In response to a recent X query (quoted below) by a caregiver of a cancer patient, Dr Patrick Soon-Shiong, Chairman of Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation, Executive Chairman at ImmunityBio, and Executive Chairman of the Los Angeles Times, responded with a call to action for FDA.
“Recently spoke to husband’s oncologist from MSK and talked about asking for expanded access or right to try with Anktiva. They admitted that MSK will not even consider either, because they have not studied it. So something that might save my husband’s life, they won’t apply. I am asking for help.” – shared caregiver on her X.
Quoting Patrick Soon-Shiong‘s response:
“FDA granted us expanded access for all tumor types but you highlighted the problem even with this access where the drug is available under that system at no cost. Even if our work is published in journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, doctors take decades to change .. cancer treatment today is literally based on “ fixed recipes” which each center follows. Changing the paradigm of treating the immune system rather than destruction from standard chemo radiation and checkpoints is a long road to education, insight and action. Keep educating.
Your doctors know ANC since a drug for low ANC has been approved for decades. They don’t know about ALC. Nor about Anktiva since it’s used by urologists based on the 2024 approval and not oncologists. ..the first IL15 protein biologic in the history of medicine with an approved FDA label that states it expands your NK and T cells. Without FDA approval for treating ANY PATIENT WITH CANCER SND A LOW ALC and reversing lymphopenia most oncologists will not or cannot take the difficult effort even with expanded access since that’s a ton of paper work.
But keep trying! Best of luck with your doctor. Also try cssifm.org for help.”
More posts featuring Patrick Soon-Shiong on OncoDaily.