On March 18, 2019 Apollo Endosurgery, Inc. ("Apollo") (Nasdaq: APEN), a leader in less invasive medical devices for bariatric and gastrointestinal procedures, reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2018 (Press release, Lpath, MAR 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234534460]).

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Highlights
•Fourth quarter ESS revenue contributed 64% of continuing product sales and increased 46%
•ESS revenue for the full year 2018 of $23.4 million increased 42% compared to 2017
•Sale of the Surgical product line completed on December 17, 2018
•New credit facility with Solar Capital completed March 15, 2019

Todd Newton, CEO of Apollo, said, "With the sale of the Surgical product line in December, moving forward we are able to direct our attention exclusively on the growth opportunities of our Endo-bariatric product line. Demand for OverStitch was strong in the fourth quarter as the treatments possible with this unique technology continue to gain physician adoption and as of the beginning of February we are into the full launch of the new single channel compatible OverStitch Sx in the United States and Europe."

Apollo reported Endo-bariatric product revenues of $10.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of 10%. Fourth quarter total revenues which included sales of the divested Surgical product line, were $15.2 million a decrease of 6%. For the year, Endo-bariatric product revenues were $41.1 million, an increase of 15%. Total revenue for the year which includes sales of the divested Surgical products were $60.9 million, a decrease of 5%.

Fourth quarter Endoscopic Suturing System ("ESS") product sales increased 46% to $6.9 million from increases in product utilization in existing accounts and new user adoption. For the year, ESS product sales were $23.4 million, an increase of 42%.

Fourth quarter Intragastric Balloon ("IGB") product sales were $3.9 million, a decrease of 23%. U.S. IGB sales declined 20% due to ongoing market weakness due to negative media impressions following prior FDA communications. OUS IGB product sales decreased 24%, due primarily to lower sales in Brazil and our distributor markets which offset higher sales of Orbera365 in our direct European markets. For the year, IGB product sales were $17.7 million, a decrease of 9%.

Gross margin for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 46.6%, compared to 57.7% for the fourth quarter of 2017 primarily due to a greater proportion of our product sales coming from our ESS products, which realize a lower gross margin than our other products. During the fourth quarter of 2018 we completed two gross margin improvement projects related to both the ESS and IGB products which we expect on a combined basis to improve gross margin by approximately $2 million annually beginning in 2019. Gross margin for the year was 54.5% compared to 61.8% in 2017.

Total operating expenses were $23.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2018 and included a loss on the sale of our Surgical product line of $7.8 million. Excluding this one-time item, operating expenses were $16.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of 6%. Research and development costs increased as a result of expanded clinical study activities related to our Endo-bariatric products, new product development activities, and margin improvement projects. Excluding the loss on sale of the Surgical product line, operating expenses for the year were $65.5 million compared to $62.2 million, an increase of 6% due to higher research and development expenses.

Net loss for the fourth quarter 2018 was $18.4 million compared to $7.3 million for the fourth quarter 2017. For the year, net loss was $45.8 million in 2018 compared to $27.3 million in 2017.

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash were $25.0 million as of December 31, 2018.

Debt Financing

On March 15, 2019, we entered into a new credit facility with Solar Capital to borrow $35.0 million. The new facility may provide an additional $15.0 million upon our request, subject to further credit approval. We used $22.4 million of these proceeds to pay off the remainder of our prior credit facility. Interest on borrowings under the new credit facility is payable at

LIBOR plus 7.5% (currently 10.0%). Principal payments will begin after a 24-month interest only period payable on a straight-line basis until maturity on September 1, 2023.

Conference Call

Apollo will host a conference call on Monday, March 18, 2019 at 7:30 a.m. Central Time / 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss Apollo’s operating results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2018.

To participate in the conference call dial (877) 823-8673 for domestic callers and (647) 689-4156 for international callers. The conference ID number is 3671589. A live webcast of the conference call will be made available on the "Events and Presentations" section of our Investor Relations website: www.ir.apolloendo.com.

A replay of the webcast will remain available on Apollo’s website, www.apolloendo.com, following the call. In addition, a transcript of the earnings call will be made available on the "Events and Presentations" section of our Investor Relations website: www.ir.apolloendo.com.

