On February 25, 2025 Astrazeneca reported positive high-level results from a planned interim analysis of the SERENA-6 Phase III trial showed that AstraZeneca’s camizestrant in combination with a cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitor (palbociclib, ribociclib or abemaciclib) demonstrated a highly statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) (Press release, AstraZeneca, FEB 25, 2025, View Source [SID1234650552]). The trial evaluated switching to the camizestrant combination versus continuing standard-of-care treatment with an aromatase inhibitor (AI) (anastrozole or letrozole) in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor in the 1st-line treatment of patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer whose tumours have an emergent ESR1 mutation.

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The key secondary endpoints of time to second disease progression (PFS2) and overall survival (OS) were immature at the time of this interim analysis. However, the camizestrant combination demonstrated a trend toward improvement in PFS2. The trial will continue as planned to further assess key secondary endpoints.

SERENA-6 is the first global, double-blind, registrational Phase III trial to use a circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA)-guided approach to detect the emergence of endocrine resistance and inform a switch in therapy before disease progression. The novel trial design used ctDNA monitoring at the time of routine tumour scan visits to identify patients for early signs of endocrine resistance and the emergence of ESR1 mutations. Following detection of an ESR1 mutation without disease progression, the endocrine therapy of patients was switched to camizestrant from ongoing treatment with an AI, while continuing combination with the same CDK4/6 inhibitor.

François-Clément Bidard, MD, PhD, Professor of Medical Oncology at Institut Curie & UVSQ/Université Paris-Saclay, France, and co-principal investigator for the trial, said: "Patients have an urgent need for new treatments that delay disease progression on 1st-line endocrine-based therapies. The results from SERENA-6 show that switching from an aromatase inhibitor to camizestrant in combination with any of the three CDK4/6 inhibitors after emergence of an ESR1 mutation delays progression of disease and extends the benefit of 1st-line treatment, representing an important step forward for patients, and a potential shift in clinical practice."

Susan Galbraith, Executive Vice President, Oncology Haematology R&D, AstraZeneca, said: "These impressive results demonstrate the versatility of camizestrant in combination with all the widely approved CDK4/6 inhibitors to provide a well-tolerated new potential treatment option in the first-line setting for the one in three patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer whose tumours develop ESR1 mutations during treatment with an aromatase inhibitor in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor. This critical read-out moves us one step closer to realising the potential of camizestrant to become a new standard-of-care as we look to shift the treatment paradigm and establish this new endocrine therapy backbone in HR-positive breast cancer."

The safety profile of camizestrant in combination with palbociclib, ribociclib or abemaciclib in SERENA-6 was consistent with the known safety profile of each medicine. No new safety concerns were identified and discontinuations were very low and similar in both arms.

Globally, approximately 200,000 patients with HR-positive breast cancer are treated with a medicine in the 1st-line setting; most frequently with endocrine therapies that target estrogen receptor (ER)-driven disease, which are often paired with CDK4/6 inhibitors.1-3 However, resistance to CDK4/6 inhibitors and current endocrine therapies develops in many patients with advanced disease.3

Mutations in the ESR1 gene are a key driver of endocrine resistance and are widely tested for in clinical practice.4,5 These mutations develop during treatment of the disease, becoming more prevalent as the disease progresses and are associated with poor outcomes.4,5 Approximately 30% of patients with endocrine sensitive HR-positive disease develop ESR1 mutations during 1st-line treatment without disease progression.1

Data will be presented at a forthcoming medical meeting and shared with global regulatory authorities.

Notes

HR-positive breast cancer
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer and one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide.6 More than two million patients were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022, with more than 665,000 deaths globally.6 While survival rates are high for those diagnosed with early breast cancer, only about 30% of patients diagnosed with or who progress to metastatic disease are expected to live five years following diagnosis.7

HR-positive breast cancer, characterised by the expression of estrogen or progesterone receptors, or both, is the most common subtype of breast cancer with 70% of tumours considered HR-positive and HER2-negative.7 ERs often drive the growth of HR-positive breast cancer cells.8

Once resistance to the treatment of HR-positive breast cancer with CDK4/6 inhibitors and current endocrine therapies occurs, treatment options are limited and survival rates are low with 35% of patients anticipated to live beyond five years after diagnosis.3,7,9 The optimisation of endocrine therapy and overcoming resistance to enable patients to continue benefiting from these treatments, as well as identifying new therapies for those who are less likely to benefit, are active areas of focus for breast cancer research.

