On July 15, 2020 Cancer Research UK reported that it has developed plans to become a leaner, more focused organisation following the devastating impact of COVID-19 on its fundraising income (Press release, Cancer Research UK, JUL 15, 2020, View Source [SID1234562078]). The charity is making difficult decisions to significantly reduce how much it spends on beating cancer, its operations and the number of staff following an anticipated £300 million decline in fundraising income over the next three years, but is more focussed than ever on staying at the forefront of the global fight against cancer.

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The charity plans to rebuild, adapting to the changed world and finding new opportunities, in order to continue to make an impact for people with cancer. There will be a continued focus on world-class research and shaping the UK’s science ecosystem, and a commitment to influencing and providing excellent information across cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

Read more from Cancer Research UK’s chief executive Michelle Mitchell on plans to rebuild and adapt.
But due to the projected drop in income, of £160 million this year (30%) and £300 million over three years, the charity needs to make tough choices about where and how it spends its money. There will be a greater focus on investing strategically for the future, whilst contracting in other areas amidst continued financial uncertainty.

Regrettably, Cancer Research UK will have to stop some programmes of work, reduce the amount or scope of other activities, and will be reducing the size of its workforce by 500 roles (circa. 24%), not including trading. The recruitment freeze that was put in place as an early response to COVID-19 will reduce the impact on existing staff, but sadly the charity expects to make 295-345 redundancies (14-17%) not including trading, within six months.

The charity also recently announced unavoidable cuts to its life-saving research. It plans to introduce a new research model designed to maximise impact from a lower level of spend, and will reduce its research spend to £250 million within four to five years – a cut of £150m from what the charity had planned to spend. But Cancer Research UK is doing everything it can to find more financial support, and is calling on the Government to help find a solution to this funding gap. The transition to a new funding model will be phased carefully to minimise the impact on the research community and existing portfolio. The commitment to maximising research impact remains, and the charity will continue to back the best researchers around the world.

The plan also outlines how Cancer Research UK will be more focused than it has ever been – doing less, but maintaining the highest quality in its work. It will deepen relationships with its supporters, so that thanks to their generosity it can return to growth as quickly as possible. The charity will continue to invest in digital transformation, basing its approach on how supporters want to engage, and will reach out to philanthropic individuals and organisations around the world to support its work.

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive at Cancer Research UK said: "We’re living through a global crisis unlike any other and, as it’s unfolded, it’s become clear that there’ll be a huge economic impact for years to come. As the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research, we must always focus on delivering our pioneering work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

"We made some very difficult decisions early on to mitigate the impact on our work; we moved all of our staff to 80% pay, furloughed 60% of staff, and cut £44 million from our research. But it is with a heavy heart that I can confirm we will have to reduce the size of our workforce, and make significant cuts to our research spend, as a result of the situation we find ourselves in. With such a significant shortfall in income, we cannot afford to keep spending at the same levels. But that doesn’t make those decisions any easier. We’re keeping our dedicated, hard-working staff up to date on developments as we have them, and their professionalism throughout this period has been hugely appreciated.

"I am confident that through our world-leading research, information and influencing, we will continue to make transformative steps in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. This plan sets the direction for a new phase in the life of Cancer Research UK and will help us respond to the changed world, quicker than we’ve ever done before. We will emerge a streamlined charity, but still with a resolute drive for impact. Together, we will still beat cancer and realise our ambition to improve cancer survival to 3 in 4 by 2034."

Cancer Research UK remains committed to ensuring at least 80p in every £1 raised is available to spend on beating cancer.

On July 15, 2020 A Ludwig Cancer Research study reported that it has dissected how radiotherapy alters the behavior of immune cells known as macrophages found in glioblastoma (GBM) tumors and shown how these cells might be reprogrammed with an existing drug to suppress the invariable recurrence of the aggressive brain cancer (Press release, Ludwig Institute For Cancer Research, JUL 15, 2020, View Source [SID1234562070]).