On March 18, 2019 Personalis, Inc., a leader in advanced genomics for precision oncology, reported that they are scheduled to present at ICI-IO Combinations Summit 2019 in Boston on Wednesday, March 20, 2019 at 2:30 PM, EDT (Press release, Personalis, MAR 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234534801]).

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The presentation, entitled "Challenges and Solutions: Enabling multidimensional tumor immunogenomics for advancing biomarker discovery," will introduce Personalis’ new universal cancer immunogenomics platform, ImmunoID NeXT. In addition to an overview, the presentation will also highlight how this platform can be used to overcome the challenges facing immuno-oncology translational and clinical researchers. By deriving new insights through our industry leading NGS analysis platform, ImmunoID NeXT provides solutions to enable the development of safer, more effective precision oncology therapeutics and combinations.

ImmunoID NeXT is the first and only platform to provide comprehensive analysis of both a tumor and its microenvironment from a single sample. The platform can be used to investigate the key tumor- and immune-related areas of cancer biology; consolidating multiple oncology biomarker assays into one. This maximizes the biological information that can be generated from a precious tumor specimen.

The presentation will be delivered by Christelle Johnson, PhD, Senior Field Application Scientist, Cancer Genomics & Immuno-Oncology.

On March 18, 2019 CSI Laboratories, a nationally renowned laboratory specializing in comprehensive cancer diagnostics, reported that it has added the newly approved VENTANA PD-L1 (SP142) Assay as a companion diagnostic test for use in selecting triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients for TENCENTRIQ (atezolizumab) (Press release, CSI Laboratories, MAR 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234534427]).

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TENCENTRIQ was granted accelerated approval for use in combination with paclitaxel protein-bound for adult patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) whose tumors express PD-L1 on March 8, 2019. The indication is approved under accelerated approval based on progression-free survival and continued approval may be contingent on verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trials, according to the FDA.

CSI is one of the first reference laboratories to offer the new companion test. The new Assay is used to determine PD-L1 stained tumor-infiltrating immune cells of any intensity covering ≥ 1% of the tumor area.

"We are pleased to add this companion test to our diagnostic testing services, which will enable health care teams to treat TNBC patients with newer therapeutic options," said Ron Ghafary, founder and CEO of CSI Laboratories. "We continue to focus on providing a superior client experience, exceptional and accurate lab results, and quick turnaround to help our clients provide personalized cancer care to their patients."

For more information, please visit csilaboratories.com or contact Eric Diersen 678-248-8000.

On March 18, 2019 Abeona Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: ABEO), a leading clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel cell and gene therapies for serious diseases, reported fourth quarter and full year 2018 financial results, and provided business highlights (Press release, Abeona Therapeutics, MAR 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234534483]). The Company will host a conference call on Tuesday, March 19 at 10:00 a.m. ET to discuss fourth quarter and full year results, and to provide business highlights. Interested parties are invited to participate in the call by dialing 844-369-8770 (toll-free domestic) or 862-298-0840 (International) or via webcast at View Source

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"The diligent work conducted over the past nine months at our GMP manufacturing facility puts us on track to initiate the pivotal VITAL study evaluating EB-101, our gene-corrected cell therapy for the treatment of recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa, in mid-2019. We will produce EB-101 at our Cleveland facility, which is an important milestone for Abeona. We are also advancing our manufacturing capabilities to support our AAV gene therapy programs and expect to be at scale for GMP production in the second half of this year," said João Siffert, M.D., Chief Executive Officer. "On the lysosomal storage disease programs, we have stepped up efforts to accelerate patient enrollment in the MPS III programs and recently implemented the protocols to enroll younger, higher functioning patients."

"We believe that these important steps have positioned Abeona for success in 2019 as we focus on advancing our clinical programs and developing our pipeline utilizing novel AAV capsids," added Dr. Siffert.

Fourth Quarter and Full Year Summary Financial Results:

Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities as of December 31, 2018 were $85.0 million, compared to $112.2 million as of September 30, 2018. The decrease in cash of $27.2 million was driven primarily by the net cash used for operating activities of $17.0 million and cash used for the acquisition of the REGENXBIO license of $10 million.

