Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute today announced that they have entered into a research collaboration agreement as part of the Immuno-Oncology Rare Population Malignancy (I-O RPM) program in the U.S. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is the latest leading, academic-based cancer center to join the I-O RPM program, which is a multi-institutional initiative focused on the clinical investigation of immuno-oncology therapeutics as potential treatment options for patients with high risk, poor prognostic cancers, defined as a rare population malignancy.
"Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Bristol-Myers Squibb have a shared commitment to patients and to continuing to advance the science in Immuno-Oncology research," said Laura Bessen, MD, head of U.S. Medical, Bristol-Myers Squibb. "We look forward to working with them as part of the I-O RPM program."
"Recent advances in scientific research have shown the great potential of immuno-oncology agents in hematologic cancers, including myeloma," commented Dr. Paul Richardson, Clinical Program Leader and Director of Clinical Research of the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. "We look forward to expanding on these findings through the support of the I-O RPM program with the goal of further improving patient outcomes."
As part of the I-O RPM program, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute will conduct a range of early phase clinical studies and Bristol-Myers Squibb will support the training of young investigators who contribute to the I-O RPM program at Dana-Farber.
About I-O RPM
Immuno-oncology is an innovative approach to cancer research and treatment that is designed to harness the body’s own immune system to fight cancer. The I-O RPM research program focuses on significant areas of high unmet need marked by poor outcomes among patients with rare population malignancies. A rare population malignancy is a subpopulation within a higher incident disease population. These patients have aggressive disease with an increased potential for early metastasis to multiple sites and/or are initially refractory or subject to early recurrences with conventional cancer therapies. Existing clinical research provide a strong rationale for further research into the potential of immunotherapies for these cancers.
The I-O RPM research program is a multi-institutional initiative with Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University and the Northwestern Medicine Developmental Therapeutics Institute, Moffitt Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and now the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. I-O RPM builds on Bristol-Myers Squibb’s formation in 2012 of the International Immuno-Oncology Network (II-ON), which is a global collaboration between Bristol-Myers Squibb and academia focused on facilitating the translation of scientific research findings into clinical trials and, eventually, clinical practice.
About Bristol Myers Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases.
About the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a principal teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School, is world-renowned for its leadership in adult and pediatric cancer treatment and research. Designated as a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), it is one of the largest recipients among independent hospitals of NCI and National Institutes of Health grant funding.