On November 18, 2019 Varian (NYSE: VAR) reported the South Florida Proton Therapy Institute (SFPTI), a Proton International facility, on the campus of Delray Medical Center, reported that it has treated its first patient utilizing the Varian ProBeam Compact single-room proton therapy system (Press release, Varian Medical Systems, NOV 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234551426]). Proton therapy can be used to treat many types of tumors including in the brain, head and neck, central nervous system and lung, and more precisely targets cancer cells while reducing side effects, minimizing risk to surrounding tissue and organs.

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"Proton therapy is the latest and by far the most advanced radiation treatment available, and at SFPTI we use these highly precise particle beams instead of traditional x-rays to treat tumors more precisely, with much less exposure to the surrounding normal tissues," said Tim Williams medical director, SFPTI. "Proton therapy can be used to treat children with cancer as well as adult tumors of the brain, spine, head and neck, lung, prostate, GI tract, and breast tumors. I am truly grateful to finally be able to make this long-standing vision of bringing this world-class technology to south Florida a reality."

"We are proud of the partnership between Varian, SFPTI and Proton International to help bring this advanced treatment technology to more cancer patients who are in need of this life-saving therapy," said Kolleen Kennedy, president, Proton Solutions and chief growth officer at Varian. "This first patient treatment is another important step in the growing availability of proton therapy for more patients and continues Varian’s mission of creating a world without fear of cancer."

Proton therapy uses protons, accelerated to about two-thirds the speed of light, or more than 100,000 miles per second, to destroy cancer cells, while minimizing exposure to nearby healthy tissues. SFPTI will treat a variety of oncology patients with the Varian system, including brain and spine, head and neck, breast, liver, lung, pancreatic, prostate and pediatric cancers.

Currently 27 leading proton centers have selected the Varian solution, 12 of the centers are in clinical operation and eight more are expected to begin treating patients within the next 12 months. To learn more about the Varian proton therapy solutions, visit View Source

About South Florida Proton Therapy Institute
The South Florida Proton Therapy Institute (SFPTI), a Proton International facility, is a radiation oncology center that opened in 2018 on the campus of Delray Medical Center. Led by Medical Director Tim R. Williams, M.D. and featuring the most innovative technology available, SFPTI provides those in Palm Beach County and the surrounding communities with a tremendous new resource in the fight against cancer. For more information, visit View Source

On November 18, 2019 RhoVac AB ("RhoVac") reported interim results from ongoing immunological studies at University of Tübingen, Germany concluding that treatment with RV001 can activate CD4+ T-cells and also CD8+ T-cells.

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In July 2019 RhoVac published results on the follow-up phase of the phase I/II clinical study and in relation to the immunological response it could be concluded that 18 patients showing significant treatment related immunological response at completion of treatment. All 18 patients still showed significant response at 3-, 6- and 9-months follow-up. At the 12-months follow-up, 17 out of the 18 responding patients still showed significant immunological response.

Ongoing immunological studies at the University of Tübingen now confirm that treatment with RV001 can activate CD4+ T-cells and also CD8+ T-cells. Confirmation that the drug candidate RV001 can activate CD4+ T cells is important for the clinical value of the treatment. This has been demonstrated in a number of scientific publications of which some are referenced below:

Doonan et al (2010), demonstrated that "activation of CD4+ T cells is required to stimulate and prolong CD8+ T cell activity, and for the development of long-lasting tumor specific memory T cells".
Quezeda et al (2010) concluded in their study that "results highlight the relevance of the CD4+ T cell compartment, and particularly of cytotoxic CD4+ T cells, in cancer immunotherapy, while providing evidence that T cell differentiation in vivo may afford advantages over current approaches using differentiation and expansion in vitro".
Haabeth et al (2014) also concluded that beside CD8+ T cells commonly known as being able to eliminate target cells, CD4+ T cells also have the ability to directly eliminate tumors via T Cell Receptor and peptide:MHC-class II interaction (the pathway linked to CD4+ T cells) and/or to eliminate tumor cells indirectly via the release of immunomodulatory molecules activating surrounding immune cells.
For these reasons the MHC class II tumor antigen presentation pathway (the pathway linked to CD4+ T cells) must be utilized for therapeutic cancer vaccines to have a high clinical value, and interim results strongly indicate that RV001 is well capable of this.

