Adlai Nortye Presents Encouraging Phase 1b Study Data of AN0025 (an Oral EP4 Antagonist) for Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer at ESMO 2019

On September 30, 2019 Adlai Nortye Ltd. ("Adlai Nortye" or "the Company"), a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovery, development and commercialization of new and effective drugs with a focus on Oncology, reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) 2019 Congress the first results from a phase 1b neoadjuvant study of AN0025 (previously known as E7046), an investigational, potentially first in class oral EP4 antagonist (Press release, Adlai Nortye Biopharma, SEP 30, 2019, View Source [SID1234539895]).

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Researchers presented results from two dose levels of AN0025 in combination with the standard of care for locally advanced rectal cancer where primary resection without chemoradiotherapy is unlikely to achieve clear margins as defined by MRI. Twenty-eight high-risk patients were enrolled with 14 patients in the 250 mg cohort and 14 patients in the 500mg cohort; 25 patients were eligible for assessment. No DLT were observed in any patients. Complete clinical responses have led to 5/25 patients being managed by a watch-and-wait approach, in those who had surgery, 4/15 had pCR with 12 of these patients having clear resection margins.

The study showed that AN0025 was well tolerated in combination with chemoradiation as well as to radiotherapy followed by consolidation chemotherapy. The preliminary efficacy demonstrated encouraging clinical results in locally advanced rectal cancer.

"There is a tremendous need for new treatment strategies in rectal cancer, especially in patients with high-risk of relapse enrolled in this study. With nearly 40% of patients not requiring surgery or achieving a complete pathological response in the post-surgical specimen in this study, AN0025 in combination with the standard pre-operative treatment warrants further development. The excellent toxicity profile of this novel immunotherapy and potential combination with both conventionally fractionated radiochemotherapy or short course irradiation with consolidating chemotherapy make this strategy feasible worldwide." said lead author Dr. Lucjan Wyrwicz, MD, PhD, Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy, M. Sklodowska-Curie Memorial Cancer Center, Warsaw, Poland.

He added: "My patients are more and more often asking for organ preservation in rectal cancer and for many of them only a complete clinical response without any surgery is the desired outcome of treatment."

Commenting on the findings, Dr. Theodore S. Hong, MD, Director, Gastrointestinal Service, Associate Clinical Director, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Co-Leader, Gastrointestinal Malignancies Program, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, Professor of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, said "Given the unique mechanism of action and strong preclinical rationale, combined with the excellent tolerability and encouraging results, further study of AN0025 in preoperative therapy for rectal cancer are warranted. One question remains if there is a benefit to continuous exposure with AN0025 with FOLFOX followed by chemoradiation with AN0025 in a total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) paradigm. Further evaluation in randomized trials is eagerly awaited." Dr. Hong was also an investigator in the study.

"We are very encouraged by these results and plan to move AN0025 plus chemoradiotherapy into a randomized confirmatory trial without delay" said Dr. Lars Birgerson, Chief Development Officer of Adlai Nortye. "We believe that the EP4 class, where AN0025 is a leading compound, holds considerable promise in combination with multiple treatments including check point inhibitors for a multitude of solid tumors."

About AN0025

AN0025 (previously E7046) is an investigational, potentially first in class oral EP4 antagonist that is believed to prevent the binding of prostaglandin E2 to its EP4 to change the immunosuppressive character of the tumor microenvironment. Based on preliminary results, it is well tolerated in patients with solid tumors.

Intellia Therapeutics to Present at October Healthcare Investor Conferences

On September 30, 2019 Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTLA), a leading genome editing company focused on developing curative therapeutics using CRISPR/Cas9 technology both in vivo and ex vivo, reported that it will present at the following upcoming healthcare conferences in October (Press release, Intellia Therapeutics, SEP 30, 2019, View Source [SID1234539914]):

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Monday, October 7, 2019
Chardan 3rd Annual Genetic Medicines Conference
Location: New York, NY
Time: 9:00 am ET

Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Jefferies Gene Therapy/Editing Summit
Location: New York, NY
Time: 8:35 am ET

A live webcast of Intellia’s presentations at the Chardan and Jefferies conferences will be accessible through the Events and Presentations page of the Investor Relations section of the company’s website at www.intelliatx.com. To access the webcasts, please log on to the Intellia website approximately 15 minutes prior to the start time to ensure adequate time for any software downloads that may be required. A replay of the webcasts will be available on Intellia’s website for approximately 14 days following each conference.

