Dr. Cho on Investigational BiTE Therapies in Multiple Myeloma

Hearn Jay Cho, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, discusses investigational bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE) therapies in multiple myeloma.

There are several BiTEs under clinical investigation, says Cho. Although the majority of these agents target BCMA, there is a molecule that is being developed by Janssen Pharmaceuticals that targets GPRC5D, which is highly expressed in myeloma cells. The agent has shown very promising activity in early-phase clinical trials, says Cho, and more data are anticipated at the 2019 ASH Annual Meeting.

Another agent is being developed by Glenmark Pharmaceuticals and targets CD38, which is also the target of daratumumab (Darzalex). The theory was that if a monoclonal antibody like daratumumab is effective in targeting CD38, a bispecific agent, that directs T cells to kill cells that are expressed in CD38 could have comparable or superior activity, concludes Cho.