News and Events

We are pleased to announce the publication of our latest article in Trends in Cancer, entitled “STEAP1: a promising target in prostate cancer therapy,” where we present a perspective on STEAP1 (six transmembrane epithelial antigen of prostate 1) as a promising therapeutic target in prostate cancer.

STEAP1 is expressed in prostate cancer while largely absent from normal tissues, making it an attractive candidate for targeted therapies. In this article, we explore the biological relevance of STEAP1 and highlight current clinical efforts centered on targeting STEAP1. Our lab is actively developing a new CAR T cell therapy directed against STEAP1. By engineering patient-derived T cells to recognize and eliminate STEAP1-positive cancer cells, we aim to introduce a precise and potent treatment option for prostate cancer patients who currently have limited choices.

You can read the full article here (PMID: 40527692).

We are pleased to share that our latest biomarker study in early breast cancer, entitled “High tumor expression of CTLA4 identifies lymph node-negative basal-like breast cancer patients with excellent prognosis,” has been published in Communications Medicine.

Most breast cancer patients are cured after initial surgery and radiotherapy. However, basal-like breast cancer, which accounts for about 15% of cases, carries a high risk of early recurrence and death. Nearly all patients with basal-like disease therefore receive additional treatment before and after surgery, including chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Although this treatment reduces the risk of recurrence, it causes considerable short and long-term side effects. In the current study, we found that patients whose tumors express high levels of the immune-related gene CTLA4 have an excellent prognosis, likely because the immune system aids in fighting the cancer. Our findings suggest that additional treatments may safely be reduced or omitted for some patients, which would significantly improve the quality of life of cancer survivors.

The first author of this paper, our highly appreciated colleague, group member and friend Andreas Hagen Røssevold tragically died in an accident May 2025. 

On February 9th, Andreas Hagen Røssevold triumphantly completed his PhD defense on "Immunotherapy and immunological biomarkers in breast cancer" at the OUH.
For more details on his groundbreaking research, read his recent publications on @NatureMedicine and ​​@jitcancer.

Public Defence: Andreas Hagen Røssevold ( med.uio.no)

We are happy to share that our clinical trial ICON has been published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer. Thanks to the patients, collaborators, and funders (BMS, Health Region South East, Pink Ribbon/Norwegian Cancer Society).

The trial was among the first to investigate the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in metastatic HRpos HER2neg breast cancer, concomitant with or after immunostimulating chemotherapy.

We are grateful to the Norwegian Society of Immunology for acknowledging our ALICE-article (Nat Med. Dec 2022; doi: 10.1038/s41591-022-02126-1) with the NSI 2023 Research Prize. The ALICE study was the first to show clinical benefit from the addition of immunotherapy to chemotherapy in metastatic breast cancer. This finding supported the study rationale of making "cold" tumors responsive to immune checkpoint blockade by using immunomodulatory chemotherapy. The study was supported by the Norwegian Cancer Society/Pink Ribbon, Heath Region South East, and Roche. Special thanks to the ALICE team, all study sites, and most of all to the patients, some of whom traveled by interconnecting flights every fortnight, even during COVID-19 restrictions.

16 millioner til kreftforskere fra Bærum (budstikka.no, 21.11.2023)

We are honored and grateful to the Cancer Society & Pink Ribbon for awarding their Open Call Grant to our project “Personalised Immunotherapy for Treatment Refractory Metastatic Breast Cancer”. Special thanks to everyone supporting the Cancer Society – we look forward to getting on with the work!

220 millioner kroner til kreftforskning! (kreftforeningen.no)

In patients with metastatic triple-negative #BreastCancer, atezolizumab + anthracycline-based chemotherapy improves progression-free survival, including in PD-L1 negative disease.

@andreashr @GroupKyte @AmundJon @Oslounivsykehus @UniOslo_MED

Oppløftende prøvemetode mot brystkreft : – Ville ikke stått her uten den (nrk.no)

Stort framskritt i norsk brystkreftforskning (kreftforeningen.no)

The randomized, placebo-controlled ALICE trial investigated the effect of treating metastatic triple-negative breast cancer patients with a combination of the immune checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab and chemotherapy. Conclusions from this trial, led by Jon Amund Kyte at Oslo University Hospital (OUH), have now been published in Nature Medicine in an article titled “Atezolizumab plus anthracyclin-based chemotherapy in metastatic triple-negative breast cancer: the randomized, double-blind phase IIb ALICE trial”.

https://www.matrix-fkb.no/news

Thesis:
“Treating metastatic melanoma with ipilimumab – Clinical activity, health-related quality of life and combination with a telomerase peptide vaccine”

Trial Lecture
“Prevention and early detection strategies for melanoma”

Time and place: June 22, 2022 10:15 AM, Auditorium, Research building (K-building), The Norwegian Radium Hospital

Information from UiO home page: Click here

Oncologist Jon Amund Kyte shares some of the groundbreaking immunotherapy research that he and his team are conducting at Oslo University Hospital.

Click here