SERENA-6
SERENA-6 is a Phase III, double-blind, randomised trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of camizestrant in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor (palbociclib, ribociclib or abemaciclib ) versus treatment with an AI (anastrozole or letrozole) in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor (palbociclib, ribociclib or abemaciclib) in patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer (patients with either locally advanced disease, or metastatic disease) whose tumours have an emergent ESR1 mutation.

The global trial enrolled 315 adult patients with histologically confirmed HR-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, undergoing treatment with an AI in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor as 1st-line treatment. The primary endpoint of the SERENA-6 trial is PFS as assessed by investigator, with secondary endpoints including OS, and PFS2 by investigator assessment.

Camizestrant
Camizestrant is an investigational, potent, next-generation oral selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD) and complete ER antagonist that is currently in Phase III trials for the treatment of HR-positive breast cancer.

AstraZeneca’s broad, robust and innovative clinical development programme, including the SERENA-6, SERENA-4, CAMBRIA-1 and CAMBRIA-2 trials, is evaluating the safety and efficacy of camizestrant when used as a monotherapy or in combination with other agents to address a number of areas of unmet need in this specific type of breast cancer.

Camizestrant has demonstrated anti-cancer activity across a range of preclinical models, including those with ER-activating mutations. In the SERENA-2 Phase II trial, camizestrant demonstrated PFS benefit versus Faslodex (fulvestrant) irrespective of ESR1 mutation status or prior treatment with CDK4/6 inhibitors in patients with ER-positive locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer, previously treated with endocrine therapy. The SERENA-1 Phase I trial demonstrated that camizestrant is well tolerated and has a promising anti-tumour profile when administered alone or in combination with palbociclib, ribociclib and abemaciclib; three widely used CDK4/6 inhibitors. Combinations with other agents are ongoing in SERENA-1.

On February 25, 2025 Alterome Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of next-generation, small molecule targeted therapies for the treatment of cancer, reported that senior management will participate in TD Cowen 45th Annual Health Care Conference and Leerink Partners Global Healthcare Conference 2025 (Press release, Alterome Therapeutics, FEB 25, 2025, View Source [SID1234650515]). Members of Alterome management will participate in one-on-one investor meetings at both conferences. Details of participation are as follows:

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TD Cowen 45th Annual Health Care Conference
Date: March 3
Location: Boston, MA

Leerink Partners Global Healthcare Conference 2025
Date: March 10
Location: Miami, FL

On February 25, 2025 Telix Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX: TLX, Nasdaq: TLX, Telix, the Company) reported that the United States (U.S.) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the Biologics License Application (BLA) for its breakthrough investigational kidney cancer PET[1] imaging agent TLX250-CDx (Zircaix[2], 89Zr-DFO-girentuximab), granted a Priority Review and provided a PDUFA[3] date of 27 August 2025, paving the way for a U.S. commercial launch in 2025 (Press release, Telix Pharmaceuticals, FEB 25, 2025, View Source [SID1234650553]).

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If approved, TLX250-CDx will become the first commercially available imaging agent to accurately and non-invasively diagnose and characterize clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), the most common and one of the most aggressive sub-types of kidney cancer. It works by specifically binding to carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX), a validated target protein expressed on 95% of ccRCC cells to produce images with high tumor-to-background ratio and high intra- and inter-reader consistency.

The BLA is based on Telix’s successful global Phase 3 ZIRCON[4] study, which demonstrated a sensitivity of 86%, specificity of 87% and a positive predictive value (PPV) of 93% for ccRCC, including in very small, difficult-to-detect lesions[5]. The results of this study were published in The Lancet Oncology in September 2024, in a peer-reviewed manuscript by Professor Brian Shuch (University of California, Los Angeles, UCLA) and colleagues[6]. The paper outlines the critical unmet need for a new, non-invasive technique that can accurately detect and differentiate ccRCC from other renal masses in patients and concluded that TLX250-CDx meets this need and ‘has the potential to be practice changing.’

