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In the News

New Drug Approved to Treat Melanoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a novel type of cancer vaccine called Yervoy, which works by unleashing the body's own immune system to fight a tumor. In a randomized control trial, patients with metastatic melanoma treated with Yervoy lived a median of about 10 months, compared with 6.4 months for patients in a control group who received a treatment believed to have had little effect. After two years, more than 20 percent of those who got Yervoy, also known as ipilimumab, were alive, compared with 13.7 percent for the control group.

Yervoy is given every three weeks by infusion, and four doses is the typical treatment. Unlike other cancer drugs, such as Provenge, which work by training a patient's immune system to attack the cancer, Yervoy works by disabling a brake on the immune system. And, because it is not specific for any type of tumor, it might conceivably be effective for many types, although that has not been proved in clinical trials. The drawback is that loosening the restraints on the immune system can lead to dangerous side effects, such as colitis, diarrhea, hepatitis, endocrine dysfunction, rashes and eye problems. In the clinical trial of Yervoy, which involved 676 patients, 540 of whom received Yervoy, seven people died of immune-related side effects.

Federal Officials Launch New Vaccine Strategy
The National Vaccine Program Office has developed a 43-page vaccine plan, the first since 1994, that outlines goals for improving the nation's vaccine system by addressing research and development, supply, financing, distribution, safety, global cooperation and decision-making among consumers and healthcare providers. The plan, which incorporates input from public health officials and medical experts, officials from different levels of government, and the public, also lists 10 implementation priorities that include items such as prioritizing domestic and global vaccine targets, strengthening the scientific base for developing and licensing new flu vaccines, and enhancing the vaccine safety system. The final implementation plan will be completed by the end of 2011.