On April 17, 2025 Kairos Pharma, Ltd. (NYSE American: KAPA) a clinical stage company involved in treating EGFR-driven lung cancer patients with ENV105 in combination with osimertinib after they fail to respond to single-agent osimertinib in a Phase 1 trial, reported that based on recent breakthroughs in understanding non-small cell lung cancer mechanism of resistance to first line osimertinib treatment, the U.S. Department of Defense ("DoD") is providing $876,000 to advance a strategy to identify patients that are starting to develop resistance at an early stage (Press release, Kairos Pharma, APR 17, 2025, View Source [SID1234651982]). The grant was awarded to identify biomarkers for the Company’s clinical study to address the major challenge in achieving a lasting cure for lung cancer patients. The grant was awarded to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to support research in Dr. Neil Bhowmick’s laboratory to identify biomarkers of patients with non-small cell carcinoma who have developed resistance to Osimertinib. This will provide a means to identify those patients who will benefit from ENV105.
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Kairos Pharma CEO John Yu, M.D., stated, "Peer-reviewed support like this DoD grant is a testament to the sound scientific basis for our current Phase 1 trial in lung cancer patients receiving ENV105. It is particularly gratifying in the current environment, in which these grants are harder to achieve, underscoring the potential for ENV105 to help ensure effective therapy in this lung cancer form common to non-smokers. Grants like this enable us to progress with our trials while minimizing expense and managing our cash burn."
The DoD grant is designed to contribute to a strategy to limit resistance to osimertinib at its most early stages, by identifying patients that would be best helped by ENV105 treatment. In the near term, the Company expects that the funded study may lead to more effective monitoring and early detection of resistance development, allowing for more timely interventions to improve overall survival and quality of life for patients.