On March 20, 2025 Wugen, Inc., a clinical-stage U.S. biotechnology company developing allogeneic, off-the-shelf cell therapies for the treatment of hematological and solid tumor malignancies, reported the dosing of the first patients in its pivotal Phase 2 study evaluating WU-CART-007, a potential first-in-class, investigational, anti-CD7 CAR-T cell therapy for pediatric and adult patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia or T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-ALL/LBL) (Press release, Wugen, MAR 20, 2025, View Source [SID1234651317]).

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"The data we have previously reported from our Phase 1/2 study on the WU-CART-007 program has paved the way for the initiation of this pivotal study, and suggests it has the potential to set a new standard of care for relapsed or refractory T-ALL/LBL," said Kumar Srinivasan, Ph.D., M.B.A., president and chief executive officer of Wugen. "The program has earned multiple U.S. Food and Drug Administration accelerated approval pathway designations, including RMAT, Fast Track, Orphan Drug, and Rare Pediatric Disease, as well as Priority Medicines designation in the EU. With this pivotal study now underway, we are advancing toward a much-needed off-the-shelf CAR-T option for patients who face historically poor outcomes and limited treatment alternatives."

Wugen previously announced positive results from a Phase 1/2 cohort expansion study showing clinically manageable safety and evidence of anti-leukemic activity (overall response rate of 91%; composite complete remission rate of 73%) in heavily pretreated patients with R/R T-ALL/LBL. Results were presented at both the American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) in December of 2024 and the European Hematology Association (EHA) (Free EHA Whitepaper) 2024 Hybrid Congress in June of 2024.

"It’s been 20 years since a new medicine was approved for patients with relapsed or refractory T-ALL/LBL, which remain challenging hematologic malignancies with limited treatment options in the relapsed or refractory setting," said Cherry Thomas, M.D., chief medical officer of Wugen. "WU-CART-007 has shown clinical response and manageable safety, making it a promising off-the-shelf cell therapy candidate to fill a longstanding treatment gap. The enthusiasm around the program and the need for new treatments have been reflected in the study recruitment thus far, as it is enrolling faster than anticipated."

Pivotal Study Design

The pivotal study entitled, "A Phase 2 Study of WU-CART-007, an Anti-CD7 Allogeneic CAR-T Cell Therapy in Patients with Relapsed or Refractory T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and Lymphoblastic Lymphoma", (T-RRex) is a single arm trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of WU-CART-007 in patients with R/R T-ALL/LBL and T-ALL/LBL. The study will involve two groups: a R/R cohort and subsequently an exploratory minimal residual disease (MRD)-positive cohort.

About WU-CART-007

WU-CART-007 is an allogeneic, off-the-shelf, fratricide-resistant CD7-targeted CAR-T cell therapy engineered to overcome the technological challenges of harnessing CAR-T cells to treat CD7+ hematological malignancies. Wugen is deploying CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology to delete CD7 and the T cell receptor alpha constant (TRAC), preventing CAR-T cell fratricide and mitigating the risk of graft-versus-host-disease (GvHD). WU-CART-007 is manufactured using healthy donor-derived T cells to eliminate the risk of malignant cell contamination historically observed in the autologous CAR-T setting. WU-CART-007 is currently being evaluated in a global Phase 1/2 clinical trial for the treatment of relapsed or refractory (R/R) T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL)/lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL). More information on the Phase 1/2 trial is available on clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT# 04984356 and on the Phase 2 pivotal trial on clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT06514794.

WU-CART-007 has received Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy (RMAT), Fast Track, Orphan Drug, and Rare Pediatric Disease designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Priority Medicines (PRIME) Scheme designation in the European Union for the treatment of relapsed/refractory (R/R) T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) and T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL). RMAT and PRIME designations provide increased agency support to expedite the development and review of promising therapies for patients in need.

On March 20, 2025 SELLAS Life Sciences Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SLS) ("SELLAS’’ or the "Company"), a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for a broad range of cancer indications, reported financial results for the full year ended December 31, 2024, and provided a corporate update (Press release, Sellas Life Sciences, MAR 20, 2025, View Source [SID1234651316]).