Kevin Richardson, Chief Executive Officer, Precision Medicine, said, "We are delighted that the FDA has accepted this BLA as it moves us one step closer to bringing our breakthrough product to patients. We are aiming to revolutionize the management of kidney cancer, just as PSMA-PET/CT[7] scanning has changed the management of prostate cancer. By providing a more definitive clinical diagnosis for renal masses, we believe that Zircaix[2] will help physicians make more timely and confident patient management decisions and more quickly provide patients with a clear understanding of their disease and treatment options. Building further on Telix’s successful urology franchise, we are preparing to bring this powerful precision medicine product to market in 2025[8]."

About TLX250-CDx

TLX250-CDx (Zircaix[2]) is an investigational PET agent that is under development for the diagnosis and characterization of ccRCC. Telix’s pivotal Phase 3 ZIRCON trial evaluating TLX250-CDx in 300 patients, of whom 284 were evaluable, met all primary and secondary endpoints, including showing 86% sensitivity and 87% specificity and a 93% PPV for ccRCC across three independent radiology readers[5]. Telix believes this demonstrated the ability of TLX250-CDx to reliably detect the clear cell phenotype and provide an accurate, non-invasive method for diagnosing and characterizing ccRCC. Confidence intervals exceeded expectations amongst all three readers, showing evidence of high accuracy and consistency of interpretation.

As part of Telix’s commitment to access to medicine, the Company operates an expanded access program (EAP) in the U.S.[9], named patient programs (NPPs) in Europe, and a special access scheme (SAS) in Australia to allow continued access to TLX250-CDx outside of a clinical trial, to patients for whom there are no comparable or satisfactory alternate options. TLX250-CDx has not received a marketing authorization in any jurisdiction and is for investigational use only.

On February 25, 2025 Arcus Biosciences, Inc. (NYSE:RCUS), a clinical-stage, global biopharmaceutical company focused on developing differentiated molecules and combination therapies for patients with cancer, reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2024, and provided a pipeline update on its clinical-stage investigational molecules across multiple common cancers (Press release, Arcus Biosciences, FEB 25, 2025, View Source [SID1234650516]).

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"Last week, we presented data from nearly 90 ccRCC patients demonstrating casdatifan’s potential best-in-class profile," said Terry Rosen, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Arcus. "Given the strong efficacy and preferable safety profile relative to standard-of-care VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors, we believe casdatifan can play an important role in the treatment of every patient diagnosed with ccRCC. Arcus now has full developmental and commercial control of casdatifan, and we are pursuing a robust development plan in multiple ccRCC settings, which include our first Phase 3 trial, PEAK-1, expected to initiate next quarter, as well as our clinical collaboration with AstraZeneca. We are extremely well capitalized to execute on these plans, and we continue to evaluate and pursue opportunities to conserve capital and allocate greater resources to maximizing the potential of casdatifan."

Pipeline Highlights:

Casdatifan (HIF-2a inhibitor)
Casdatifan Updates:
•New clinical data from three monotherapy expansion cohorts in ARC-20 were presented in a rapid oral session at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Genitourinary (GU) Cancers Symposium in February. At the time of data cut-off (DCO, January 3, 2025), the efficacy-evaluable population included a total of 87 patients with ccRCC who had received at least two prior lines of therapy, including both an anti-PD-1 and a VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy. These data support the potential for casdatifan to be a best-in-class HIF-2a inhibitor for the treatment of ccRCC:
◦Despite limited follow-up, two of the cohorts exceeded 30% confirmed ORR (inclusive of one partial response that confirmed after the DCO)

◦Rates of primary progressive disease (progression at or before their first disease assessment) ranged from 14% to 19%
◦Most patients (81-87%) experienced disease control with either a partial response or stable disease
◦Only two confirmed responders out of the 26 across all cohorts had discontinued due to progression, indicating the potential for a long duration of response
◦A 9.7-month median PFS was reached for the 50mg twice-daily casdatifan monotherapy cohort; median PFS was not yet reached for other cohorts
◦No unexpected safety signals were observed at the time of DCO, and casdatifan had an acceptable and manageable safety profile across all doses
Planned Data Readouts:
•Mid 2025: Safety and initial efficacy data for the ARC-20 cohort evaluating casdatifan plus cabozantinib in IO-experienced patients.
•Fall 2025: More mature data from the cohorts evaluating casdatifan monotherapy in patients who had progressed on both an anti-PD-1 and a TKI therapy.
•2026: More mature data from the casdatifan + cabozantinib cohort and initial data from the new ARC-20 cohorts evaluating casdatifan in the first-line (1L) and IO-experienced settings.