Comment from RhoVac’s CEO, Anders Månsson:

Confirmation of the immunological response concluded based on interim results is obviously important data for the ongoing development of the drug candidate RV001. I am looking forward to the continued collaboration with the team at University of Tübingen.

On November 18, 2019 Surface Oncology (Nasdaq: SURF), a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing next-generation immunotherapies that target the tumor microenvironment, reported that it has submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to support the initiation of a phase 1/1b clinical study of SRF617 (targeting CD39) (Press release, Surface Oncology, NOV 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234551411]). At an inaugural R&D day today, the Company will share progress across its portfolio including clinical development plans for SRF617 and SRF388 (IL-27), and preclinical data supporting its new development candidate, SRF813, which targets the recently identified checkpoint protein CD112R to promote natural killer (NK) and T cell activation.

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"We welcome this opportunity to dive into the compelling data underpinning our lead programs’ differentiated approaches to overcoming the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, as we work to break through and bring the benefits of immunotherapy to more patients suffering with cancer," said Jeff Goater, chief executive officer of Surface Oncology. "We look forward to furthering the incredible scientific work of our team with the initiation of our phase 1 clinical trials for both SRF617 and SRF388 in early 2020."

SRF617 is a fully human anti-CD39 antibody designed to promote anti-tumor immunity through a dual mechanism of reducing immunosuppressive adenosine and driving the extracellular accumulation of immunostimulatory ATP within the tumor microenvironment. Due to this dual mechanism, Surface Oncology believes CD39 is the most promising therapeutic target on the adenosine axis, a notable immunosuppressive pathway. The Company’s planned phase 1/1b study will evaluate SRF617 in patients with advanced solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other cancer therapies.

Surface Oncology also anticipates the filing of an IND for SRF388 before the end of 2019, with the subsequent initiation of a phase 1/1b clinical study in early 2020. The Company has identified particular tumor types, including hepatocellular and renal cell carcinoma, where IL-27 appears to play an important role in tumor progression. Furthermore, Surface Oncology has identified a potential biomarker associated with IL-27 that may be useful in helping identify patients most likely to respond to SRF388, which has the potential to be the first IL-27 targeted antibody to enter clinical trials.

"The Surface team is energized by the compelling preclinical datasets across our programs, and is excited about advancing SRF617 and SRF388 into clinical development," said Rob Ross, M.D., chief medical officer of Surface Oncology. "Both SRF617 and SRF813 have best-in-class potential related to targeting the adenosine axis and NK cells, respectively, and we believe SRF388 has the ability to inhibit the highly immunosuppressive cytokine IL-27, which gives it the potential to be a potent therapeutic. We look forward to providing clinical updates from the SRF388 and SRF617 programs in late 2020."

Surface Oncology’s preclinical data demonstrates that SRF813 increases NK and T cell activity, has strong, differentiated preclinical efficacy and promotes immunological memory. Currently, there are no

therapeutic strategies to overcome resistance to T cell checkpoint inhibitor blockade, and emerging data highlights the potential of NK cell-based therapies, such as SRF813, to overcome checkpoint inhibitor resistance.

Surface Oncology recently presented data from a number of its programs, including SRF388 and SRF617, at the Society for the Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) (Free SITC Whitepaper)’s (SITC) (Free SITC Whitepaper) 34th Annual Meeting in National Harbor, MD. These can be viewed on the Pipeline page of the Surface Oncology corporate website.

The R&D Day presentations and a live broadcast will be viewable from 8:15am ET at investors.surfaceoncology.com.