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"We are pleased with the progress of our pipeline as we continue to advance our two key assets through clinical development," said Angelos Stergiou, MD, ScD h.c., President and Chief Executive Officer of SELLAS. "The most anticipated milestones in 2025 will be the final analysis of our Phase 3 pivotal REGAL trial of GPS in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and the full topline Phase 2 data of SLS009 in AML, both of which represent significant opportunities and offer hope to AML patients in need. If successful, the REGAL trial provides a pathway for regulatory approval in AML, and GPS could become a transformative treatment for patients in their second complete remission. Furthermore, the promising data from the ongoing Phase 2 trial of SLS009 has shown a 56% overall response rate (ORR) in AML patients with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML MRC) prospectively enrolled in two expansion cohorts, exceeding the prespecified target ORR of 33%. In the optimal dosing regimen of 30 mg BIW, the median overall survival (mOS) has not been reached but exceeds 7.7 months at the latest follow-up, where the expected mOS is historically approximately 2.5 months."

Dr. Stergiou continued, "We are especially encouraged by the multiple regulatory designations granted to our programs in 2024, including three FDA Rare Pediatric Disease Designations, one FDA Fast Track Designation, and two EMA Orphan Drug Designations, which reflect the significant potential impact of our therapies and provide valuable regulatory benefits that may accelerate development and potential approval. With strong regulatory recognition and two potentially pivotal inflection points ahead, we remain committed to driving innovation and delivering value to patients and shareholders."

On March 20, 2025 NANOBIOTIX (Euronext: NANO –– NASDAQ: NBTX – the ‘‘Company’’), a late-clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering nanoparticle-based therapeutic approaches to expand treatment possibilities for patients with cancer and other major diseases, reported poster presentations from two Phase 1 studies evaluating JNJ-1900 (NBTXR3) for patients with lung cancer (NSCLC) to be presented at the 2025 European Lung Cancer Conference ("ELCC") (Press release, Nanobiotix, MAR 20, 2025, View Source [SID1234651315]).

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ABSTRACT #207P: Phase 1 Study of Reirradiation ("ReRT") with NBTXR3 (JNJ-1900) for Inoperable Locoregional Recurrent Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer ("NSCLC")
Saumil J. Gandhi, MD, PhD,1 Enoch Chang, MD,1 Aileen Chen, MD,1 Stephen G. Chun, MD,1 Steven H. Lin, MD, PhD,1 Rachel C. Maguire, BS,1 Matthew S. Ning, MD, MPH,1 Julianna K. Bronk, MD, PhD,1 David Qian, MD,1 Joe Y. Chang, MD, PhD,1 James W. Welsh, MD,1 Zhongxing Liao, MD,1 Rahul A. Sheth, MD, 2, Roberto F. Casal, MD3

1Department of Thoracic Radiation Oncology, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2Department of Interventional Radiology, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, 3Department of Pulmonary Medicine, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center

ABSTRACT #255P: NBTXR3 (JNJ-1900) Activated by SBRT in Combination with Nivolumab or Pembrolizumab for the Treatment of Patients with Lung Metastases from NSCLC or Other Solid Tumors in the Phase 1 Trial Study 1100
Colette Shen1, Aditya Juloori2, William A Stokes3, Jason Akulian1, Jared Weiss1, Kedar Kirtane4, Laurent Mayrargue5, David Rolando5, Romain Gineste5, Omar I. Vivar5, George Q. Yang4, Jimmy Caudell4, Ammar Sukari6, Nabil F Saba3, Septimiu Murgu2, Ari Rosenberg2

1University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA, 2The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA, 3Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 4Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, USA, 5Nanobiotix, Paris, France, 6Karmanos Cancer Institute, Detroit, MI, USA

About JNJ-1900 (NBTXR3)

