Amgen's Blincyto study results published in New England Journal of Medicine

Amgen's results from its Phase 3 Tower study evaluating Blincyto’s efficacy have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study assessed how Blincyto worked compared to standard of care chemotherapy in high-risk adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-negative (Ph-) relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

"Historically, patients with relapsed or refractory ALL have a poor prognosis, with an overall survival of just four months on standard of care chemotherapy," Dr. Max Topp, professor at University Hospital of Wuerzburg, Germany, said in a statement. "Findings from this head-to-head study showed that BLINCYTO almost doubled the median overall survival from four to 7.7 months, offering these high-risk patients a much needed alternative to chemotherapy that is both innovative and effective."

Blincyto is the first bispecific antibody construct from Amgen’s BiTE platform – a set of antibody constructs under review for potential to treat a wide assortment of cancers. The bispecific antibody used in Blincyto helps the body’s immune system target cancer cells.

"Adults with Ph- relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor ALL are in critical need of new treatment options," Dr. Hagop Kantarjian, chair of the Department of Leukemia at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, said. "Results from the TOWER study reinforce the potential of this single agent bispecific T cell engager immunotherapy, which helped a higher percentage of patients achieve minimal residual disease response versus standard of care chemotherapy, highlighting the depth and quality of remissions achieved."