New England Journal of Medicine publishes data showing improved survival with Jevtana® (cabazitaxel) over second androgen receptor-targeted agent in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer

On September 30, 2019 Sanofi Genzyme reported Data published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) previously treated with docetaxel and who progressed within 12 months on an androgen receptor (AR)-targeted agent (abiraterone or enzalutamide) experienced significantly longer radiographic progression free survival (rPFS) with Jevtana (cabazitaxel) plus prednisone compared with abiraterone plus prednisone or enzalutamide (Press release, Sanofi Genzyme, SEP 30, 2019, View Source [SID1234539931]). Overall survival (OS) with Jevtana was also significantly longer. These findings from the CARD study were presented today in the Presidential Symposium of the 2019 European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

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"In this study, treatment with Jevtana significantly improved radiographic progression free survival and overall survival compared with enzalutamide or abiraterone," said Professor Ronald de Wit from Erasmus MC University Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and the lead investigator of the CARD study. "These results are exciting as they have the potential to impact treatment guidelines for metastatic prostate cancer and current clinical practice."

CARD is a randomized, open-label, treatment sequencing clinical study involving 62 sites across 13 European countries, enrolling 255 patients (median aged 70 years, 31% aged over 75 years) with mCRPC who were previously treated with docetaxel and who progressed within 12 months on an AR-targeted agent, in any order. These patients were randomized 1:1 to Jevtana (25 mg/m2 intravenously every three weeks, daily prednisone, and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor) versus abiraterone (1,000 mg plus prednisone, daily) or enzalutamide (160 mg daily; patients received abiraterone if they were previously treated with enzalutamide, or enzalutamide if they were previously treated with abiraterone).

CARD study met primary and secondary endpoints

The study’s primary endpoint was rPFS, which more than doubled with Jevtana treatment (N=129) compared to abiraterone or enzalutamide (N=126; median 8.0 vs 3.7 months; HR=0.54; 95% CI, 0.40–0.73; p<0.0001). Patients treated with Jevtana experienced an improvement in rPFS in all pre-specified subgroups, irrespective of the timing of the previous alternative AR-targeted agent, before or after docetaxel. Jevtana also significantly improved a key secondary endpoint, OS (median 13.6 vs 11.0 months; HR=0.64; 95% CI, 0.46–0.89; p=0.0078), reducing the risk of death from any cause by 36% compared with abiraterone or enzalutamide. Other key secondary endpoints all favored Jevtana: progression free survival (PFS) (median 4.4 vs 2.7 months; p<0.0001); confirmed prostate specific antigen (PSA) (35.7% vs 13.5%; p=0.0002) and tumor responses (36.5% vs 11.5%; p=0.004). Pain response (45.0% vs 19.3%; p<0.0001) and time to symptomatic skeletal events (not reached vs 16.7 months; p=0.0499) were also significantly improved with Jevtana treatment.

The incidence of grade ≥3 adverse events was (56.3% with Jevtana vs 52.4% with AR-targeted agents). Key grade ≥3 treatment-emergent adverse events with Jevtana versus AR-targeted agents were renal disorders (3.2% vs 8.1%), infections (7.9% vs 7.3%), musculoskeletal pain/discomfort (1.6% vs 5.6%), cardiac disorders (0.8% vs 4.8%), asthenic conditions (4.0% vs 2.4%), diarrhea (3.2% vs 0), peripheral neuropathy (3.2% vs 0) and febrile neutropenia (3.2% vs 0). Serious adverse event rates of any grade were similar for Jevtana treatment (38.9%) and treatment with an AR-targeted agent (38.7%). AEs led to death in 7 vs 14 patients (5.6% vs 11.3%) for Jevtana compared to AR-targeted agents. No new safety signals were observed.

About Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is a very heterogenous disease and one of the most common types of cancer in men.[i] Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer related death among men in the United States2 and the third in Europe.3

Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) is prostate cancer that has spread beyond the prostate gland and progressed despite androgen deprivation therapy.

About Jevtana (cabazitaxel)

Jevtana is a semi-synthetic taxane chemotherapy. Jevtana is a microtubule inhibitor that binds to tubulin. This leads to the stabilization of microtubules, which results in the inhibition of mitotic and interphase cellular functions.

U.S. INDICATION

JEVTANA is a prescription anti-cancer medicine used with the steroid medicine prednisone. JEVTANA is used to treat men with castration-resistant prostate cancer (prostate cancer that is resistant to medical or surgical treatments that lower testosterone) that has worsened (progressed) after treatment with other medicines, including docetaxel.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR U.S. PATIENTS

What is the most important information I should know about JEVTANA?

JEVTANA may cause serious side effects, including:

Low white blood cells, which can cause you to get serious infections, and may lead to death. Men who are 65 years or older may be more likely to have these problems. Your healthcare provider (HCP):

will do blood tests regularly to check your white blood cell counts during your treatment with JEVTANA.
may lower your dose of JEVTANA, change how often you receive it, or stop JEVTANA until your HCP decides that you have enough white blood cells.
may prescribe a medicine for you called G-CSF, to help prevent complications if your white blood cell count is too low.

Tell your HCP right away if you have any of these symptoms of infection during treatment with JEVTANA: fever (take your temperature often during treatment with JEVTANA), cough, burning during urination, or muscle aches.

Also, tell your HCP if you have any diarrhea during the time that your white blood cell count is low. Your HCP may prescribe treatment for you as needed.

Severe allergic reactions can happen within a few minutes after your infusion of JEVTANA starts, especially during the first and second infusions. Your HCP should prescribe medicines before each infusion to help prevent severe allergic reactions.

Tell your HCP right away if you have any of these symptoms of a severe allergic reaction during or soon after an infusion of JEVTANA: rash or itching, skin redness, feeling dizzy or faint, breathing problems, chest or throat tightness, or swelling of face.

JEVTANA can cause severe stomach and intestine problems, which may lead to death. You may need to go to the hospital for treatment.

Vomiting and diarrhea can happen when you receive JEVTANA. Severe vomiting and diarrhea with JEVTANA can lead to loss of too much body fluid (dehydration), or too much of your body salts (electrolytes). Death has happened from having severe diarrhea and losing too much body fluid or body salts with JEVTANA. Your HCP will prescribe medicines to prevent or treat vomiting and diarrhea, as needed with JEVTANA.

Tell your HCP if: you have vomiting or diarrhea, or if your symptoms get worse or do not get better. JEVTANA can cause a leak in the stomach or intestine, intestinal blockage, infection, and bleeding in the stomach or intestine. This can lead to death. Tell your HCP if you get any of these symptoms: severe stomach-area (abdomen) pain, constipation, fever, blood in your stool, or changes in the color of your stool.

Kidney failure may happen with JEVTANA, because of severe infection, loss of too much body fluid (dehydration), and other reasons, which may lead to death. Your HCP will check you for this problem and treat you if needed.

Tell your HCP if you develop these signs or symptoms: swelling of your face or body, or decrease in the amount of urine that your body makes each day or blood in your urine

Lung or breathing problems may happen with JEVTANA and may lead to death. Men who have lung disease before receiving JEVTANA may have a higher risk for developing lung or breathing problems with JEVTANA treatment. Your HCP will check you for this problem and treat you if needed.

Tell your HCP right away if you develop any new or worsening symptoms, including: trouble breathing, shortness of breath, chest pain, cough or fever.

