Analysts called the data “very competitive” but raised questions about safety. Merck gained ownership of the ADC when it acquired VelosBio in November 2020 for $2.75 billion.

Merck on Sunday unveiled initial data from the Phase II waveLINE-007 study, demonstrating that its investigational antibody-drug conjufate zilovertamab vedotin achieved a 100% complete response rate when used as part of a treatment regimen in patients with diffuse large B cell lymphoma.

The pharma presented these findings at the ongoing 66th annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH 2024), being held in San Diego.

In a note over the weekend, BMO Capital Markets analysts called data for Merck’s ADC “very competitive,” however noting that “safety remains more of a question” moving forward.

In the study, all 15 patients treated with 1.75 mg/kg of zilovertamab vedotin, in combination with the anti-cancer regimen R-CHP—cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, prednisone and rituximab—reached complete response, as assessed using a PET scan and a CT or MRI scan.

At a higher dose level of 2 mg/kg, complete response rate (CRR) dipped slightly to 93.3%, before going back up to 100% in the six patients who were dosed at 2.25 mg/kg. The overall CRR at the end of the treatment period was 97.2%. At the time of the readout, median duration of response has not yet been reached for all patients.

As for safety, waveLINE-007 documented grade 3 to 4 treatment-related adverse events in 58% of patients, the most common of which were nausea, neutropenia, anemia and diarrhea. Serious treatment-related toxicities arose in 11%, most of whom were given the highest zilovertamab vedotin dose. None of the patients in the 1.75 mg/kg arm dropped out of the study, while one participant in the highest dose bracket had to discontinue, as deemed appropriate by their physician.

Based on these findings, Merck will take the 1.75 mg/kg dose of zilovertamab vedotin forward into Phase III testing.

Zilovertamab vedotin targets the ROR1 transmembrane protein, which is highly expressed in blood cancer cells. The ADC carries a monomethyl auristatin E payload, which when released inside the cell disrupts microtubules, prevents cell division and ultimately triggers cell death.

Merck gained ownership of zilovertamab vedotin in November 2020, when it bought San Diego biotech VelosBio for $2.75 billion. At the time, the ADC was still in early-to-mid-stage development, but Merck has since expanded the development program for zilovertamab vedotin. In addition to the , including the waveLINE-007, the company has two other ongoing trials in the same indication, diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL): the Phase II/III waveLINE-003 study for relapsed or refractory DLBCL and the Phase III waveLINE-010 trial in treatment-naive DLBCL patients.

Do you have the best Christmas decorations in town? Send us photos and a description for Patch's 2024 holiday tour of lights.

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Can the holiday lights on your home be seen from space? Does it look like the Las Vegas strip?

If you've spent days or weeks painstakingly hanging strands of lights on your house, palm trees and shrubs, or hauling multiple figurines out to your lawn — Patch wants to hear from you.

Soon, we're compiling a Patch California tour o' lights, where readers can explore the best holiday light displays in the San Mateo County area.

We aim to have the list up as soon as possible — so email photos and a description of your winter wonderland to Kat Schuster at kat.schuster@patch.com.

For many of us, taking in our neighbors’ outdoor holiday lighting displays and other decorative touches is as much a part of the season as exchanging gifts and singing Christmas carols.

There’s a good reason twinkling holiday lights and colorful displays make us feel good, according to mental health experts.

“It does create that neurological shift that can produce happiness,” Psychologist Deborah Serani, a senior professor at New York’s Adelphi University, told NBC’s “Today” show. “I think anything that takes us out of our normal habituation, the normal day in, day out ... signals our senses, and then our senses measure if it’s pleasing or not.”

Decorating for the holidays “will spike dopamine, a feel-good hormone,” she said. “For a lot of us, Christmas is a magical time, it’s a time of innocence. It’s a time of joy.”

That’s why Patch and T-Mobile are partnering to find the lighted homes around town to visit.

A few details:

If you’re including a video, please upload it to YouTube and send us the link so we can embed it (make sure it's marked “public”). We also request that the homeowner submit their own yard or a close relative.

We’ll keep updating the countywide list throughout December.

Once you've provided the information — and submitted a photo or two or a video (after you uploaded it to YouTube) — you will be entered and included in our roundup.

Pro-tip: If you haven't photographed your light display before, a good time to take photos is at dusk.

IMPORTANT: By submitting a photo, you're giving Patch permission to publish it for this feature and future stories. Photos should be original and taken by the person submitting the photo.

So, be sure to check back for updates and sign up for your local Patch.com newsletters as well!

Please copy and paste the following information into an email, along with photos or videos, and follow these guidelines:

We’re looking forward to hearing from you. Remember, email Kat Schuster (kat.schuster@patch.com) to submit photos of your holiday lights.