Upcoming Study and Cohort Initiations:
•Three new expansion cohorts within ARC-20 will be initiated in the first quarter of 2025:
◦Casdatifan plus zimberelimab in all-comer 1L ccRCC
◦Casdatifan monotherapy in favorable-risk 1L ccRCC
◦Casdatifan monotherapy in the IO-experienced setting for patients with ccRCC who have not received a VEGFR-TKI therapy
•The Phase 3 PEAK-1 study evaluating casdatifan in combination with cabozantinib versus cabozantinib in IO-experienced ccRCC is expected to initiate in the second quarter of 2025.
•A Phase 1b study, part of AstraZeneca’s eVOLVE portfolio of trials, evaluating casdatifan in combination with volrustomig, AstraZeneca’s investigational PD-1/CTLA-4 bispecific antibody, in IO-naive patients, is expected to initiate in 2025. AstraZeneca is operationalizing this study.

Domvanalimab (Fc-silent anti-TIGIT antibody) plus Zimberelimab (anti-PD-1 antibody)
•Overall survival data from the Phase 2 EDGE-Gastric study, evaluating domvanalimab plus zimberelimab and chemotherapy in upper gastrointestinal (GI) adenocarcinomas, are expected to be presented in the fall of 2025.
•The first Phase 3 data readout for domvanalimab plus zimberelimab will be from the ongoing Phase 3 study STAR-221 evaluating domvanalimab plus zimberelimab and chemotherapy in PD-L1 all-comer 1L metastatic upper GI adenocarcinomas and is expected in 2026.

CD73-Adenosine Axis: Quemliclustat (small-molecule CD73 inhibitor) and Etrumadenant (A2a/A2b receptor antagonist)

Quemliclustat:
•In the fourth quarter of 2024, Arcus initiated PRISM-1, a Phase 3 trial of quemliclustat combined with gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel versus gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel in pancreatic cancer. In February 2025, Arcus’s partner, Taiho, dosed their first patient in Japan for PRISM-1.
Etrumadenant:
•Arcus plans to meet with the FDA in the first half of 2025 to clarify next steps for ARC-9, evaluating etrumadenant plus zimberelimab, FOLFOX, chemotherapy and bevacizumab (EZFB) versus regorafenib in third-line metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

Early Clinical Programs

•Evaluation of AB801, a potent and highly selective small-molecule AXL inhibitor, in the dose-escalation phase of a Phase 1/1b study in patients is ongoing. Arcus anticipates advancing this molecule into expansion cohorts in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the second half of 2025.

Financial Results for Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024:
•Cash, Cash Equivalents and Marketable Securities were $992 million as of December 31, 2024, compared to $866 million as of December 31, 2023. The increase during the period is primarily due to the receipt of $320 million in cash from Gilead for their January 2024 equity investment, the receipt of the $100 million option continuation payment from Gilead in July 2024 and proceeds from our $50 million term loan, partially offset by the use of cash in research and development activities. Arcus expects its cash and investments, together with the proceeds from the equity financing in February 2025, will provide funding through our initial pivotal read-outs for domvanalimab, quemliclustat and casdatifan including STAR-221, PRISM-1 and PEAK-1.
•Revenues were $36 million for the fourth quarter 2024, compared to $31 million for the same period in 2023. In the fourth quarter 2024, Arcus recognized $28 million in License and development service revenues related to the advancement of programs under the Gilead collaboration, as well as $8 million in Other collaboration revenue related to Gilead’s ongoing rights to access Arcus’s research and development pipeline in accordance with the Gilead collaboration agreement.
•Research and Development (R&D) Expenses were $111 million for the fourth quarter 2024, compared to $93 million for the same period in 2023. The net increase of $18 million was primarily driven by higher costs associated with our early-stage R&D and preclinical program activities, driven by higher enrollment in our studies for casdatifan, higher expense incurred on Gilead-led studies for domvanalimab, as well as increases in compensation cost related to our growing headcount. Non-cash stock-based compensation expense was $9 million for each of the fourth quarter 2024 and 2023. For the fourth quarter 2024 and 2023, Arcus recognized gross reimbursements of $41 million and $42 million, respectively, for shared expenses from its collaborations, primarily the Gilead collaboration. Gross reimbursements were $165 million for the full year 2024, compared to $162 million for 2023. Our partnership reimbursements were flat compared to the prior year despite the increases in gross costs, due to increases in Gilead-led activities and programs fully funded by us. R&D expense by quarter may fluctuate due to the timing of clinical manufacturing and standard-of-care therapeutic purchases with a corresponding impact on reimbursements.
•General and Administrative (G&A) Expenses were $28 million for the fourth quarter 2024, compared to $29 million for the same period in 2023. Non-cash stock-based compensation expense was $8 million for the fourth quarter 2024, compared to $9 million for the same period in 2023.
•Net Loss was $94 million for the fourth quarter 2024, compared to $81 million for the same period in 2023.

