On August 14, 2019 Aethlon Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: AEMD), a therapeutic technology company focused on unmet needs in global health, reported financial results for its first quarter ended June 30, 2019 and provided an update on recent developments (Press release, Aethlon Medical, AUG 14, 2019, View Source [SID1234538744]).

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Company Updates

Aethlon Medical, Inc. (Company or Aethlon) is continuing the development of its proprietary Hemopurifier, which is a first in class therapeutic device designed for the single use depletion of circulating viruses and cancer-promoting exosomes. The Hemopurifier has previously been designated a Breakthrough Device by the FDA for the treatment of glycosylated viruses, including Ebola and other hemorrhagic fever viruses, and in late 2018 was additionally designated as a Breakthrough Device "…for the treatment of individuals with advanced or metastatic cancer who are either unresponsive to or intolerant of standard of care therapy, and with cancer types in which exosomes have been shown to participate in the development or severity of the disease….".

Aethlon is currently preparing for the initiation of clinical trials in patients with advanced and metastatic cancers. The Company is initially focused on the treatment of solid tumors, including head and neck cancer, gastrointestinal cancers and other cancers. Following discussions and a meeting with the FDA, the Company is preparing to file an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) application with the FDA to initiate clinical trials in cancer.

On June 30, 2019, the Company entered into a cross-licensing agreement with SeaStar Medical, Inc. to jointly develop Aethlon’s and SeaStar’s combined medical devices to address the care and management of critically ill patients. Under this agreement, Aethlon and SeaStar are now initiating development of systems for the transplant, oncology and infectious disease settings.

Financial Results for First Quarter Ended June 30, 2019

The Company’s net loss was approximately $2.1 million, or $(0.11) per share, for the first quarter ended June 30, 2019, compared to a net loss of approximately $1.1 million, or $(0.06) per share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2019.

At June 30, 2019, the Company had a cash balance of approximately $2.5 million.

The Company’s consolidated operating expenses for the quarter ended June 30, 2019 were approximately $1.6 million, compared to $1.25 million for the June 2018 quarter. This increase of approximately $350,000, in 2019 was due to increases in general and administrative expenses of approximately $188,000, professional fees of approximately $158,000 and payroll and related expenses of approximately $3,000.

The $188,000 increase in general and administrative expenses in 2019 was primarily due to the combination of a $120,000 increase in our clinical trial expense, primarily costs associated with the manufacturing of Hemopurifiers for an expected clinical trial in the cancer space, a $39,000 increase in our lab supplies expense, primarily related to our breast cancer grant, and a $39,000 increase in travel expense.

The $158,000 increase in our professional fees in 2019 was primarily due to a $152,534 increase in our legal fees.

The $3,000 increase in payroll and related expenses was primarily due to a $63,374 increase in stock-based compensation, which was partially offset by a $59,944 reduction in our cash-based compensation expense.

The Company’s other expense during the quarter ended June 30, 2019 consisted of interest expense and a loss on debt extinguishment and, during the three months ended June 30, 2018, consisted of interest expense only. Other expense for the three months ended June 30, 2019 was approximately $501,000, in comparison with other expense of approximately $55,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2018.

The Company recorded government contract and grant revenue in the first quarters ended June 30, 2019 and 2018. This revenue arose from work performed under two government contracts with the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In the quarter ended June 30, 2019, the Company recorded $30,000 in aggregate revenue from its Breast Cancer grant and in the quarter ended June 30, 2018, the Company recorded approximately $150,000 in revenue from its Melanoma Cancer contract with the NIH.

The unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet for June 30, 2019 and the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations for the first quarter ended June 30, 2019 and 2018 follow at the end of this release.

Conference Call

The Company will hold a conference call today, Wednesday, August 14, 2019 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to review financial results and recent corporate developments. Following management’s formal remarks, there will be a question and answer session.

To listen to the call by phone, interested parties within the U.S. should call 1-844-836-8741 and International callers should call 1-412-317-5442. All callers should ask for the Aethlon Medical, Inc. conference call.

A replay of the call will be available approximately one hour after the end of the call through August 21, 2019. The replay can be accessed via Aethlon’s website or by dialing 1-877-344-7529 (domestic) or 1-412-317-0088 (international) or Canada Toll Free at 1-855-669-9658. The replay conference ID number is 10134273.

