesional Immunotherapy: Moving Beyond Oncolytic Viruses

#SITCresearchsolutions

Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024 - 11 a.m.–3:15 p.m. EDT

The SITC Summit on Intralesional Immunotherapy: Moving Beyond Oncolytic Viruses highlighted the current understanding of intralesional immunotherapies and their effects on the immune system and the tumor microenvironment. In situ vaccination, intralesional combination therapies, and next generation intralesional immunotherapies is discussed. This virtual educational event presented the current state and future directions of the field and featured participation of invited stakeholders involved in intralesional immunotherapy research and development, including clinicians and researchers from academia and industry.

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This program is supported, in part, by grants from:

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Summit Overview

Program Summary

The Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) hosted the Summit on Intralesional Immunotherapy: Moving Beyond Oncolytic Viruses on Thursday, Sept. 19, from 11 a.m.–3:15 p.m. EDT. The free virtual summit was a public event that featured invited speakers, expert panel discussions, and attendee question and answer periods.

The SITC Summit on Intralesional Immunotherapy highlighted the latest translational and clinical research on intralesional immunotherapies and their impacts on the immune system, anti-tumor immunity, and the tumor microenvironment. Topics addressed at the summit included the current definitions of local immunotherapy, enhancing the effects of in situ vaccination, combining intralesional immunotherapies with other therapies, intralesional immunotherapy in the neoadjuvant setting, and high priority research areas for the field of intralesional immunotherapy.

This program provided an up-to-date overview of current and emerging intralesional immunotherapies and their potential clinical impact. Didactic presentations and panel discussions identified clinical and translational strategies, challenges, and opportunities in the field, highlighting intralesional immunotherapy as an important tool in the cancer immunotherapy toolbox.

View the summit recordings.

Problem Statement

One unique aspect of intralesional immunotherapy, the direct injection of an immunotherapeutic agent into a tumor site, is that it generates an anti-tumor response at the tumor as well as systemic immunity, translating into long-term clinical benefit. New intralesional immunotherapies are currently in development, and early results indicate they are associated with better safety profiles and longer-term clinical benefits than oncolytic virus-based therapies. Clinical advancement of these therapies has been hampered, in part because of provider uncertainty around dosing, administration, response assessment, and regulatory issues.

Summit Goals & Objectives

The primary objective of the SITC Summit on Intralesional Immunotherapy: Moving Beyond Oncolytic Viruses was to highlight opportunities and challenges in the field of intralesional immunotherapies. Secondary goals included defining intralesional immunotherapy, exploring the effects of intralesional immunotherapies on the immune system, tumor microenvironment and anti-tumor immunity, and articulating high-priority research areas and a path forward for the field.

Program Organizers

Joshua Brody, MD

Joshua Brody, MD
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Tanja de Gruijl, PhD

Tanja de Gruijl, PhD
Amsterdam University Medical Centers

 

Sara Tolaney, MD, MPH

Howard Kaufman, MD, FACS
Ankyra Therapeutics/Massachusetts General Hospital

Aurélien Marabelle, MD, PhD

Aurélien Marabelle, MD, PhD
Gustave Roussy

Summit Agenda  VIEW SUMMIT RECORDINGS

Intralesional Immunotherapy Virtual Summit: Thursday, September 19, 2024  - 11 a.m.-3:15 p.m. EDT
11–11:05 a.m.

Welcome and Introduction

Howard Kaufman, MD, FACS – Ankyra Therapeutics/Massachusetts General Hospital
11:05–11:20 a.m.

What Qualifies as a Local Immunotherapy?

Aurélien Marabelle, MD, PhD – University of Paris Saclay
11:20–11:35 a.m.

Oncolytic Viruses: What Have We Learned So Far?

Kevin Harrington, PhD, MBBS – Institute of Cancer Research, London
11:35–11:50 a.m.

IL Strategies in Development, Nanodelivery and Delayed Release Systems

K. Dane Wittrup, PhD – Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT
11:50 a.m.–12:05 p.m.

Local Immunotherapy Immune Responses

Dmitriy Zamarin, MD, PhD – Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
12:05–12:20 p.m.

Speaker Panel Discussion and Q&A

Moderator:  Howard Kaufman, MD, FACS – Ankyra Therapeutics/Massachusetts General Hospital

Speakers:

Kevin Harrington, PhD, MBBS – Institute of Cancer Research, London

K. Dane Wittrup, PhD – Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT

Aurélien Marabelle, MD, PhD – University of Paris Saclay

Dmitriy Zamarin, MD, PhD – Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
12:20–12:30 p.m.
 Break
12:30–1:00 p.m.

Panel 1: Enhancing in situ Vaccination Effect

Moderator: Joshua Brody, MD – Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Lisa H. Butterfield, PhD – Merck

Jeffrey Schlom, PhD – National Cancer Institute, NIH

Vivek Verma, PhD – University of Minnesota
1:00–1:30 p.m.

Panel 2: Optimal Clinical Endpoints

Moderator: Aurélien Marabelle, MD, PhD – University of Paris Saclay

Katherine Barnett, MD – U.S. Food & Drug Administration CBER

Genevieve Boland, MD, MSc, FRCSC – Massachusetts General Hospital

Eric Wehrenberg-Klee, MD – Massachusetts General Hospital
1:30–1:40 p.m. Break
1:40–2:10 p.m.

Panel 3: IL Therapy Combinations

Moderator: Elizabeth Buchbinder, MD – Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Jason Chesney, MD, PhD – University of Louisville

Thomas Marron, MD, PhD – Mount Sinai Hospital

Patrick Ott, MD, PhD – Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
2:10–2:40 p.m.

Panel 4: IL Therapies in the Neoadjuvant Setting

Moderator: Tanja de Gruijl, PhD – Amsterdam University Medical Centers

Marcus O. Butler, MD – University Health Network

Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD – UPMC Hillman Cancer Center

Neil Gross, MD – The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
2:40–3:10 p.m.

Panel 5: High Priority Research Areas

Moderator: Jason Luke, MD, FACP – UPMC Hillman Cancer Center

Uli Bialucha, PhD – Xilio Therapeutics

Art Krieg, MD – Zola Therapeutics

Phillippe Szapary, MD, MSCE – Johnson & Johnson
3:10–3:15 p.m. Conclusion, Next Steps and Potential Outcomes