On July 9, 2018 Cellectar Biosciences (Nasdaq: CLRB), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of drugs for the treatment of cancer, reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Orphan Products Development has granted Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) to CLR 131, the company’s lead Phospholipid Drug Conjugate (PDC) product candidate, for the treatment of Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare pediatric cancer (Press release, Cellectar Biosciences, JUL 9, 2018, View Source [SID1234527614]).

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"Ewing’s sarcoma is the second most common bone malignancy among children and adolescents and there are limited treatment options for patients who relapse or become refractive to therapy," said John Friend, M.D., chief medical officer of Cellectar. "The ODD for Ewing’s sarcoma represents another important milestone for our CLR 131 pediatric program as we work to bring new options to patients suffering from rare cancers."

The FDA grants orphan drug designation to therapies targeted at conditions that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States. The designation provides seven-year market exclusivity, increased engagement and assistance from the FDA, tax credits for certain research, research grants and a waiver of the New Drug Application user fee. In 2018 the FDA also granted CLR 131 orphan drug and rare pediatric disease designations for the treatment of neuroblastoma and rhabdomyosarcoma.

Cellectar is currently initiating a Phase 1 clinical study evaluating CLR 131 for the potential treatment of pediatric patients with Ewing’s sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, osteosarcoma, neuroblastoma, high grade glioma and lymphomas. Cellectar has received clearance from the FDA to proceed with an accelerated Phase 1 trial, designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of CLR 131 in pediatric patients with these cancer types. Further details about the trial can be found at clinicaltrials.gov using the identifier number NCT03478462.

About Ewing’s Sarcoma

Ewing’s sarcoma is the second most common bone malignancy among children and adolescents. According to a study published in the Journal of Hematology/Oncology, the incidence is about 3 cases per 1 million per year in children younger than age 20. Despite the favorable prognosis, an American Cancer Society study showed that approximately 30-40% of patients develop metastases or local recurrence, and the long-term survival rate for refractory or recurrent disease is only 22-24%. The relapsed and refractory statistics underscore the need for new treatment options.

About CLR 131

CLR 131 is Cellectar’s investigational radioiodinated PDC therapy that exploits the tumor-targeting properties of the company’s proprietary phospholipid ether (PLE) and PLE analogs to selectively deliver radiation to malignant tumor cells, thus minimizing radiation exposure to normal tissues. CLR 131, is in a Phase 2 clinical study in relapsed or refractory (R/R) MM and a range of B-cell malignancies and a Phase 1 clinical study in patients with (R/R) MM exploring fractionated dosing. The company is currently initiating a Phase 1 study with CLR 131 in pediatric solid tumors and lymphoma, and is planning a second Phase 1 study in combination with external beam radiation for head and neck cancer.

On July 9, 2018 MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: MBVX), a clinical-stage oncology drug development company and Boehringer Ingelheim reported they have signed an asset acquisition and related agreements centered on MabVax’s program targeting a glycan commonly overexpressed on multiple solid tumor cancers (Press release, MabVax, JUL 9, 2018, View Source [SID1234527613]). Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired all rights in and to the program.

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MabVax will receive a total of US $11 million in upfront and near-term milestones as well as downstream regulatory milestone payments plus further earn-out payments. The asset acquisition is separate and distinct from other programs under development at MabVax, enabling MabVax to retain all rights to its lead HuMab-5B1antibody program which is in Phase 1 clinical trials as a therapeutic product and as a diagnostic product, as well as other antibody discovery programs from the Company’s rich antibody discovery portfolio targeting other cancer antigens.

MabVax discovered the antibody series at the center of this transaction from biological samples, originally from patients who were vaccinated against their solid tumors with a glycan antigen-containing vaccine. The discovery of fully human antibodies directly from vaccinated cancer patients has potential advantages which include greater specificity and reduced toxicities. MabVax completed and has reported on early preclinical development activities to establish the utility of the program.

