On November 14, 2022 Galectin Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: GALT), the leading developer of therapeutics that target galectin proteins, reported financial results and provided a business update for the three months ended September 30, 2022 (Press release, Galectin Therapeutics, NOV 14, 2022, View Source [SID1234623933]). These results are included in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and is available at www.sec.gov.

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Joel Lewis, Chief Executive Officer and President, stated: "The Company made outstanding progress this quarter. In addition to securing the largest financing in the Company’s history, which extended our cash runway for planned trial expenditures through 2024, we accelerated recruitment on NAVIGATE, our global pivotal NASH cirrhosis trial, and continue to progress towards our goal of full enrollment around the end of 2022. We presented at multiple conferences culminating in our submission of five scientific presentations that were accepted and presented at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) in the first week of November. During AASLD, we had the opportunity to host some of our investigators and their staff. I want to thank all of those who attended for their dedication to our program and for the insight they shared with us. I truly believe the knowledge you shared will enable us to reach our enrollment goals, as well as our overall goals for our study.

"Additionally, as recently announced, our team successfully completed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application and received a Study May Proceed letter from FDA, for belapectin in combination with a Keytruda for the treatment of Head and Neck cancers."

Dr. Pol Boudes, Chief Medical Officer, stated: "I, along with several other team members, have visited multiple sites and investigators over the past few months, in addition to meeting with several more at recent industry conferences. We continue to receive consistent and supportive feedback from investigators regarding the importance and uniqueness of NAVIGATE and the potential to bring a therapy to patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension for this large unmet medical need. We have now randomized 279 patients of the planned 315 patients with an additional 74 patients currently in screening."

Financial Results

For the three months ended September 30, 2022, the Company reported a net loss applicable to common stockholders of $8.6 million, or ($0.14) per share, compared to a net loss applicable to common stockholders of $8.6 million, or ($0.14) per share for the three months ended September 30, 2021.

Research and development expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2022, were $6.6 million compared with $6.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2021. These are primarily due to costs related to the NAVIGATE clinical trial and other supportive activities. General and administrative expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2022 were $1.5 million, compared to $1.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2021. The decrease was primarily due to a decrease in legal expenses.

As of September 30, 2022, the Company had $15.8 million of cash and cash equivalents. The Company believes it has sufficient cash, including availability under its $60 million line of credit, to fund currently planned operations and research and development activities through at least December 31, 2024.

About Belapectin

Belapectin is a complex carbohydrate drug that targets galectin-3, a critical protein in the pathogenesis of NASH and fibrosis. Galectin-3 plays a major role in diseases that involve scarring of organs, including fibrotic disorders of the liver, lung, kidney, heart and vascular system. Belapectin binds to galectin-3 and disrupts its function. Preclinical data in animals have shown that belapectin has robust treatment effects in reversing liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. A Phase 2 study showed belapectin may prevent the development of esophageal varices in NASH cirrhosis, and these results provide the basis for the conduct of the NAVIGATE trial. The NAVIGATE trial (www.NAVIGATEnash.com), titled "A Seamless Adaptive Phase 2b/3, Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled Multicenter, International Study Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of Belapectin (GR-MD-02) for the Prevention of Esophageal Varices in NASH Cirrhosis," began enrolling patients in June 2020, and is posted on www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04365868). Galectin-3 has a significant role in cancer, and the Company has supported a Phase 1b study in combined immunotherapy of belapectin and KEYTRUDA in advanced melanoma and in head and neck cancer. This trial provided a strong rationale for moving forward into a Company-sponsored Phase 2 development program, which the company is exploring.

About Fatty Liver Disease with Advanced Fibrosis and Cirrhosis

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has become a common disease of the liver with the rise in obesity and other metabolic diseases. NASH is estimated to affect up to 28 million people in the U.S. It is characterized by the presence of excess fat in the liver along with inflammation and hepatocyte damage (ballooning) in people who consume little or no alcohol. Over time, patients with NASH can develop excessive fibrosis, or scarring of the liver, and ultimately liver cirrhosis. It is estimated that as many as 1 to 2 million individuals in the U.S. will develop cirrhosis as a result of NASH, for which liver transplantation is the only curative treatment available. Approximately 9,000 liver transplants are performed annually in the U.S. There are no drug therapies approved for the treatment of liver fibrosis or cirrhosis.