Rally for Medical Research Hill Day

Posted on May 26, 2016 by MaryO

Held every September, this Capitol Hill Day event continues the momentum established in 2013, and includes nearly 300 national organizations coming together in support of the Rally for Medical Research.

The purpose of the Rally is to call on our nation’s policymakers to make funding for National Institutes of Health (NIH) a national priority and raise awareness about the importance of continued investment in medical research that leads to MORE PROGRESS, MORE HOPE and MORE LIVES SAVED.

The next Rally for Medical Research Hill Day is Sept. 22, 2016.

Sign up to receive updates, including a link to register once it becomes available.

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World Asthma Day

Posted on May 3, 2016 by MaryO

World Asthma Day

 

Asthma is a common condition that causes your airways to become narrow and swollen. This can make it hard to breathe. Asthma symptoms include coughing, wheezing, and chest tightness or pain.

Many adults struggle with asthma even though they take medication to treat it. That’s why researchers are working to develop medications that may better treat asthma in the future.

Learn more at http://curec.lk/1Y54ths

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Recruitment for Cushing’s Syndrome Clinical Study

Posted on May 2, 2016 by MaryO
DESCRIPTION

This trial is testing the safety and effectiveness of a new investigational drug for the treatment of Cushing’s Syndrome. Under the supervision of qualified physicians, cortisol levels and symptoms of Cushing’s Syndrome will be closely followed along with any signs of side effects.

The link below will take you to the trial website where you can review additional information and the patient screener.

http://curec.lk/1X0J6kT

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Promising Pre-Clinical and Phase 1 Data Support Advance of Selective Cortisol Modulator CORT125134 as Potential Treatment for Cushing’s Syndrome and Solid-Tumor Cancers

Posted on April 30, 2016 by MaryO

MENLO PARK, CA–(Marketwired – Apr 28, 2016) –  Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (NASDAQ: CORT), a pharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of drugs that treat severe metabolic, oncologic and psychiatric disorders by modulating the effects of cortisol, today released data supporting the clinical advancement of its proprietary, selective cortisol modulator, CORT125134. The company has begun recruiting patients for a Phase 1/2 trial of the compound to treat patients with solid-tumor cancers. It also expects to begin recruiting patients for a Phase 2 study of CORT125134 to treat patients with Cushing’s syndrome this quarter.

“Advancing CORT125134 is an important step in protecting and extending our growing Cushing’s syndrome franchise and in developing cortisol modulation for a wide range of other serious diseases,” said Joseph K. Belanoff, MD, Corcept’s Chief Executive Officer. “This selective cortisol modulator has shown great promise. We are optimistic that, for some patients with Cushing’s syndrome, CORT125134 may be even better than our approved product, Korlym® — just as effective, but without the side effects associated with Korlym’s affinity for the progesterone receptor. Equally important, we look forward to investigating its potential as a treatment for solid-tumor cancers.”

CORT125134 is the lead compound in Corcept’s proprietary portfolio of selective cortisol modulators. It is a non-steroidal competitive antagonist of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) that does not bind to the body’s other hormone receptors, including the progesterone receptor (PR). Korlym’s interaction with PR results in termination of pregnancy and can cause endometrial thickening and irregular vaginal bleeding in some women. CORT125134 is proprietary to Corcept and is protected by composition of matter and method of use patents extending to 2033.

Advancement to Phase 2 Trials Supported by Positive Pre-Clinical and Phase 1 Data
“The data generated so far make this compound a promising candidate to treat both Cushing’s syndrome and, potentially, a number of solid-tumor cancers,” said Hazel Hunt, Ph.D., Corcept’s Vice President of Research. “Its Phase 1 data showed that it shares Korlym’s potent affinity for GR, one of the receptors to which cortisol binds. Our clinical testing showed that it can prevent the effects of the steroid prednisone, a commonly-used synthetic GR agonist. Preventing the effects of prednisone is a very important finding, as it mirrors the essential quality of an effective medical treatment for patients with Cushing’s syndrome.”

Corcept’s Phase 1 trial of CORT125134 enrolled 124 healthy volunteers. GR antagonism was tested by measuring CORT125134’s ability to modulate prednisone’s effects on serum osteocalcin, white blood cell counts, glucose metabolism and expression of the FKBP5 gene — a marker of GR activation. With respect to all parameters, CORT125134 was as potent a modulator of prednisone’s activity as Korlym (see Figure 1; p value < 0.0003).