"We are very pleased to have Boehringer Ingelheim as a major industry partner to further develop one of our preclinical antibody assets based on our proprietary HuMab technology," said David Hansen, President and CEO of MabVax Therapeutics. "This agreement with Boehringer Ingelheim recognizes the value of our innovative approach to discovering novel antibodies to diagnose and treat cancer. We have been committed since the founding of the Company to discovering and developing unique fully human antibodies to diagnose and treat patients with cancers where there remain significant unmet medical needs."

On July 9, 2018 Seattle Genetics, Inc. (Nasdaq:SGEN) and Astellas Pharma Inc. (TSE: 4503, President and CEO: Kenji Yasukawa, Ph.D., "Astellas") reported completion of enrollment for the enfortumab vedotin EV-201 pivotal phase 2 clinical trial cohort of patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who have been previously treated with both platinum chemotherapy and a checkpoint inhibitor (PD-L1 or PD-1) (Press release, Astellas, JUL 9, 2018, View Source [SID1234527612]). Enfortumab vedotin is an investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that targets Nectin-4.

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The companies expect to report topline efficacy and safety results from this first cohort of the EV-201 trial, which is intended to support potential registration under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) accelerated approval pathway, in the first half of 2019.

The companies also reported dosing of the first patient in EV-301, a global, randomized phase 3 clinical trial evaluating enfortumab vedotin in patients with previously treated locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer. The EV-301 trial is intended to support a broader global registration strategy and to serve as the confirmatory randomized trial in the U.S. for EV-201. Enfortumab vedotin has been granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation by the FDA for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who were previously treated with checkpoint inhibitors.

"With enfortumab vedotin, we have the opportunity to address some of the unmet need in advanced urothelial cancer," said Roger Dansey, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Seattle Genetics. "With our partners Astellas, we are pleased to advance the enfortumab vedotin clinical trial program with the vision of bringing a new treatment option to patients with advanced urothelial cancer worldwide."

"Despite recent treatment advances, the unfortunate reality is that many patients with metastatic urothelial cancer currently find that their disease will progress after anti-PD-1 or PD-L1 therapy, highlighting the need to identify additional therapeutic options," said Steven Benner, M.D., Senior Vice President and Global Therapeutic Area Head, Oncology Development, Astellas. "Following encouraging results from our ongoing phase 1 study, we and our partners at Seattle Genetics decided to proceed with these registrational trials. We look forward to future clinical development milestones for enfortumab vedotin."

In addition to EV-201 and EV-301, enfortumab vedotin is also under evaluation in a phase 1 clinical trial (EV-103) in combination with pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in cisplatin-ineligible first-line patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer.

About EV-201 Trial
EV-201 is an ongoing single-arm, single-agent pivotal phase 2 clinical trial of enfortumab vedotin for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who have been previously treated with a checkpoint inhibitor, including those who had also been treated with a platinum chemotherapy (first cohort) and those who were cisplatin ineligible / platinum naïve (second cohort). Approximately 120 patients were enrolled in the first cohort at multiple centers. The primary endpoint is confirmed objective response rate, per independent review. Secondary endpoints include assessments of response duration, disease control, overall survival, progression-free survival, safety and tolerability. The second cohort continues to enroll cisplatin-ineligible, platinum naïve patients with urothelial cancer who have received a PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor but not a platinum agent.

About EV-301 Trial
EV-301 trial is a global, open label, randomized phase 3 trial designed to evaluate enfortumab vedotin versus physician’s choice of chemotherapy (docetaxel, paclitaxel or vinflunine) in approximately 550 patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who were previously treated with a PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor and platinum-based therapies. The primary endpoint is overall survival. Secondary endpoints include progression-free survival, overall response rate, disease control rate, duration of response and quality of life.