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Led by Ludwig Lausanne Member Johanna Joyce and published in the current issue of Science Translational Medicine, the study details how radiotherapy dynamically alters gene expression programs in two subtypes of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and describes how those changes push TAMs into a state in which they aid therapeutic resistance and growth. Joyce and her colleagues, led by first author Leila Akkari, now at the Netherlands Cancer Institute, also demonstrate that combining radiotherapy with daily dosing of a drug that targets macrophages—an inhibitor of the colony stimulating factor-1 receptor (CSF-1R)—reverses that transformation and dramatically extends survival in mouse models of GBM.

"What these preclinical data tell us is that for patients receiving radiotherapy for glioblastoma, adding CSF-1R inhibition to the treatment regimen could have the effect of prolonging survival," says Joyce.

GBM patients typically survive little more than a year following diagnosis, as the cancer inevitably recurs and typically resists multiple therapies. But it was not known whether TAMs—which are linked to cancer cell survival and drug resistance in a variety of tumor types—promote GBM resistance to ionizing radiation, which is part of the standard of care for the aggressive tumor.

Two types of macrophages populate glioma tumors. One is the brain’s resident macrophage, or microglia (MG). The other is the monocyte-derived macrophage (MDM) that patrols the body, gobbling up pathogens and dead cells, or their detritus, and initiating additional immune responses. Macrophages can, however, be pushed into an alternative state—often termed the M2-like activation phenotype—in which they aid tissue healing rather than respond to threats. Many cancers coax macrophages into this alternative phenotype, which supports tumor survival and growth.

Joyce and her team found both MG and MDMs flood into GBM tumors in mice to clean up the cellular detritus following an initial course of radiotherapy. But when the gliomas recur, interestingly, it is MDMs that predominate in the TAM populations. The gene expression profiles of these MDMs in irradiated tumors, however, more closely resembles those of MG. They found, moreover, that both MDMs and MG in irradiated gliomas are alternatively activated into a wound-healing phenotype and secrete factors that bolster DNA repair in cells.

"Not only were these macrophage populations changing but, more importantly, they were now able to interfere with the efficacy of radiotherapy because they could help cancer cells repair the DNA damage it causes," explains Joyce.

"So you have this yin/yang situation. The irradiation is of course destroying many of the cancer cells, but it has also caused all these macrophages to rush into the tumor to clean up the mess and, as a consequence, they’ve been super-activated to create a permissive niche for the remaining cancer cells to form new tumors."

To see if depleting MDMs specifically might reverse that effect, the researchers treated different GBM mouse models with an antibody that blocks the entry of MDMs into the brain. But that only nominally improved survival in one of the models.

The Joyce lab has previously reported that TAMs can be pushed out of the wound-healing phenotype by CSF-1R inhibitors, so they next tested whether that strategy might bolster the efficacy of radiotherapy.

They found that a single, 12-day cycle of CSF-1R inhibitor treatment following radiotherapy enhanced the initial therapeutic response and extended the median survival of mice by about three weeks beyond the modest increase seen with radiotherapy alone. By contrast, a continuous, daily regimen of CSF-1R inhibition for several months following radiotherapy yielded the most striking results, reprogramming TAMs and dramatically extending median survival.

"We had approximately 95% of mice survive the full course of this six-month study," says Joyce. In addition, mice engrafted with patient-derived tumors showed increased survival.

Joyce and colleagues are further exploring the mechanism by which TAMs promote DNA repair and otherwise assist cancer cell survival in GBM.

This study was supported by Ludwig Cancer Research, the Swiss Cancer League, the Dutch Cancer Society, the Dutch Research Council, The Brain Tumor Charity, the Brain Tumor Funders Collaborative, the American Brain Tumor Association and the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

In addition to her post as a Member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Lausanne Branch, Joyce is also a Professor at the University of Lausanne.

On July 15, 2020 Aspen (APNJ.J) reported that it has offered to cut prices by an average of 73% for six off-patent cancer drugs, EU antitrust regulators said on Tuesday, a move that could help the South African pharmaceutical company avoid a potentially hefty fine (Press release, Aspen Global, JUL 15, 2020, View Source [SID1234562069]).