Revenues were $0.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared with $0.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. The increased quarterly revenues resulted from the recognition of Foundation grants that were announced during the fourth quarter of 2017.

Net loss was $0.36 per share for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to $0.19 per share in the comparable period in 2017. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, net loss was $1.19 per share compared to $0.66 per share in the same period in 2017.

Fourth Quarter and Recent Highlights:

·December 6, 2018: Provided lead program updates and unveiled data from AIM AAV vector platform in cystic fibrosis and retinal diseases at R&D Day

·January 8, 2019: Appointed Christine Silverstein as Chief Financial Officer and Ed Carr as Chief Accounting Officer

·February 5-6, 2019: Presented new supportive data for novel gene therapies, including new proof-of-concept data for the AIM vector platform at WORLDSymposium

·February 11, 2019: Appointed João Siffert, M.D. as Chief Executive Officer

"As a fully-integrated organization, Abeona is on the forefront of cell and gene therapy thanks to in-house manufacturing facilities, the AIM AAV vector platform, and two programs in the clinic that have exclusive license to the AAV9 vector," said Steven H. Rouhandeh, Chairman of the Board and Executive Chairman. "Under João’s leadership, the Company is focused on maximizing these end-to-end capabilities as it prepares for important near-term milestones and beyond."

On March 18, 2019 IMV Inc. (IMV) (Nasdaq: IMV; TSX: IMV), a clinical stage immuno-oncology corporation, reported that Canadian bioresearch consortium CQDM has awarded a grant to a collaboration among IMV, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, and La Fondation du CHU de Québec (FCHUQc) (Press release, IMV, MAR 18, 2019, View Source [SID1234553817]).

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Under the leadership of Yves Fradet, M.D., professor of surgery and researcher in cancer immunotherapy, and his team, in collaboration with IMV’s team , this project will receive a grant of up to CAN$1.2M from CQDM and CAN$300,000 from the FCHUQc, to develop a novel dual target T cell therapy for an initial clinical application in bladder cancer.

The work will target immunogenic peptides identified by Dr Fradet’s team from the MAGE protein family member A9 (MAGE-A9). This protein is frequently expressed in various human cancers including bladder, lung, and kidney.1 These peptides will be combined with selected immunogenic peptides from the survivin protein composing the DPX-Survivac T cell drug candidate.

The researchers believe that MAGE-A9 and survivin peptides presented on the surface of cancer cells can be used to program T cells to destroy tumors and may represent ideal targets for anti-cancer T cell immunotherapies. The collaborators will combine these peptides with IMV’s proprietary DPX technology to develop a first-in-class dual target T cell therapy (DPX-SurMAGE).

"We believe that DPX is a truly disruptive technology that enables us to program T cells in vivo in a novel way, and we are grateful that CQDM and its funding partner the Quebec Ministry of Economy and Innovation, along with the FCHUQc, are willing to support this highly innovative program," said Stéphan Fiset, Vice President, Clinical Research at IMV. "Our goal remains to expand the range of patients able to benefit from T cell immunotherapies. This program provides an opportunity for us to collaborate with Dr. Fradet’s team and other experts in the bladder cancer field to advance a potential new candidate for the many patients whose current treatment options are limited."

DPX-SurMAGE will be initially evaluated in preclinical studies. Upon successful completion of these preclinical evaluations, researchers are aiming to test the candidate in two clinical studies in patients with:

Muscle invasive bladder cancer combined with an anti-PD-1 and intermittent low-dose cyclophosphamide (CPA) prior to cystectomy
Low-grade highly recurrent non muscle invasive bladder cancer combined with CPA prior to transurethral resection
"Bladder cancer remains a significant unmet medical need and we believe that a novel T cell therapy directed against two cancer targets that are expressed in the majority of bladder tumors may improve outcomes, particularly for those who are at higher risk of recurrence and progression," said Dr. Fradet. "We are pleased to be working under the support of CQDM and the FCHUQc with our partner IMV, and its novel clinical development approach, to advance the options in this cancer, which has already shown promising response to immunotherapy. This project contributes to position the Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval as a leader in medical innovation."

The project is expected to span a three-year period and will be supported by IMV, CQDM and FCHUQc. As part of the collaboration agreement, IMV holds an exclusive option to in-license intellectual property related to the program.