Pharmacokinetic data indicate that CORT125134 is suitable for once-daily dosing.

“Positive Phase 1 data, together with encouraging pre-clinical results, prompted us to advance CORT125134 as a treatment for Cushing’s syndrome as well as a treatment for cancer,” continued Dr. Hunt. “Substantial pre-clinical and clinical research suggests that cortisol modulation increases the effectiveness of chemotherapy in some solid-tumor cancers. Pre-clinical data suggest that CORT125134 may be even more potent than Korlym in treating some tumor types.”

Corcept and investigators at the University of Chicago have studied the effectiveness of CORT125134 in transgenic mouse models of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and castration-resistant prostate cancer. Mice implanted with TNBC tumor cells were treated with a combination of paclitaxel and CORT125134. Mifepristone (the active ingredient in Korlym) in combination with paclitaxel served as a positive control. As expected, the combination of mifepristone and paclitaxel significantly slowed tumor progression. However, the combination of CORT125134 and paclitaxel slowed it even more (see Figure 2; p value = 0.0004). In a similar experiment, castrated mice seeded with prostate cancer tumor cells were treated with either mifepristone or CORT125134. The outcome was comparable to the TNBC study: When combined with castration (which in humans would be achieved pharmacologically by the administration of an androgen receptor antagonist such as enzalutamide), mifepristone retarded tumor progression, but CORT125134 had an even more pronounced effect (see Figure 3; p value = 0.037).

CORT125134 may also enhance the efficacy of immune-modulation therapy. In an animal model of colon cancer, the addition of CORT125134 to PD-1 monotherapy significantly slowed tumor progression (see Figure 4; p value = 0.013):

Oncology Trial Design
This trial’s initial phase will investigate nab-paclitaxel in combination with CORT125134 to treat any solid-tumor cancer susceptible to treatment with nab-paclitaxel. (“Nab-paclitaxel” is the generic name for Celgene’s drug, Abraxane®.) Once a maximum tolerated dose is identified, Corcept plans to open one or more expansion cohorts, each containing 20 patients, to test the combination’s efficacy in one or more of the solid-tumor cancers studied in the dose-finding phase. Possible target indications include TNBC, castration-resistant prostate cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer and sarcoma. Other dose-finding cohorts may be enrolled to study CORT125134 in combination with different companion therapeutic agents, including PD-1 inhibitors.

The trial is open-label and will be conducted at sites in the United States, the first of which is open and has begun screening patients.

“That we are advancing the same selective cortisol modulator as a treatment for both a metabolic disease and one or more oncologic indications is a testament to the broad therapeutic potential of cortisol modulation,” said Robert S. Fishman, MD, Corcept’s Chief Medical Officer. “We are excited to start these trials.”

Cushing’s Syndrome Trial Design
This Phase 2 trial of CORT125134 will enroll 30 patients with endogenous Cushing’s syndrome. Patients will be assigned to a low- or high-dose group and will receive CORT125134 for 12 weeks, with up-titration possible in each group at weeks four and eight. The trial will be open label. Study centers will be located in both the European Union and the United States.

About Korlym®
Korlym modulates the effect of cortisol at GR, one of the two receptors to which cortisol binds, thereby inhibiting the effects of excess cortisol in patients with Cushing’s syndrome. Since 2012, Corcept has made Korlym available as a once-daily oral treatment of hyperglycemia secondary to endogenous Cushing’s syndrome in adult patients with glucose intolerance or diabetes mellitus type 2 who have failed surgery or are not candidates for surgery. Korlym was the first FDA-approved treatment for that illness and the FDA has designated it as an Orphan Drug for that indication.

About Cushing’s Syndrome
Endogenous Cushing’s syndrome is caused by prolonged exposure of the body’s tissues to high levels of the hormone cortisol and is generated by tumors that produce cortisol or ACTH. Cushing’s syndrome is an orphan indication that most commonly affects adults aged 20-50. An estimated 10-15 of every one million people are newly diagnosed with this syndrome each year, resulting in over 3,000 new patients annually in the United States. An estimated 20,000 patients in the United States have Cushing’s syndrome. Symptoms vary, but most people have one or more of the following manifestations: high blood sugar, diabetes, high blood pressure, upper body obesity, rounded face, increased fat around the neck, thinning arms and legs, severe fatigue and weak muscles. Irritability, anxiety, cognitive disturbances and depression are also common. Cushing’s syndrome can affect every organ system in the body and can be lethal if not treated effectively.

About Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Triple-negative breast cancer is a form of the disease in which the three receptors that fuel most breast cancer growth — estrogen, progesterone and the HER-2/neu gene — are not present. Because the tumor cells lack the necessary receptors, treatments that target estrogen, progesterone and HER-2 receptors are ineffective. In 2013, approximately 40,000 women were diagnosed with TNBC. It is estimated that more than 75 percent of these women’s tumor cells expressed the GR receptor to which cortisol binds. There is no FDA-approved treatment and neither a targeted treatment nor an approved standard chemotherapy regimen for relapsed TNBC patients exists.

About Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated
Corcept is a pharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of drugs that treat severe metabolic, oncologic and psychiatric disorders by modulating the effects of cortisol. Korlym, a first-generation cortisol modulator, is the company’s first FDA-approved medication. The company is conducting a Phase 1/2 trial of mifepristone for the treatment of TNBC, a Phase 1/2 trial of CORT125134 to treat a variety of solid-tumor cancers and has a proprietary portfolio of other selective GR antagonists that modulate the effects of cortisol but not progesterone. Corcept owns extensive intellectual property covering the use of cortisol modulators, including mifepristone and CORT125134, in the treatment of a wide variety of metabolic, oncologic and psychiatric disorders. It also holds composition of matter patents for CORT125134 and its other selective cortisol modulators.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the initiation and advancement of clinical trials and the development of Corcept’s pre-clinical and clinical pipeline, are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that might cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including the pace of enrollment in or the outcome of the company’s Phase 1/2 study of CORT125134 to treat solid-tumor cancers and planned Phase 2 trial of CORT125134 to treat patients with Cushing’s syndrome, the effects of rapid technological change and competition, the protections afforded by Corcept’s intellectual property rights, or the cost, pace and success of Corcept’s other product development efforts. These and other risks are set forth in the company’s SEC filings, all of which are available from the company’s website (www.corcept.com) or from the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov). Corcept disclaims any intention or duty to update any forward-looking statement made in this news release.

Abraxane® is a registered trademark of Celgene Corporation.

From http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/promising-pre-clinical-phase-1-data-support-advance-selective-cortisol-modulator-cort125134-nasdaq-cort-2119635.htm

 

Filed under: Clinical trials, Cushing's, Treatments | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Day 7, Cushing’s Awareness Challenge 2016

Posted on April 7, 2016 by MaryO

On Becoming Empowered. Adapted from my blog post Participatory Medicine

The Society for Participatory Medicine - MemberThis is kind of a “cheat” post since it’s a compilation of other posts, web pages, message board posts and some original thoughts.  I wrote it to submit to Robin’s Grand Rounds, hosted  on her blog.

For all of my early life, I was the good, compliant, patient.  I took whatever pills the doctor prescribed, did whatever tests h/she (most always a he) wrote for.  Believed that whatever he said was the absolute truth.  He had been to med school.  He knew what was wrong with me even though he didn’t live in my body 24/7 and experience what I did.

I know a lot of people are still like this.  Their doctor is like a god to them.  He can do no wrong – even if they don’t feel any better after treatment, even if they feel worse.  “But the doctor said…”

Anyway, I digress.

All this changed for me in 1983.

At first I noticed I’d stopped having my periods and, of course, I thought I was pregnant. I went to my Gynecologist who had no explanation. Lots of women lose their periods for a variety of reasons so no one thought that this was really significant.

Then I got really tired, overly tired. I would take my son to a half hour Choir rehearsal and could not stay awake for the whole time. I would lie down in the back of the van, set an alarm and sleep for the 30 minutes.

A whole raft of other symptoms started appearing – I grew a beard (Hirsuitism), gained weight even though I was on Weight Watchers and working out at the gym nearly every day, lost my period, everything hurt, got what is called a “moon face” and a “buffalo hump” on the back of my neck. I also got stretch marks. I was very depressed but it’s hard to say if that was because of the hormone imbalance or because I felt so bad and no one would listen to me.

I came across a little article in the Ladies Home Journal magazine which said “If you have these symptoms…ask your doctor about Cushing’s”. After that, I started reading everything I could on Cushing’s and asking my doctors. Due to all my reading at the library and medical books I bought, I was sure I had Cushing’s but no one would believe me. Doctors would say that Cushing’s Disease is too rare, that I was making this up and that I couldn’t have it.