UPDATED FORECAST: Another atmospheric river to hit California this week. Here’s where rain, snow will be heaviest

While upward of a foot of rain has fallen in the past few days across parts of Sonoma County, less than 100 miles to the south, San Jose has yet to record any meaningful precipitation from this atmospheric river event. That changes Friday.

A powerful cold front will slowly make its way through the Bay Area on Friday, dropping 2 to 6 inches of rain across the North Bay and 1 to 3 inches of rain to San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose over a timeframe from late Friday morning through early Friday evening. For many locations south of San Francisco, Friday’s heavy rain will be the first notable precipitation of this atmospheric river event.

The intense cold front is propelled by a frigid air mass surging southward, colliding with the warm, moist air fueling the atmospheric river. This clash is orchestrated by the erratic movements of two low-pressure systems in the northeast Pacific, which are steering these opposing air masses into a dramatic confrontation.

The clash of air masses will also generate some very strong wind gusts. A wind advisory is in effect for broad swaths of the Bay Area until 10 p.m. on Friday with frequent gusts of wind from the south at 35 to 50 mph, and even higher gusts across elevated areas.

The strong winds will undoubtedly cause trees and limbs to fall, especially across the North Bay where the soil has been weakened through extreme saturation.

Cold fronts developing toward the end of atmospheric river events are common. But their propensity to move very slowly or even stall out for a period of time make such cold fronts particularly dangerous. Already saturated areas could get an additional quick dose of heavy rain, raising flood risk.

Friday’s cold front will be slow moving and may stall out or oscillate for a few hours over the Bay Area late Friday morning into Friday afternoon, the timeframe for the heaviest rainfall.

By Friday evening, the cold front should pick up its trek again, pushing southeast through the rest of the state and dragging the axis of moisture from the atmospheric river with it. That will put Central and Southern California in the mix for some moderate to heavy rainfall and snow in the Central Sierra over the weekend.

Friday breakdown

San Francisco and Peninsula: Rain will develop in the city and across the Peninsula sometime after 7 a.m. Rain will persist throughout the day, with periods of moderate to heavy rain at times. Rain totals will generally range from about 1.25 to 2 inches in places like San Francisco, Half Moon Bay and Redwood City. The rain should come to an end sometime after 6 p.m. It will be windy as well, with gusts of 20 to 30 mph from the south throughout the day. Temperatures will be in the upper 50s to mid-60s. Cloudy overnight with maybe a stray shower or two and temperatures in the upper 40s to low 50s.

North Bay: For the third day in a row, the North Bay will be inundated with rain. Light to moderate rain redevelops in the morning with pockets of heavy rain likely at times throughout the day, especially in higher elevation. Rainfall totals will range between 2 and 5 inches, with 6 or more inches possible in the mountains. Wind gusts from the south of 35 to 45 mph will likely knock down some trees and limbs. Temperatures will only be in the low 60s. Rain will finally come to an end in the evening, leaving overcast skies overnight and lighter winds with temperatures in the 50s.

East Bay: Light rain develops in the early morning hours, becoming steady and moderate as the day progresses. Rainfall totals will range from 1.5 to 3 inches west of the Berkeley Hills, with totals closer to 1 to 1.5 inches in the Tri-Valley region. Winds will be gusty, especially along the bay with gusts of 15 to 25 mph across the East Bay. Temperatures will be in the low to mid-60s. Rain tapers in the evening and it’ll be mostly cloudy overnight with lighter winds and lows in the mid- to upper 50s.

South Bay and Santa Cruz: Parts of the South Bay that have stayed dry will finally see rain. Rain showers move in by mid-morning, with steady rain falling throughout the day and pockets of heavier rain in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Rainfall totals will range from 0.75 inches in the Santa Clara Valley to 3 inches in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Wind speeds won’t be as strong with gusts of 15 to 25 mph from the south. Temperatures will be in the low to mid-60s. Rain ends in the evening with mostly cloudy skies overnight and temperatures in the low 50s.

Reach Greg Porter: greg.porter@sfchronicle.com

Nov 22, 2024

Senior Newsroom Meteorologist

Greg Porter is a senior newsroom meteorologist at the San Francisco Chronicle. Porter comes to Chronicle after seven years working as a meteorologist for the Capital Weather Gang at the Washington Post. Porter has also worked as a meteorological technical subject matter expert in for both government and commercial organizations around the world.

Porter received his Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Atmospheric Science from UMass Lowell and the University of Maryland. A native of Boston, Porter has also spent time living in Washington, D.C. and Edinburgh, Scotland.

Outside of work, Porter loves to spend time with his wife and very energetic 2 year old son. He also enjoys spending as much time outside as possible and he fancies himself a very average golfer.