Cytokine therapies in cancer treatment

Igor Puzanov, MD, MSCI, FACP, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, discusses advances in interleukin-2 (IL-2) therapeutics, with some setbacks seen in bempegaldesleukin (NKTR-214). The emergence of newly modified cytokine therapies like WTX-124 shows promise due to improved stability and a masking domain that prevents activation in the bloodstream. Instead, tumor-specific proteases cleave the masking domain, allowing IL-2 activation within the tumor microenvironment. Pharmacokinetic data indicate favorable absorption with increasing doses. In the clinic, WTX-124 will undergo evaluation in combination with pembrolizumab for patients with refractory melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, squamous-cell skin, and esophageal cancer. This interview took place during the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Meeting in Chicago, IL.
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