I asked doctors for three years – PCP, gynecologist, neurologist, podiatrist – all said the now-famous refrain.  It’s too rare.  You couldn’t have Cushing’s.  I kept persisting in my reading, making copies of library texts even when I didn’t understand them, keeping notes.  I just knew that someone, somewhere would “discover” that I had Cushing’s.

My husband was on the doctors’ sides.  He was sure it was all in my mind (as opposed to all in my head!) and he told me to just think “happy thoughts” and it would all go away.

A Neurologist gave me Xanax. Since he couldn’t see my tumor with his Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine there was “no possibility” that it existed. Boy was he wrong!

Later in 1986 I started bruising incredibly easily. I could touch my skin and get a bruise. On New Year’s Day of 1987 I started bleeding under the skin. My husband made circles around the outside perimeter each hour with a marker, like the rings of a tree. When I went to my Internist the next day he was shocked at the size. He now thought I had a blood disorder so he sent me to a Hematologist/Oncologist.

Fortunately, the Hematologist/Oncologist ran a twenty-four hour urine test and really looked at me. Both he and his partner recognized that I had Cushing’s. Of course, he was sure that he did the diagnosis.  No matter that I had been pursuing this with other doctors for 3 years.

It was not yet determined if it was Cushing’s Disease (Pituitary) or Syndrome (Adrenal). However, he couldn’t help me any further so the Hematologist referred me to an Endocrinologist.

The Endocrinologist, of course, didn’t trust the other tests I had had done so I was back to square one. He ran his own multitude of tests. He had to draw blood at certain times like 9 AM. and 5 PM. There was a dexamethasone suppression test where I took a pill at 10 p.m. and gave blood at 9 am the next day. I collected gallons of urine in BIG boxes (Fun in the fridge!). Those were from 6 a.m. to 6 a.m. to be delivered to his office by 9 a.m. same day. I was always worried that I’d be stopped in rush hour and the police would ask about what was in that big container. I think I did those for a week. He also did standard neurological tests and asked lots of questions.

When the endo confirmed that I had Cushing’s in 1987 he sent me to a local hospital where they repeated all those same tests for another week and decided that it was not my adrenal gland (Cushing’s Syndrome) creating the problem. The doctors and nurses had no idea what to do with me, so they put me on the brain cancer ward.

When I left this hospital after a week, we didn’t know any more than we had before.

As luck would have it, NIH (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland) was doing a clinical trial of Cushing’s. I live in the same area as NIH so it was not too inconvenient but very scary at first to think of being tested there. At that time I only had a choice of NIH, Mayo Clinic and a place in Quebec to do this then-rare pituitary surgery called a Transsphenoidal Resection. I chose NIH – closest and free. After I was interviewed by the Doctors there, I got a letter that I had been accepted into the clinical trial. The first time I was there was for 6 weeks as an inpatient. More of the same tests.

There were about 12 of us there and it was nice not to be alone with this mystery disease. Many of these Cushies (mostly women) were getting bald, couldn’t walk, having strokes, had diabetes. One was blind, one had a heart attack while I was there. Towards the end of my testing period, I was looking forward to the surgery just to get this whole mess over with. While I was at NIH, I was gaining about a pound a day!

The MRI still showed nothing, so they did a Petrosal Sinus Sampling Test. That scared me more than the prospect of surgery. (This test carries the risk of stroke and uncontrollable bleeding from the incision points.) Catheters were fed from my groin area to my pituitary gland and dye was injected. I could watch the whole procedure on monitors. I could not move during this test or for several hours afterwards to prevent uncontrolable bleeding from a major artery. The test did show where the tumor probably was located. Also done were more sophisticated dexamethasone suppression tests where drugs were administered by IV and blood was drawn every hour (they put a heplock in my arm so they don’t have to keep sticking me). I got to go home for a weekend and then went back for the surgery – the Transsphenoidal Resection. I fully expected to die during surgery (and didn’t care if I did) so I signed my will and wrote last letters to those I wanted to say goodbye to. During the time I was home just before surgery, a college classmate of mine (I didn’t know her) did die at NIH of a Cushing’s-related problem. I’m so glad I didn’t find out until a couple months later!

