The Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment at Providence Swedish Neuroscience Institute collaborates with Seattle-based HDT Bio on preparations for trialing novel treatment to breach blood-brain barrier, and deliver proprietary immunotherapeutic directly into patients’ tumors, rather than intravenously.
A collaboration involving Providence Swedish Neuroscience Institute (PSNI) recently concluded initial testing of a novel immunotherapy research project for the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM). This proprietary immunotherapeutic takes a unique approach to GBM treatment, maximizing the potential of a first-of-its-kind investigational agent by administering it directly into patients’ tumors, rather than intravenously. GBM is an aggressive brain tumor for which there is no cure, with a median survival rate of 15-20 months.
This five-year research project is the culmination of more than 45 years of collective clinical research experience from neurosurgeon Charles Cobbs, M.D., research scientist Parvinder Hothi, Ph.D., and their team at the Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment at Providence Swedish Neuroscience Institute.
“Other immunotherapies have only been administered via intravenous injection, meaning they can run rampant through the body, miss the tumor, or get blocked by the notorious blood-brain barrier,” explains Dr. Cobbs. “By targeting the tumor directly, we believe we can provide a more focused and safer treatment.”
GBM is known as an immunologically ‘cold’ tumor, where the tumor and surrounding microenvironment suppress the body’s natural immune system. To address this, Providence Swedish forged a collaboration with Seattle-based HDT Bio that activates and expands T-cell function in the tumor microenvironment.
In a future version, the technology may include cytomegalovirus (CMV) peptides to induce an even more powerful immune response. This draws from Dr. Cobbs’ original discovery that CMV, a common virus found in about 85 percent of adults in the United States, is often present in GBM.
“Glioblastoma remains one of the most difficult cancers to treat and novel approaches are urgently needed,” says Steve Reed, Ph.D., founder and CEO of HDT Bio. “We are encouraged by these early findings and pleased that HDT Bio’s technology is contributing to a collaborative effort to address this devastating disease.”
The first stage of the five-year project concluded in 2025 and focused on gathering preclinical data to test the efficacy and safety of HDT-401 in GBM cell lines as well as Providence Swedish’s ex vivo tumor slice culture platform developed at the Ivy Center. This novel platform re-sections fresh tumor samples, enabling testing of many cell types within the tumor microenvironment.
“All the preclinical data is extremely positive, and that brings us to 2026, when we will work on finalizing clinical trial protocols and obtaining regulatory approvals to launch a trial,” Dr. Hothi says.
Once approval is obtained for a clinical trial, Providence Swedish plans to begin enrolling patients and administering HDT-401 in 2027. In 2029, our researchers anticipate publishing their findings and designing a follow-up phase II clinical trial.
The team was granted expanded access 'compassionate use' of HDT-401 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for three patients, one in 2025 and two in 2026.
“This is an option that we can offer to patients who are not eligible for clinical trials or who are looking for an out-of-the-box approach,” says Alipi Bonm, M.D., a neuro-oncologist on the team. “HDT-401 is on the leading edge of immunotherapy, and we’re grateful to be able to offer this for patients who value highly novel and innovative approaches.”
“This novel research puts us at the forefront of glioblastoma research and care,” Dr. Cobbs adds. “If successful, it could have massive implications on not only disease prognosis, but also the future of treatment for many solid-tumor cancers.”
About Providence Swedish
Providence Swedish has served the Puget Sound region since the first Providence hospital opened in Seattle in 1877 and the first Swedish hospital opened in 1910. The two organizations affiliated in 2012 and today comprise the largest health care delivery system in Western Washington, with 24,000 caregivers, eight hospitals and 244 clinics throughout Western Washington – from Everett to Centralia. A not-for-profit family of organizations, Providence Swedish provides more than $545 million in community benefit in the Puget Sound region each year. The health system offers a comprehensive range of services and specialty and subspecialty care in a number of clinical areas, including cancer, cardiovascular health, neurosciences, orthopedics, digestive health and women’s and children’s care. For more information, visit providence.org/swedish.
About the Author
More Content by Swedish Neuroscience Team