More information about the enfortumab vedotin clinical trials can be found at View Source

About Urothelial Cancer
According to the American Cancer Society, urothelial cancer, also known as transitional cell carcinoma (TCC), is the most common type of bladder cancer1 (90 percent of cases). Approximately 81,000 people in the U.S. are anticipated to be diagnosed with bladder cancer during 2018. Bladder cancer is the fourth most common cancer in men, but is less common in women. Outcomes are poor for people diagnosed with metastatic disease, with a five-year survival rate of 4.8 percent.2

About Enfortumab Vedotin
Enfortumab vedotin is an investigational ADC composed of an anti-Nectin-4 monoclonal antibody attached to a microtubule-disrupting agent, MMAE, using Seattle Genetics’ proprietary, linker technology. Enfortumab vedotin targets Nectin-4, a cell adhesion molecule identified as an ADC target by Astellas, which is expressed on many solid tumors.

The safety and efficacy of the agent discussed herein are under investigation and have not been established. There is no guarantee that the agent will receive regulatory approval and become commercially available for the uses being investigated. Information about pharmaceutical products (including products currently in development) which is included in this press release is not intended to constitute an advertisement or medical advice.

On July 9, 2018 Aptose Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:APTO) (TSX:APS) reported that William G. Rice, Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer and Gregory Chow, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will participate at the upcoming Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Boston Oncology Insight Summit to be held at the Whitehead Institute on July 10, 2018 and 1×1 Day to be held at the Four Seasons Hotel on July 11, 2018 in Boston, MA (Press release, Aptose Biosciences, JUL 9, 2018, View Source;p=RssLanding&cat=news&id=2357337 [SID1234527611]).

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On July 9, 2018 OBI Pharma, Inc., a Taiwan biopharma company (TPEx: 4174), reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation for OBI-3424 for the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) (Press release, OBI Pharma, JUL 9, 2018, View Source [SID1234527610]). OBI-3424 is a first in class DNA alkylating cancer therapeutic agent targeting aldo-keto reductase 1C3 (AKR1C3) overexpressing cancers.

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A Phase 1/2 study of OBI-3424 in patients with solid tumors, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), has commenced enrollment at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Amy Huang, General Manager of OBI Pharma, noted, "The orphan drug designation for OBI-3424 by the FDA is a significant step in the development of this drug candidate. OBI-3424 is intended to treat a devastating form of Liver Cancer with limited therapeutic options. We are excited that the FDA has recognized the need to develop novel targeted therapeutic agents such as OBI-3424 in the fight against this disease".

About Hepatocellular Cancer (HCC)

Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is a form of liver cancer associated with various stages of malignant growth in the liver. It is the sixth most common cancer worldwide, but is rare in the United States with a prevalence of 61,483 cases in 2018. HCC is considered a lethal cancer, with a survival rate of around 12.2% for five years, and the third major leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. While most liver cancers are preventable, the incidence of HCC has recently increased in the United States, possibly due to the prevalence of common risk factors such as chronic liver disease, viral liver infections such as hepatitis, and cirrhosis. HCC patients also have a high risk of developing drug resistance to standard of care (SoC) treatments, creating a need for alternative treatment.

About Orphan Drug Designation (ODD)

The orphan drug designation provides OBI Pharma with potential benefits, including market exclusivity upon regulatory approval if received, exemption of FDA application fees, and tax credits for qualified clinical trials. The FDA’s Office of Orphan Drug Products grants orphan status to support development of medicines for rare diseases or conditions that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S.

About OBI-3424

OBI-3424 is a first-in-class novel small-molecule prodrug that selectively targets cancers overexpressing the enzyme aldo-keto reductase 1C3 (AKR1C3), and selectively releases a potent DNA alkylating agent in the presence of the AKR1C3 enzyme. This selective mode of activation distinguishes OBI-3424 from traditional alkylating agents, such as cyclophosphamide and ifosfamide, which are non-selective.

AKR1C3 overexpression has been documented in a number of treatment-resistant and difficult-to-treat cancers including: hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC), castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), and T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). AKR1C3 is highly expressed in up to 15 solid and liquid tumors.

OBI Pharma holds worldwide rights for OBI-3424 with the exception of the following countries, whose rights are held by Ascenta Pharma: China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey, and India.