November 3, 1987, the surgeon, Dr. Ed Oldfield, cut the gum above my front teeth under my upper lip so there is no scar. He used tiny tools and microscopes. My tumor was removed successfully. In some cases (not mine) the surgeon uses a plug of fat from the abdomen to help seal the cut. Afterwards, I was in intensive care overnight and went to a neurology ward for a few days until I could walk without being dizzy. I had some major headaches for a day or two but they gave me drugs (morphine) for those. Also, I had cotton plugs in my nostrils. It was a big day when they came out. I had diabetes insipidus (DI) for a little while, but that went away by itself – thank goodness!

I had to use a foam product called “Toothies” to brush my teeth without hitting the incision. Before they let me go home, I had to learn to give myself an injection in my thigh. They sent me home with a supply of injectible cortisone in case my level ever fell too low (it didn’t). I was weaned gradually off cortisone pills (scary). I now take no medications. I had to get a Medic Alert bracelet. I will always need to tell medical staff when I have any kind of procedure – the effects of my excess cortisone will remain forever.

I went back to the NIH for several follow-up visits of a week each where they did all the blood and urine testing again. After a few years NIH set me free. Now I go to my “outside” endocrinologist every year for the dexamethasone suppression test, 24-hour urine and regular blood testing.

As I get further away from my surgery, I have less and less chance that my tumor will grow back. I have never lost all the weight I gained and I still have the hair on my chin but most of my other symptoms are gone. I am still and always tired and need a nap most days. I do not, however, still need to take whole days off just to sleep.

I consider myself very lucky that I was treated before I got as bad as some of the others on my floor at NIH but think it is crazy that these symptoms are not taken seriously by doctors.

My story goes on and if you’re interested some is on this blog and some is here:

Forbes Magazine | MaryO’s bio | Cushing’s and Cancer Blog | Guest Speakers | Interview Archive  1/3/08 | Cushing’s Awareness Day Testimonial Archive |

Because of this experience in getting a Cushing’s diagnosis – and later, a prescription for growth hormone – I was concerned that there were probably other people not being diagnosed with Cushing’s. When I searched online for Cushing’s, all the sites that came up were for dogs and horses with Cushing’s.  Not what I was looking for!

In July of 2000, I was talking with my dear friend Alice, who ran a wonderful menopause site, Power Surge, wondering why there weren’t many support groups online (OR off!) for Cushing’s.  This thought percolated through my mind for a few hours and I realized that maybe this was my calling.  Maybe I should be the one to start a network of support for other “Cushies” to help them empower themselves.

I wanted to educate others about the awful disease that took doctors years of my life to diagnose and treat – even after I gave them the information to diagnose me.  I didn’t want anyone else to suffer for years like I did.  I wanted doctors to pay more attention to Cushing’s disease.

The first website (http://www.cushings-help.com) went “live” July 21, 2000.  It was just a single page of information. The message boards began September 30, 2000 with a simple message board which then led to a larger one, and a larger.  Today, in 2016, we have over 12 thousand members and many others on Facebook.  Some “rare disease”!

The message boards are now very active and we have weekly online text chats, weekly live interviews, local meetings, conferences, email newsletters, a clothing exchange, a Cushing’s Awareness Day Forum, podcasts, phone support and much more. Because I wanted to spread the word to others not on “the boards” we have extended out to social networking sites – twitter groups, facebook groups, interviews, websites, chat groups, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Pinterest and much, much more.

People are becoming more empowered and participating in their own diagnoses, testing and treatment.  This have changed a lot since 1983!

When I had my Cushing’s nearly 30 years ago, I never thought that I would meet another Cushing’s patient in real life or online. Back then, I’d never even been aware that there was anything like an “online”. I’m so glad that people struggling with Cushing’s today don’t have to suffer anymore thinking that they’re the only one who deals with this.

Because of my work on the websites – and, believe me it is a ton of work! – I have had the honor of meeting over a hundred other Cushies personally at local meetings, conferences, at NIH (the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD where I had my final diagnosis and surgery). It occurred to me once that this is probably more than most endocrinologists will ever see in their entire career. I’ve also talked to countless others on the phone. Amazing for a “rare” disease!

I don’t know what pushed me in 1983, how I got the confidence and self-empowerment to challenge these doctors and their non-diagnoses over the years.  I’m glad that I didn’t suffer any longer than I did and I’m glad that I have a role in helping others to find the medical help that they need.

What do *YOU* think?  How are you becoming empowered?

Filed under: Clinical trials, Cushing's, Diagnostic Testing, pituitary, Rare Diseases, symptoms, Treatments | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

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