Who should not receive JEVTANA?

Do not receive JEVTANA if: your white blood cell (neutrophil count) is too low, you have had a severe allergic reaction to cabazitaxel or other medicines that contain polysorbate 80 (ask your HCP if you are not sure), you have severe liver problems or you are pregnant. JEVTANA can harm your unborn baby or possibly cause loss of pregnancy.

What should I tell my HCP before receiving JEVTANA?

Before receiving JEVTANA, tell your HCP if you:

had allergic reactions in the past
are age 65 or older
have kidney or liver problems
have lung problems
are a male with a female partner who is able to become pregnant. Males should use effective birth control (contraception) during treatment with JEVTANA and for 3 months after your final dose of JEVTANA.

JEVTANA may cause fertility problems in males. This may affect your ability to father a child. Talk to your HCP if you have concerns about fertility.

Tell your HCP about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. JEVTANA can interact with many other medicines. Do not take any new medicines without asking your HCP first. Your HCP will tell you if it is safe to take the new medicine with JEVTANA.

What are the possible side effects of JEVTANA?

Common side effects of JEVTANA include:

Low red blood cell count (anemia), which is common with JEVTANA, but can sometimes also be serious. Your HCP will regularly check your red blood cell count. Symptoms of anemia include shortness of breath and tiredness.
Low blood platelet count, which is common with JEVTANA, but can sometimes also be serious. Tell your HCP if you have any unusual bruising or bleeding.
Inflammation of the bladder, which has happened in men who have previously received pelvic radiation therapy. Tell your HCP if you have blood in your urine, burning sensation during urination, or frequent or urgent need to urinate.
fever
diarrhea
tiredness
nausea
vomiting
constipation
weakness
back pain
numbness, tingling, burning or decreased sensation in your hands or feet
shortness of breath
stomach pain
change in your sense of taste
cough
joint pain
hair loss
decreased appetite

Tell your HCP if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. These are not all the possible side effects of JEVTANA. For more information, ask your HCP or pharmacist.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see full Prescribing Information / Patient Information, including Serious Side Effects.

MiNA Therapeutics Presents Clinical and Pre-Clinical Data at ESMO Supporting MTL-CEBPA as Immunological Combination Treatment

On September 30, 2019 MiNA Therapeutics, the pioneer in RNA activation (RNAa) therapeutics, reported final Phase 1 clinical data of MTL-CEBPA as a single agent in patients with advanced liver cancer as well as pre-clinical data demonstrating synergistic immunological and anti-tumour activity of MTL-CEBPA in combination with anti-PD1 checkpoint inhibition (Press release, MiNA Therapeutics, SEP 30, 2019, View Source [SID1234539949]). The data will be presented in two posters at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) 2019 Congress taking place in Barcelona, Spain on September 28th and September 30th.

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"In addition to the ongoing evaluation of MTL-CEBPA in combination with sorafenib in patients with advanced liver cancer, the new pre-clinical findings support investigating MTL‑CEBPA and anti-PD1 checkpoint combination therapy in patients with other solid tumour cancers."

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"The Phase 1 study, in which immunological activity and tolerability of MTL-CEBPA as a single agent was observed, provides an excellent foundation on which to advance MTL‑CEBPA in combination with other cancer therapies and serves as a strong, general validation of our novel approach to targeting cancer," said Robert Habib, CEO of MiNA Therapeutics. "In addition to the ongoing evaluation of MTL-CEBPA in combination with sorafenib in patients with advanced liver cancer, the new pre-clinical findings support investigating MTL‑CEBPA and anti-PD1 checkpoint combination therapy in patients with other solid tumour cancers."