On August 14, 2019 Cardax, Inc. (OTCQB:CDXI) reported filed its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2019 (Press release, Cardax Pharmaceuticals, AUG 14, 2019, View Source [SID1234538743]).

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Recent developments include:

CHASE Clinical Trial Update

Cardax plans a pre-specified interim review in September 2019 of the aggregate data by treatment group from its CHASE human clinical trial. The CHASE trial is evaluating the effect of ZanthoSyn on cardiovascular inflammatory health, as measured by C-Reactive Protein or "CRP," as a primary endpoint. Other data collected includes secondary inflammatory health markers as well as safety parameters. Positive results could not only support ZanthoSyn marketing but serve as an important proof-of-concept for the Company’s pharmaceutical program and provide additional intellectual property protection.

Interim Financing Update

Cardax also announced today that it raised $1,675,000 in additional capital since the beginning of Q2 2019 ($750,000 in Q2 2019 and $925,000 in Q3 2019 to date), using a combination of convertible notes, equity units (stock and warrants), and loans, the proceeds of which are being used for general corporate purposes.

ZanthoSyn Update

As reported previously, in Q1 2019 retail "sell-through," defined as retail sales of ZanthoSyn to customers at General Nutrition Corporation ("GNC") stores, surpassed all previous periods and Q2 2019 continued at strong levels as the third best performing quarter since launch. In addition, ZanthoSyn is the top-selling product nationwide in GNC’s antioxidant category for 2019 year-to-date as well as the top-selling overall product in GNC’s Hawaii stores. Notwithstanding, GNC continued to trim the inventory sell-in substantially in Q2 2019. "Sell-in" is defined as wholesale orders of ZanthoSyn by GNC less sales incentives, promotions, discounts, and refunds. As a result, Cardax net revenues were $45,391 and $210,363 for the 3 and 6 months ended June 30, 2019 compared to $272,049 and $585,359 for the 3 and 6 months ended June 30, 2018.

While ZanthoSyn sell-in to GNC in Q3 2019 to date has already exceeded the total Q2 2019 sell-in, Cardax provided notice to GNC that its "U.S. brick-and-mortar retail store" exclusivity contract with GNC for ZanthoSyn would not automatically renew in October 2019. Cardax may expand ZanthoSyn distribution to mass market retailers, other specialty nutrition stores, pharmacies, and other retailers.

Cardax plans to expand its direct-to-consumer e-commerce efforts by capitalizing on one of the most important lessons learned from its sales and marketing program: "Conversations Create Customers." Whether at GNC stores, directly with Cardax personnel, or at conferences for healthcare professionals, thousands of ZanthoSyn customers have been created by understanding and experiencing the benefits of ZanthoSyn firsthand. Cardax plans to implement strategies that it believes may create a similar customer experience more broadly, with fulfillment online, where margins are greater than retail stores.

"As inflammatory health becomes ever more important to the scientific, medical, and financial communities, we look forward to the interim review of our CHASE clinical trial," said David G. Watumull, Cardax President and CEO. "We are also pleased to see ZanthoSyn’s strong retail sales at GNC drive an increase in wholesale orders in Q3 and look forward to expanding our ZanthoSyn marketing and distribution more broadly."

On August 14, 2019 CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSE American: CVM) reported financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2019 (Press release, Cel-Sci, AUG 14, 2019, View Source [SID1234538742]). The Company also reported key clinical and corporate developments achieved during the quarter.

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Clinical and Corporate Developments included:

