❖ Radiation-induced lung injury, including radiation pneumonitis and radiation fibrosis, is common among patients who have received radiation therapy, and it is the most common treatment-limiting toxicity among patients who receive thoracic radiation
❖ Radiation pneumonitis (RP) and radiation fibrosis (RF) are two dose-limiting toxicities of radiotherapy (RT), especially for lung, and esophageal cancer. It occurs in 5–20% of patients and limits the maximum dose that can be delivered,
❖ Pulmonary radiation injury manifests in ~8% of patients who receive thoracic radiation
❖ Incidence of symptomatic radiation pneumonitis range from 1-34% of patients who receive thoracic radiation for malignancy
❖ ~43 percent of patients who are exposed to thoracic radiation therapy have radiographic evidence of radiation pneumonitis
❖ Current therapies for RILI are extremely limited with only high dose corticosteroids as a controversial treatment, with limited efficacy at best and serious toxicities.
❖ eNAMPT is a target identified by Aqualung and it has been show to potently induces lung and systemic inflammation following human or preclinical animal exposure to radiation.
❖ Aqualung Therapeutics has generated ALT-100TM, an eNAMPT-neutralizing, humanized monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapeutic to address RILI. The therapeutic has the potential to reduce the cytokine storm, organ dysfunction, morbidity and lethality of ionizing radiation exposure.