Final results of the first-in-human evaluation of MTL-CEBPA as a single agent demonstrated MTL-CEBPA to be well tolerated at all dose levels with clear pharmacological activity. In the study, MTL-CEBPA was evaluated as a single agent in 39 patients with advanced liver cancer and liver disease across escalating dose levels and dose frequencies in which no maximum tolerated dose was identified. Pharmacological activity was observed in patients with significant activation of CEBPA target gene and subsequent changes in white blood cell count. Analysis of paired biopsies indicated repopulation of the tumour microenvironment from immuno-suppressive to mature myeloid cells. In 35 patients evaluable for efficacy, partial tumour response was achieved in 1 patient, and stable disease was achieved in 15 patients. Following discontinuation of MTL‑CEBPA, 8 patients received subsequent tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy. Of 5 patients treated with sorafenib, 4 experienced durable, objective tumour responses including 3 complete tumour responses durable for over 1 year. The ongoing OUTREACH Phase 1b study continues to evaluate MTL-CEBPA in combination with sorafenib standard of care.

Separately, a new pre-clinical study described the synergistic benefits of combining MTL‑CEBPA with anti-PD1 checkpoint inhibition in an immunocompetent mouse model of colon cancer. Compared to single agent treatments, the combination treatment resulted in synergistic improvements in tumour growth inhibition. Synergistic increases in infiltration of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (TILs) evidenced the immunological role of MTL-CEBPA in the tumour microenvironment.

The posters will be made available on the Company’s website in the Publications section under "RNA Activation".

Presentation information

Title: First-in-human, first-in-class phase I study of MTL-CEBPA, a RNA oligonucleotide targeting the myeloid cell master regulator C/EBP-α, in patients with advanced hepatocellular cancer
Poster no: 455PD (Abstract 2878)
Session: Poster Discussion – Developmental therapeutics
Date / time: 16:30 – 18:00 CET, Saturday 28 September 2019
Location: Alicante Auditorium (Hall 3)

Title: Targeting myeloid-derived suppressor cells and T cells: combination treatment with MTL-CEBPA and PD-1 antibody in a mouse syngeneic CT26 model
Poster no: 1230P (Abstract 3089)
Session: Poster Display Session 3, Immunotherapy of cancer
Date / time: 12:00 – 13:00 CET, Monday 30 September 2019
Location: Poster Area (Hall 4)

About MTL-CEBPA
MTL-CEBPA is the first therapy to specifically up-regulate CCAAT/enhancer binding protein alpha (C/EBP-α), a transcription factor that acts as a master regulator of myeloid cell lineage determination and differentiation. Dysregulated myeloid cells have been implicated in several diseases and identified as a critical barrier for many therapies to induce clinical responses in solid tumour cancers. In pre-clinical studies MTL-CEBPA has been shown to improve the anti-tumour activity of cancer therapies by targeting dysregulated myeloid cells and reducing their suppression in the tumour microenvironment.

Teneobio Licenses Oncology Multispecific Product to Janssen

On September 30, 2019 Teneobio, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing engineered bispecific antibodies for the treatment of cancer reported that as a result of its work with scientists from Janssen Research & Development, LLC, Janssen Biotech, Inc., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, has elected to exercise a commercial option to license and advance an undisclosed multispecific product for development in an oncology indication (Press release, TeneoBio, SEP 30, 2019, View Source [SID1234539982]). Under the terms of the collaboration agreement, which was first announced in Q3 of 2018, Janssen will receive exclusive global licensing rights to the multispecific product for clinical development and commercialization. Teneobio will receive a milestone payment from Janssen for the commercial license and is eligible for additional development and commercial milestones as well as royalties on world-wide net sales of the multispecific product.

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Omid Vafa, CBO of Teneobio, Inc., added, "We are very pleased with the outcome of our collaboration with the Janssen R&D oncology team. The rapid advance of our program from discovery to preclinical proof-of-concept in less than a year and a half is a testament to Teneobio’s technology platforms and speed to enable drug discovery and to deliver. Janssen’s collaborative spirit allowed both teams to rapidly advance the multispecific antibody lead clinical candidate beyond preclinical proof-of-concept. We are eager to advance this asset to clinical stage, and Janssen’s deep expertise in the oncology space is a real advantage."