NBTXR3 is a novel, potentially first-in-class oncology product composed of functionalized hafnium oxide nanoparticles that is administered via one-time intratumoral injection and activated by radiotherapy. Its proof-of-concept was achieved in soft tissue sarcomas for which the product received a European CE mark in 2019. The product candidate’s physical mechanism of action (MoA) is designed to induce significant tumor cell death in the injected tumor when activated by radiotherapy, subsequently triggering adaptive immune response and long-term anti-cancer memory. Given the physical MoA, Nanobiotix believes that NBTXR3 could be scalable across any solid tumor that can be treated with radiotherapy and across any therapeutic combination, particularly immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Radiotherapy-activated NBTXR3 is being evaluated across multiple solid tumor indications as a single agent or in combination with anti-PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitors, including in NANORAY-312—a global, randomized Phase 3 study in locally advanced head and neck squamous cell cancers. In February 2020, the United States Food and Drug Administration granted regulatory Fast Track designation for the investigation of NBTXR3 activated by radiation therapy, with or without cetuximab, for the treatment of patients with locally advanced HNSCC who are not eligible for platinum-based chemotherapy—the same population being evaluated in the Phase 3 study.

Given the Company’s focus areas, and balanced against the scalable potential of NBTXR3, Nanobiotix has engaged in a collaboration strategy to expand development of the product candidate in parallel with its priority development pathways. Pursuant to this strategy, in 2019 Nanobiotix entered into a broad, comprehensive clinical research collaboration with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to sponsor several Phase 1 and Phase 2 studies evaluating NBTXR3 across tumor types and therapeutic combinations. In 2023, Nanobiotix announced a license agreement for the global co-development and commercialization of NBTXR3 with Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, a Johnson & Johnson company.

On March 20, 2025 Neogap Therapeutics AB, a Swedish biotechnology company developing personalised immunotherapy for cancer treatment, reported that initial safety data from the first patients in its ongoing phase I/II trial corroborates that the treatment is well tolerated (Press release, Neogap Therapeutics, MAR 20, 2025, View Source [SID1234651314]). No serious treatment-related adverse events have been observed, reinforcing confidence in the therapy’s safety profile.

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"Safety data from the first two treated patients confirm that Neogap’s immunotherapy is well tolerated and further strengthen our confidence in its potential as a valuable treatment option for patients with difficult-to-treat cancer. The trial is progressing as planned, and we continue to gather data to assess the safety profile and analyse clinical outcomes and biomarkers as part of the exploratory evaluation," says Samuel Svensson, CEO of Neogap Therapeutics.

The ongoing phase I/II trial is a first-in-human study designed to assess the safety and tolerability of Neogap’s personalised immunotherapy, pTTL (personalised Tumour Trained Lymphocytes), in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. Several patients have already been enrolled, with the first having completed treatment. Recruitment and treatment of additional patients continue. In total, 12–16 patients are planned to receive treatment. The study is being conducted at several hospitals in Sweden, including Karolinska University Hospital, Västmanland Hospital, and Danderyd Hospital.

About Neogap’s immunotherapy, pTTL
pTTL (personalised Tumour Trained Lymphocytes) is a cell-based immunotherapy that enhances the patient’s own T cells to fight cancer. The therapy combines advanced DNA analysis with T-cell expansion in a precision treatment for solid tumours. It is based on Neogap’s patented technologies, PIOR and EpiTCer. The goal is to provide patients with a tailored and innovative therapy that meets their specific needs.

On March 20, 2025 Autolus Therapeutics plc (Nasdaq: AUTL), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company developing, manufacturing and delivering next-generation programmed T cell therapies, reported its operational and financial results for the full year ended December 31, 2024 (Press release, Autolus, MAR 20, 2025, View Source [SID1234651313]).

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"Reflecting on 2024, it was a year of strong execution leading to significant achievements for Autolus, including our strategic deal with BioNTech and corresponding financing to bolster our balance sheet, commencing GMP operations at our in-house CAR T manufacturing facility, and finishing the year with our first FDA approval and the commercial launch of AUCATZYL," said Dr. Christian Itin, Chief Executive Officer of Autolus. "As a result, we were well positioned to attain our most important goal of bringing this transformative therapy to patients in need. Physician enthusiasm for AUCATZYL is high, demonstrated by the 33 treatment centers we now have fully authorized as of March 19, 2025. We’re encouraged by our launch progress to date."