CEL-SCI’s Phase 3 head and neck cancer study continued to follow all 928 patients who were enrolled. The Company is now awaiting final study results. All that remains to be done in this pivotal Phase 3 study, the largest in the world in head and neck cancer, is to continue to track patient survival until it can be determined if the primary endpoint of the study, a 10% improvement in overall survival of the Multikine* treatment regimen plus Standard of Care (SOC) vs. SOC alone will be met. The primary endpoint will be determined after a total of 298 events (deaths) have occurred in the two main comparator arms of the study and have been recorded in the study database. These final results could be available soon since the last cancer patients were treated in September 2016, and the first cancer patients in the study were treated in early 2011.
On May 11, 2019 and July 3, 2019, new data was presented on CEL-SCI’s experimental LEAPS therapeutic antigen-specific treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. The work was performed in conjunction with researchers at Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois.
On June 3-6, 2019, CEL-SCI was an exhibitor and showcased its presentation at the BIO International Convention. CEL-SCI was selected to be part of the Innovation Zone sponsored by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). The focus was the Company’s experimental LEAPS platform technology and CEL-SCI’s ongoing development of a LEAPS based therapeutic antigen-specific treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. The NIH has funded research studies for CEL-SCI’s LEAPS technology in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis through a $1.5 million grant. There was a lot of corporate interest in the LEAPS technology for rheumatoid arthritis.
On June 28, 2019, CEL-SCI joined the broad-market Russell 3000 Index that was effective after the US market opened on July 1, 2019.
Following this quarter, between July 1, 2019 and August 13, 2019, the Company received over $2.5 million through the exercise of warrants to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock.
"We look forward to the readout of our Phase 3 data, as we believe Multikine immunotherapy may increase the success rate of the first ‘intent to cure’ cancer treatment regimen by adding the tumor cell killing ability of the still healthy immune system to the known anti-tumor effects of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Multikine is unique in cancer immunotherapy because it can potentially be effective when administered for just three weeks, right after diagnosis and prior to surgery, as compared to other immuno-oncology drugs on the market today that are used to treat people with recurrent cancer, or end stage disease," stated CEL-SCI CEO, Geert Kersten. "Our experimental LEAPS vaccine platform continues to show promise as we continue IND-enabling studies in conjunction with the NIH."

CEL-SCI reported a net loss of $17.3 million for the nine months ended June 30, 2019 versus a net loss of $16.9 million for the nine months ended June 30, 2018. The net loss increase was in large part due to the change in value of the non-cash derivative instruments that were caused mainly by fluctuation in the share price of the Company’s common stock.

During the three months ended June 30, 2019, the Company’s cash increased by approximately $4.0 million, as compared to the second quarter of fiscal 2019, to $9.5 million. Significant components of this increase included net proceeds from the exercise of warrant and stock options of approximately $8.4 million and the purchase of common stock by officers and directors of approximately $0.2 million. The increase was offset by net cash used to fund the Company’s regular operations, including its Phase 3 clinical trial, of approximately $4.6 million.

On August 14, 2019 Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:DCPH), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on addressing key mechanisms of tumor drug resistance, reported the pricing of its previously announced registered underwritten public offering of 10,810,810 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $37.00 per share (Press release, Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, AUG 14, 2019, View Source [SID1234538741]). The gross proceeds to Deciphera from the offering, before deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated offering expenses, are expected to be $400.0 million. The offering is expected to close on or about August 19, 2019, subject to customary closing conditions. In addition, Deciphera has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 1,621,621 additional shares of its common stock.

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J.P. Morgan, Piper Jaffray and Jefferies acted as joint book-running managers for the offering. Guggenheim Securities acted as lead manager for the offering. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey acted as co-manager for the offering.

Deciphera intends to use the net proceeds of the offering to fund: clinical trials for ripretinib, including the expansion stage of its current Phase 1 clinical trial, its ongoing pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials, and additional clinical trials, as well as clinical research outsourcing and manufacturing of clinical trial material, and pre-commercialization manufacturing process development and validation; clinical trials for DCC-3014, including the expansion stage of its current Phase 1 clinical trial, as well as clinical research outsourcing and manufacturing of clinical trial material; clinical trials for rebastinib, including its current Phase 1b/2 clinical trial, as well as clinical research outsourcing and manufacturing of clinical trial material; Investigational New Drug-enabling studies and the potential development of DCC-3116; new and ongoing research activities for future drug candidates using its proprietary kinase switch control inhibitor platform; continued growth of its commercial and medical affairs capabilities to support its transition from a development-stage company toward a commercial-stage company; and working capital purposes, including general operating expenses.

