Andrew Weinberg
Chief Executive Officer AgonOx
Andrew Weinberg earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry at Washington State University in 1987. Dr. Weinberg moved to Portland, Oregon in 1990 to work at the VA Medical Center on an autoimmune model for multiple sclerosis (EAE) with Arthur Vandenbark, Ph.D. and Halina Offner, Ph.D. During the course of the autoimmune work Dr. Weinberg discovered that the TNF-receptor, OX40, was expressed on autoAg-specific T cells at the site of autoimmune inflammation and was in part responsible for their pathogenic properties. Dr. Weinberg moved to the Providence Cancer Center in 1995 as an independent scientist to focus on tumor immunology. There he discovered that OX40 agonists were potent stimulators of tumor immunity in cancer-bearing hosts. In collaboration with Brendan Curti, M.D. and Walter Urba, M.D. at the Providence Cancer Center a human OX40 agonist was tested in a phase I clinical trial. Dr. Weinberg is now involved with isolating and characterizing tumor-reactive TIL for future therapeutic cancer strategies.
Seminars
As the field moves beyond melanoma, the need for optimized efficacy and safety is forcing a rethink of manufacturing strategies and delivery strategies.
This workshop addresses the growing recognition that current TIL strategies involve bulk TIL expansion, diluting tumor reactive potential and requiring high dose IL-2 for efficacy.
Key questions addressed in this workshop:
- Which tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte subsets are truly reactive rather than expanded bystanders?
- Do selection approaches such as PD-1 or neoantigen targeting enrich potency or accelerate exhaustion?
• How can next-generation approaches optimize safety vs. efficacy?
- Demonstrating clinical feasibility of isolating tumor reactive T-cells across multiple solid tumor types
- Sharing early phase safety and response observations from a selective TIL approach
- Informing future trial design by linking cell composition to clinical outcomes
- Comparing genome editing approaches used to enhance potency, persistence, and tumor recognition
- Reviewing safety, manufacturability, and regulatory trade-offs of engineered TIL designs
- Identifying where genetic modification adds clear clinical value vs. added complexity
- Can TIL manufacturing be designed for in vivo development rather than culturing the cells in vitro?