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The European Commission opened an investigation into Aspen in 2017 following concerns it may have charged excessive prices for drugs critical in treating patients suffering from certain types of life-threatening cancer, such as leukaemia and multiple myeloma.

Aspen’s price cuts will cover all of Europe except for Italy, which imposed a five million euro ($5.68 million) fine on the company in 2016 for price hikes of up to 1,500% for some drugs.

The European Commission, the EU executive, said it would seek feedback from interested parties before deciding whether to accept the company’s offer.

"The proposed commitments aim at bringing to an end Aspen’s suspected excessive pricing conduct with respect to its six off-patent cancer medicines, which the Commission suspects to constitute an abuse of a dominant position," the Commission said in a statement.

It said Aspen’s proposal would lead to an immediate price cut in its net prices to below 2012 levels for most of the drugs, guarantee supply and involve a 10-year price ceiling.

The price cuts would apply retroactively from Oct. 1, 2019, when Aspen first submitted its concessions to regulators.

Under its antitrust settlement procedures, accepting the offer would mean no fines and no acknowledgement of wrongdoing. Sanctions can amount to 10% of a company’s global turnover.

On July 15, 2020 IntelGenx Technologies Corp. (TSX-V: IGX) (OTCQB: IGXT) (the "Company" or "IntelGenx") reported , that the Company’s Board of Directors approved an amendment to the Amended 2016 Stock Option Plan (the "Plan") to increase the number of shares available for issuances under the Plan by 1,678,218 from 9,347,747 to 11,025,965, or 10% of the Company’s currently issued and outstanding shares (Press release, IntelGenx, JUL 15, 2020, View Source [SID1234562036]).

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Furthermore, the Board approved an amendment to the provision concerning the automatic extension of the expiry time of stock options during blackout periods as per the TSX-V Exchange Policy. The Board resolved to remove the condition that the automatic extension during blackout periods needs to be reflected in individual stock option agreements.

The amendments are subject to TSX-Venture Exchange acceptance.

The Second Amended 2016 Stock Option Plan will be available on EDGAR and SEDAR.

About IntelGenx:

IntelGenx is a leading drug delivery company focused on the development and manufacturing of pharmaceutical films.

IntelGenx’s superior film technologies, including VersaFilm and VetaFilm, as well as its transdermal development and manufacturing capabilities, allow for next generation pharmaceutical products that address unmet medical needs. IntelGenx’s innovative product pipeline offers significant benefits to patients and physicians for many therapeutic conditions.

IntelGenx’s highly skilled team provides comprehensive pharmaceuticals services to pharmaceutical partners, including R&D, analytical method development, clinical monitoring, IP and regulatory services. IntelGenx’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility offers full service by providing lab-scale to pilot- and commercial-scale production. For more information, visit www.intelgenx.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

On July 15, 2020 Relay Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: RLAY), a clinical-stage precision medicine company transforming the drug discovery process by leveraging unparalleled insights into protein motion, reported the pricing of its initial public offering of 20,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $20.00 per share (Press release, Relay Therapeutics, JUL 15, 2020, View Source [SID1234562027]). All of the shares are being offered by Relay Therapeutics. The gross proceeds of the offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by Relay Therapeutics, are expected to be $400.0 million. In addition, the underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to 3,000,000 additional shares of common stock at the initial public offering price less underwriting discounts and commissions. The shares are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Market on July 16, 2020 under the symbol "RLAY." The offering is expected to close on July 20, 2020, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

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J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Cowen, and Guggenheim Securities are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.

A registration statement relating to these securities was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 15, 2020. The offering is being made only by means of a prospectus. When available, copies of the final prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained from: J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, telephone: 866-803-9204; Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, telephone: 1-866-471-2526, facsimile: 212-902-9316 or by emailing [email protected]; Cowen and Company, LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, Attn: Prospectus Department, telephone: 631-274-2806 and Guggenheim Securities, LLC Attention: Equity Syndicate Department, 330 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10017 or by telephone at (212) 518-5548, or by email at [email protected].

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