On January 11, 2018 Puma Biotechnology, Inc. (the "Company") reported it met today with the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use ("CHMP") Scientific Advisory Group on Oncology ("SAG") (Press release, Puma Biotechnology, JAN 11, 2018, View Source [SID1234523065]). SAG was asked to provide an opinion on the clinical relevance of the 5-year absolute treatment difference in invasive disease free survival seen in the Phase III ExteNET trial and on the risk of gastrointestinal toxicity with neratinib and its acceptability in the proposed patient population in the Company’s Marketing Authorization Application ("MAA") for neratinib. Based on the feedback from SAG and the rapporteurs, the Company intends to modify the summary of product characteristics ("SmPC"), sometimes referred to as the European product label, in its MAA for neratinib to further refine the intended population to patients at a high risk of disease recurrence.

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CHMP will be conducting an oral hearing to discuss the MAA for neratinib on January 23, 2018, and the Company has been invited to present the risk benefit profile of neratinib in the identified population at this meeting

On Jaunuary 11, 2018 Forty Seven Inc. a clinical-stage company focused on developing the next generation of transformational immuno-oncology treatments to enable a patient’s immune system to defeat their cancer, reported an agreement with Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany to conduct a Phase 1b clinical trial combining Hu5F9-G4 with avelumab in patients with ovarian cancer (Press release, Forty Seven, JAN 11, 2018, View Source [SID1234527432]).

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PD-L1 and CD47 are immunosuppressant molecules overexpressed on cancer cells that send inhibitory signals to T cells and macrophages, respectively. Binding of avelumab to PD-L1 takes the brakes off T cells and, in a similar way, binding of Hu5F9-G4 to CD47 takes the brakes off macrophages.

"PD-L1 inhibitors, like avelumab, belong to a class of new immunological therapies for cancer known as checkpoint inhibitors that offer the opportunity for long-term remissions in some cancer patients," said Forty Seven Inc. CMO Chris Takimoto. "Not all patients however, respond to checkpoint inhibitors, so additional scientifically driven combination approaches are required."

"Ovarian cancer patients have limited treatment options, especially as they are often diagnosed at a late stage in their disease," says Dr. Alise Reicin, Head of Global Clinical Development at the Biopharma business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which in the US and Canada operates as EMD Serono. "We have two ongoing registrational studies exploring the role that avelumab could play both as a monotherapy and in combinations in ovarian cancer. This collaboration enhances our strategic approach to novel I-O combinations in this disease setting. We are hopeful that through these efforts we will discover viable options to help patients with this hard-to-treat cancer."

On Jan. 11, 2018 /Forty Seven Inc., a clinical-stage company focused on developing the next generation of transformational immuno-oncology treatments to enable patient’s immune systems to defeat their cancer, reported an agreement with Genentech Inc., a member of the Roche Group., for Genentech to sponsor two clinical trials combining Forty Seven’s CD47 antibody, Hu5F9-G4, with Genentech’s PD-L1 antibody, atezolizumab (TECENTRIQ), in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and with urothelial (bladder) cancer (Press release, Hoffmann-La Roche, JAN 11, 2018, View Source [SID1234531337]).

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CD47 is an immune modulator molecule overexpressed on cancer cells that sends inhibitory signals to macrophages. Binding of Hu5F9-G4 to CD47 takes the brakes off macrophages enabling them to phagocytose, or swallow, tumor cells.

Craig Gibbs, Ph.D., M.B.A., Chief Business Officer at Forty Seven Inc. said, "There is a large unmet medical need for new therapies for AML and bladder cancer patients, particularly those who are elderly or have compromised organ function and are not able to withstand the side-effects of chemotherapy. We are excited to evaluate these novel combinations in collaboration with a global leader in oncology."

References
CD47 blockade as another immune checkpoint therapy for cancer. Robert H. Vonderheide, Nature Medicine 21, 1122, 2015.

TECENTRIQ (atezolizumab) is a registered trademark of Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.

On January 10, 2018 PTC Therapeutics presented at the 36th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (Presentation, PTC Therapeutics, JAN 10, 2018, View Source [SID1234523051]).

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On January 10, 2018 Intrexon Corporation presented Presentation, dated January 10, 2018 (Presentation, Intrexon, JAN 10, 2018, View Source [SID1234523050]).

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