Arcus Ongoing and Announced Clinical Studies:
Trial Name
Arms
Setting
Status
NCT No.
Kidney Cancer
PEAK-1
cas + cabo vs. cabo
Post-IO ccRCC
Planned Phase 3
TBD
AstraZeneca Collaboration (part of eVOLVE portfolio)
cas + volru
2L+ IO-Naive ccRCC
Planned Phase 1b
TBD
ARC-20
cas, cas + cabo
2L+ Cancer Patients/ccRCC
Ongoing Phase 1/1b
NCT05536141
Upper Gastrointestinal Cancers
STAR-221
dom + zim + chemo vs. nivo + chemo
1L Gastric, GEJ and EAC
Ongoing Registrational Phase 3
NCT05568095
EDGE-Gastric (ARC-21)
dom +/- zim +/- chemo
1L/2L Upper GI Malignancies
Ongoing
Randomized Phase 2
NCT05329766
Lung Cancer
STAR-121
dom + zim + chemo vs. pembro + chemo
1L NSCLC (PD-L1 all-comers)
Ongoing Registrational Phase 3
NCT05502237
PACIFIC-8
dom + durva vs. durva
Unresectable Stage 3 NSCLC
Ongoing Registrational Phase 3
NCT05211895
EDGE-Lung
dom +/- zim +/- quemli +/- chemo
1L/2L NSCLC (lung cancer platform study)
Ongoing Randomized Phase 2
NCT05676931
VELOCITY-Lung
dom +/- zim +/- sacituzumab govitecan-hziy or other combos
1L/2L NSCLC (lung cancer platform study)
Ongoing Randomized Phase 2
NCT05633667
Pancreatic Cancer
PRISM-1
quemli + gem/nab-pac vs. gem/nab-pac
1L PDAC
Ongoing Randomized Phase 3
NCT06608927
ARC-8
quemli + zim + gem/nab-pac vs. quemli + gem/nab-pac
1L PDAC
Ongoing Randomized Phase 1/1b
NCT04104672
Colorectal Cancer
ARC-9
etruma + zim + mFOLFOX vs. SOC
2L/3L/3L+ CRC
Ongoing
Randomized Phase 2
NCT04660812
Other
ARC-25
AB598
Gastric Cancer
Ongoing Phase 1
NCT05891171
ARC-27
AB801
NSCLC
Ongoing Phase 1
NCT06120075

cabo: cabozantinib; cas: casdatifan; ccRCC: clear cell renal cell carcinoma; CRC: colorectal cancer; dom: domvanalimab; durva: durvalumab; EAC: esophageal adenocarcinoma; etruma: etrumadenant; GEJ: gastroesophageal junction; gem/nab-pac: gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel; GI: gastrointestinal; nivo: nivolumab; NSCLC: non-small cell lung cancer; PDAC: pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; pembro: pembrolizumab; quemli: quemliclustat; SOC: standard of care; zim: zimberelimab

On February 25, 2025 Kura Oncology, Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq: KURA), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to realizing the promise of precision medicines for the treatment of cancer, reported that Troy Wilson, Ph.D., J.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, is scheduled to participate in three upcoming investor conferences (Press release, Kura Oncology, FEB 25, 2025, View Source [SID1234650536]):

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A fireside chat at the TD Cowen Health Care Conference in Boston at 2:30 p.m. ET / 11:30 a.m. PT on March 4, 2025;

A fireside chat at the Barclays Global Healthcare Conference in Miami at 9:30 a.m. ET / 6:30 a.m. PT on March 11, 2025; and

A fireside chat at the Leerink Partners Global Biopharma Conference in Miami at 8:00 a.m. ET / 5:00 a.m. PT on March 12, 2025.
Live audio webcasts will be available in the Investors section of Kura’s website at View Source, with archived replays available following all three events.