The drug Nimotuzumab (Cimaher®), one of the leading products of Cuban biotechnology, has health registration in more than 20 countries, especially in head and neck cancer, and glioma in pediatrics, it was disclosed this Wednesday.
This humanized monoclonal antibody received new medical registrations in China last February, for use in carcinomas of the pancreas, head and neck, and nations such as Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Canada, India, Brazil and Germany have conducted clinical research with this Cuban product in different cancer locations. Created by the Center for Molecular Immunology (CIM), this drug obtained in 2002 the sanitary registration granted by the
Center for State Control of Medicines, Equipment and Medical Devices for the therapy of advanced tumors of the head and neck in adults, after demonstrating its action of blocking the epidermal growth factor, a highly valuable target in Oncology.
Doctor in Medical Sciences Tania Crombet, director of Clinical Research at the CIM, explained to Granma newspaper that Nimotuzumab produces an inhibition of the uncontrolled proliferation of malignant cells, the formation of new vessels and the occurrence of metastasis (dissemination of cancer), and activates the immune system.
One of its main advantages is that it differentially recognizes tumor cells from healthy ones, that is, it acts specifically on malignant ones. In most cancer locations, Nimotuzumab is usually used in combination with irradiation and chemotherapy, added the doctor.
Currently, the Cuban health registry authorizes its use in brain neoplasms, esophageal neoplasms, pancreatic adenocarcinoma and non-small cell lung cancer, with encouraging results in terms of lengthening survival and improving the general condition of patients.
The product is the subject of more than 20 clinical trials focused on investigating its efficacy and safety in other cancer indications. During the Covid-19 pandemic, research revealed that its application in seriously ill patients showed an improvement in ventilatory function and a reduction in the concentration of interleukin 6, one of the main cytokines causing the hyperinflammatory state that worsens the clinical picture of the disease.
Likewise, there was a radiological improvement or stabilization of multifocal interstitial pneumonia in 80 percent of patients on the seventh day after receiving the first dose, along with the observation of preliminary evidence of prevention or reversal of fibrotic lesions by computed axial tomography, which led to the reduction of pulmonary sequelae.
Nimotuzumab is part of the CIM's portfolio of cancer products, focused on blocking tumor growth and reducing the size of its mass, with the aim of transforming this malignant disease into a chronic condition, without deteriorating the patient's quality of life.
(Taken from Prensa Latina)
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