"As we begin 2025, we have two key objectives: execute on the commercial launch of AUCATZYL in adult ALL both in the U.S. and entering new markets; and establish the next wave of investments to expand the obe-cel opportunity, advance our clinical pipeline and drive future growth. We look forward to discussing our plans to continue to expand our clinical pipeline and strategy at our R&D event in April."

Key updates and anticipated milestones:

AUCATZYL US launch
AUCATZYL was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia on November 8, 2024
AUCATZYL is the first CAR T therapy approved by the FDA with no requirement for a REMS (Risk Evaluation Mitigation Strategy) program
In December 2024, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) added AUCATZYL (obecabtagene autoleucel) to its Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (r/r B-ALL)
The US commercial launch progresses on track, with 33 centers authorized as of March 19, 2025 (versus the Company’s initial target of 30 by the end of Q1 2025), covering approximately 60% of the target U.S. patient population
Patient access to AUCATZYL is progressing well, with coverage secured for greater than 85% of total U.S. medical lives
Autolus continues to expect to complete authorization of 60 treatment centers by the end of 2025, covering approximately 90% of the target patient population

Obe-cel in r/r adult B-ALL – The FELIX Study and regulatory updates
In December 2024, the New England Journal of Medicine published data from the pivotal Phase 1b/2 FELIX clinical trial of obecabtagene autoleucel (obe-cel) in relapsed/refractory (r/r) adult B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). The data from the trial demonstrate high rates of durable responses with low incidence of greater than Grade 3 immune-related toxicity
In February 2025, the FDA published a summary of the approval of AUCATZYL on JAMA Insights, citing the product’s complete remission rate
Obe-cel is under regulatory review in both the EU and the U.K., and the Company expects to receive notification of approval status from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) in H2 2025
Post period, Autolus submitted obe-cel for appraisal by the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), and a decision is expected at the time of a potential MHRA approval
Autolus has presented updated data on obe-cel in adult ALL at the Society of Hematologic Oncology (SOHO) meeting in August 2024, the Lymphoma, Leukemia & Myeloma Congress in October 2024, the American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Meeting in December 2024, and post-period at TANDEM 2025. The data presented at these conferences builds on previously published obe-cel data, highlighting its tolerability and long-term responses. In addition, a health economic cost model has been presented, directly comparing the cost of serious adverse events across various comparable CAR-T cell therapies.
Abstracts were accepted at the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) Annual Meeting being held in Florence, Italy, March 30 – April 2, 2025, and the British Society for Haematology Annual Meeting in Glasgow, UK, April 27-29, 2025. The abstracts include review of data on obe-cel in adult ALL and specifically, a sub analysis of patients 55 and older.

Obe-cel in B-cell mediated autoimmune diseases
The Phase 1 dose confirmation clinical trial (CARLYSLE) in refractory systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients is ongoing, with all six patients dosed. Autolus will present the initial data from this trial and development plans at its R&D event being held on April 23, 2025, and is targeting H2 2025 for the presentation of full data with longer term patient follow-up.

Early-stage pipeline programs and collaborations
Clinical programs AUTO8 and AUTO6NG are progressing, and the Company is planning updates for programs at its R&D event which will be held on April 23, 2025.
BioNTech’s product option for AUTO1/22 was not exercised as a result of BioNTech’s pipeline prioritization, and has expired as of February 8, 2025.

Q4 2024 Operational Updates:

The FDA approval for AUCATZYL triggered a $30 million milestone payment to Autolus from Blackstone in accordance with the terms of the collaboration agreement between the parties. In addition, Autolus has made a £10 million regulatory milestone payment to UCL Business Ltd. in accordance with the license agreement between the parties
The Nucleus, Autolus’ proprietary CAR T manufacturing facility designed for 2,000+ batches ​
per year​, is now licensed by the FDA and MHRA to produce commercial supply.