The enemy is often one we can’t see, and sometimes the enemy is hiding in plain sight. Many dangers avoid detection until it is too late. Cancerous tumors are certainly one such enemy. Matthew Vandermast, President and COO of Oncovir, explains, “So when you have an immunologically cold tumor, it means that the tumor has evaded your body’s base immune system. Cancer has immunologic evasions that allow it to grow unchecked within the body. And what you’ll see in cold tumors is an immunological desert, there aren’t enough immune cells, including T-cells, available in those areas for your body to fight against the cancer.”
A lack of tumor antigens and antigen-presenting cell deficits in cold tumors inhibit the immune system’s ability to recognize them as the enemy, as foreign, and as harmful. Additionally, the tumor’s microenvironment may lack the necessary signals to attract immune cells to the site of the tumor, further impeding an immune response. Because the immune system plays such a crucial role in identifying and eliminating cancer cells, the presence of cold tumors can pose significant challenges to current cancer therapies and infectious treatment methodologies.
Fortunately, Oncovier’s Hiltonol tackles these enemies by turning a cold tumor into a “hot tumor.” The hot tumor sounds the alarms to a person’s immune system, indicating that there is an enemy in their midst, and it needs to attack those cancer cells. By leveraging its unique mechanism of action, Hiltonol transforms these cold tumors into hotbeds of immune activity. It achieves this by mobilizing various types of immune cells, including NK cells, CD4s, and CD8s, to precisely infiltrate and attack cancer cells.
Furthermore, Hiltonol from Oncovir possesses a unique multifunctionality in its biological capability. Unlike typical small molecule products, Hiltonol engages various immunologic pathways and mechanisms of action, enhancing the body’s immune response. This endows it with the remarkable ability to not only target cancer but also combat infectious diseases.
Mr. Vandermast notes, “There are going to be multiple vaccines that are going to get approved over time in the cancer arena. I really think that our product is going to be helpful to many of them, including dendritic cell vaccines. We have a portfolio product that has the ability to help numerous other products be successful due to its base functionality in the human body. It will help boost the efficacy of many vaccines that are in development now and in the future.”
In extensive clinical development with thousands of patients across various trials, Hiltonol has been found both safe and effective. Mr. Vandermast shares, “It has demonstrated a remarkable safety profile, with minimal side effects. We also are seeing efficacy signals and results that show great promise for patients.” Moreover, Hiltonol’s regulatory approvals from reputable agencies worldwide demonstrate its global acceptance and potential to revolutionize cancer therapy and infectious disease management on a global scale.
“We have a drug master file with the FDA, and we have been in front of many of the world’s tier 1 regulatory agencies including the European Union Countries including France and Switzerland, in addition to Canada, Japan, Brazil and Thailand. Our product is going to be able to be used around the world. Our big push is to get funding so that we can support the development of Hiltonol with our partners and get commercialized in one therapeutic area.”
For fighting a devious enemy in immunotherapy settings, Oncovir’s Hiltonol is a knight in shining armor ready to do battle as a standalone drug product and as a potent vaccine adjuvant in oncology and infectious diseases.
Oncovir, is a revenue-generating clinical-stage II/III biotechnology company focused on developing immunotherapy solutions for cancer and infectious diseases. They are dedicated to advancing their flagship product, Hiltonol, which has demonstrated extremely promising and safe results. Learn more about Hiltonol’s ability to tackle cancer and infectious diseases.
