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Orano Med takes important steps forward in the development of cancer treatments
Orano Med, a subsidiary of the Orano group, has taken important steps forward in the development of treatments known as "targeted alpha therapy" with lead-212, an innovative approach to fighting cancers with limited therapeutic options.
Orano Med and its partner RadioMedix have launched phase II clinical trials for the development of AlphaMedixTM with the treatment of a first patient on December 21st, 2021 in the USA (Houston, Texas). AlphaMedixTM is a radiotherapy-based approach which uses the properties of lead-212 to specifically target and destroy cancer cells, while limiting the impact on healthy tissues.
Clinical trials initiated at the end of 2021 should make it possible to assess the safety and effectiveness of this new alpha-emitter therapy using lead-212. If the results of trials prove convincing, AlphaMedixTM would offer a therapeutic alternative for the treatment of patients suffering from neuroendocrine tumors that are metastatic or not responding to existing treatments.
In total, during the phase II clinical trials, the AlphaMedixTM treatment will be administered to 34 patients in several cycles.
In parallel, teams from Orano Med are continuing to work on lead-212 production operations at the Maurice Tubiana Laboratory (Laboratoire Maurice Tubiana – LMT) in Bessines-sur-Gartempe, France, using a unique process of closed-loop recycling of drums of thorium from Orano's mining activities.
At the end of 2021 and in a world first, several drums of thorium from which the material was extracted a few years ago to produce lead-212 then put back into storage, were retrieved to produce lead-212 again at the LMT. The process used consists of dissolving the thorium nitrate then purifying and selectively separating the specific radioelements essential for the production of lead-212. The solution obtained is then solidified and stored with a view to being used subsequently for several production cycles.
The closed-loop recycling of thorium nitrate makes a still mostly untapped source of raw material available for the production of future cancer treatments.
Julien Dodet, President & CEO of Orano Med, stated: "I am proud of the work done by our teams which has made it possible to take some essential steps forward in 2021 despite the constraints of the pandemic. These milestones confirm the robustness of Orano Med and the unique know-how we possess to develop innovative treatments for forms of cancer which are difficult to treat today".
Orano Med and its partner RadioMedix have launched phase II clinical trials for the development of AlphaMedixTM with the treatment of a first patient on December 21st, 2021 in the USA (Houston, Texas). AlphaMedixTM is a radiotherapy-based approach which uses the properties of lead-212 to specifically target and destroy cancer cells, while limiting the impact on healthy tissues.
Clinical trials initiated at the end of 2021 should make it possible to assess the safety and effectiveness of this new alpha-emitter therapy using lead-212. If the results of trials prove convincing, AlphaMedixTM would offer a therapeutic alternative for the treatment of patients suffering from neuroendocrine tumors that are metastatic or not responding to existing treatments.
In total, during the phase II clinical trials, the AlphaMedixTM treatment will be administered to 34 patients in several cycles.
In parallel, teams from Orano Med are continuing to work on lead-212 production operations at the Maurice Tubiana Laboratory (Laboratoire Maurice Tubiana – LMT) in Bessines-sur-Gartempe, France, using a unique process of closed-loop recycling of drums of thorium from Orano's mining activities.
At the end of 2021 and in a world first, several drums of thorium from which the material was extracted a few years ago to produce lead-212 then put back into storage, were retrieved to produce lead-212 again at the LMT. The process used consists of dissolving the thorium nitrate then purifying and selectively separating the specific radioelements essential for the production of lead-212. The solution obtained is then solidified and stored with a view to being used subsequently for several production cycles.
The closed-loop recycling of thorium nitrate makes a still mostly untapped source of raw material available for the production of future cancer treatments.
Julien Dodet, President & CEO of Orano Med, stated: "I am proud of the work done by our teams which has made it possible to take some essential steps forward in 2021 despite the constraints of the pandemic. These milestones confirm the robustness of Orano Med and the unique know-how we possess to develop innovative treatments for forms of cancer which are difficult to treat today".