A shelf registration statement relating to the shares of common stock offered in the public offering described above was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and was declared effective by the SEC on October 12, 2018. The securities may be offered only by means of a written prospectus, including a prospectus supplement, forming a part of the effective registration statement. A preliminary prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering have been filed with the SEC and are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. A final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus will be filed with the SEC. When available, copies of the final prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the offering may also be obtained from J.P. Morgan Securities LLC c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, or by telephone at (866) 803-9204, or by email at [email protected]; Piper Jaffray & Co., 800 Nicollet Mall, J12S03, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55402, Attention: Prospectus Department, by telephone at (800) 747-3924 or by email at [email protected]; and Jefferies LLC, Attention: Equity Syndicate Prospectus Department, 520 Madison Avenue, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10022, by telephone at (877) 821-7388 or by email at [email protected].

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

On August 14, 2019 M2Gen, a health informatics solutions company focused on accelerating the discovery, development and delivery of precision medicine, reported the appointment of Helge Bastian, Ph.D., as president and chief executive officer (CEO) (Press release, M2Gen, AUG 14, 2019, View Source [SID1234538740]). Bastian succeeds M2Gen Executive Chair William S. Dalton, M.D., Ph.D., who has served as interim CEO since September 2018.

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"Dr. Bastian has a proven track record of building profitable and sustainable businesses in the life sciences and healthcare sectors including many years of experience in leading clinical research and biobanking organizations supporting precision medicine approaches. We are excited to have Dr. Bastian join M2Gen and lead our company to the next level as we deliver health information solutions that link patient-specific clinical and molecular data with the objective of developing and delivering personalized medicine for patients. With Dr. Bastian at the helm, M2Gen will continue to grow and advance the company’s mission to learn from each patient and proactively develop therapeutic options to meet patient needs," said Dalton.

Dr. Bastian is an experienced executive and scientific leader with more than 27 years of international experience while contributing to the growth of leading life science and healthcare companies in Germany, Switzerland and the USA. His expertise spans, molecular and synthetic biology including game-changing technologies such as genome editing, gene synthesis and re-programming, molecular and companion diagnostics, clinical research, drug development, pharmaceutical manufacturing and biobanking. As M2Gen’s new CEO, he will focus on expanding the company’s business portfolio and growing the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN), an alliance of biopharmaceutical companies and leading cancer centers, powered by M2Gen’s data and informatics platforms that work in collaboration to address the greatest challenges in oncology drug development. He will also join M2Gen’s Board of Directors.

"I am very excited about M2Gen’s revolutionizing data-driven approach to precision medicine in such an important area as oncology that affects so many people’s lives. I look forward to bringing my leadership experiences from the life science and healthcare industry to M2Gen and taking the company to the next level of its exciting growth strategy," said Bastian. "Understanding a patient’s genetic predisposition and the real-time molecular patterns in a patient’s tumor in combination with his / her clinical data is paramount to unravel the molecular mechanisms responsible for cancer development, and for developing new drugs and therapies as well as for accurate patient enrolling to clinical trials and even for developing strategies for cancer prevention. M2Gen’s initiative to build this unique and growing healthcare ecosystem of cancer centers to support clinical and molecular data sharing from a large number of cancer patients via M2Gen’s platforms is designed to fundamentally change the way cancer is being studied and treated, and will accelerate the discovery and development of precision treatment options for patients."

Dr. Bastian joins M2Gen from Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., where he led the Sample Preparation and Synthetic Biology businesses as Vice President and General Manager since 2014. Before Thermo Fisher Scientific, Dr. Bastian held a number of senior leadership positions and served as a member of several executive leadership teams, including Managing Director and Chief Commercial Officer at Indivumed, an integrated oncology company; Vice President Global Marketing, Business Development and Strategy at Sigma-Aldrich (now Merck KGaA); Executive Vice President Life Science Services for SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. Prior to SGS, he held various management positions during his 11-plus years at Qiagen including Vice President Molecular Diagnostics, Vice President Global Strategic Marketing, and Vice President PreAnalytiX, a QIAGEN / Becton Dickinson joint venture. Dr. Bastian earned his diploma in biology / biochemistry from Georg-August University and holds a Ph.D. in molecular and cell biology performed at the Max-Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry. From 2014-2018, Dr. Bastian served as a board member to the International Gene Synthesis Consortium (IGSC). Dr. Bastian has recently been appointed to the board of directors at enzymatic gene synthesis pioneer Molecular Assemblies, Inc., San Diego, and is an alumnus from the Max-Planck-Network and the Columbia Business School.