On November 18, 2019 Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE: ZYME), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing multifunctional therapeutics, reported the selection of an abstract highlighting updated single agent data from the Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the HER2-targeted bispecific antibody, ZW25, in patients with HER2-expressing solid tumors for a mini oral presentation at the ESMO (Free ESMO Whitepaper) Asia 2019 Congress, taking place November 22 – 24 in Singapore (Press release, Zymeworks, NOV 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234551427]).

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The presentation, entitled "Safety, Anti-Tumor Activity, and Biomarker Results of the HER2-Targeted Bispecific Antibody ZW25 in HER2-Expressing Solid Tumors," is scheduled for Friday November 22 at 3:30 pm SGT (local Singapore Time) during the mini oral session Developmental and Precision Medicine in room 311. The presentation number is 61O.

About the Phase 1 Clinical Trial

Zymeworks’ Phase 1 study has three parts. From part one of the study (the dose-escalation phase), the recommended single-agent dose was determined to be 20 mg/kg once every two weeks or 10 mg/kg weekly. In the second part of the study (the cohort expansion phase), additional patients are being enrolled to further assess ZW25’s single-agent tolerability and anti-tumor activity against a variety of cancer types in different settings. The third part of the study (the combination phase) is underway and evaluating ZW25 in combination with selected chemotherapy agents in gastroesophageal and breast cancer patients with HER2 high or lower HER2 expression levels. More information about ZW25 clinical trials can be found at clinicaltrials.gov.

About ZW25

ZW25 is being evaluated in Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials across North America and South Korea. It is a bispecific antibody, based on Zymeworks’ Azymetric platform, that can simultaneously bind two non-overlapping epitopes of HER2, known as biparatopic binding. This unique design results in multiple mechanisms of action including dual HER2 signal blockade, increased binding and removal of HER2 protein from the cell surface, and potent effector function leading to encouraging anti-tumor activity in patients. Zymeworks is developing ZW25 as a HER2-targeted treatment option for patients with any solid tumor that expresses HER2. The FDA has granted Fast Track designation to ZW25 for first-line gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma in combination with standard of care chemotherapy and Orphan Drug designation to ZW25 for the treatment of both gastric and ovarian cancers.

On November 18, 2019 Medivir AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: MVIR) reported that the ninth and final patient was recruited to the phase Ia study of MIV-818 in patients with advanced liver cancer (Press release, Medivir, NOV 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234551443]). Based on data from phase Ia, the initial dose of MIV-818 for the phase Ib study has been determined at 200 mg / week. The dosage is given as 40 mg / day for five days.

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The phase I study with MIV-818, evaluating safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics, consists of two parts: Phase Ia is an interpatient study while phase Ib has a classic 3 + 3 intrapatient dose-escalating design. A recommended dose for phase II will be based on the data in the phase Ib study. Medivir has previously reported that the intended liver-directed effect of MIV-818 could be verified already in the analysis of data from the first six patients. Efficacy data from the complete phase Ia study will be presented next year at a scientific conference.

"The initial data observed in the phase I study support our view that MIV-818 has the potential to provide a clear and much needed improvement in treatment for patients with liver cancer," said Dr. Uli Hacksell, CEO of Medivir. "MIV-8I8 is the most advanced drug candidate in a series of proprietary and wholly owned prodrugs that we intend to develop for the treatment of various cancer indications."

For further information, please contact:

Uli Hacksell, CEO
Medivir AB
phone: +46 (0)8 5468 3100

About MIV-818

MIV-818 is a pro-drug designed to selectively treat liver cancers and to minimize side effects. It has the potential to become the first liver-targeted, orally administered drug to benefit patients with HCC and other forms of liver cancer. A phase I study in patients with liver cancer is ongoing.

About liver cancer

Liver cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common cancer that arises in the liver. Although existing therapies for advanced HCC are capable of extending the lives of patients, treatment benefits are low while death rates remain high. HCC is a very diverse disease with multiple cancer cell types and without specific mutations seen in other tumor types. This has contributed to the lack of success of molecularly targeted agents in HCC. The limited overall benefit, taken together with the poor overall prognosis for patients with intermediate and advanced HCC, results in a large unmet medical need.