On May 14, 2020 NanOlogy, LLC, a clinical-stage oncology company, reported that updated data from two of its ongoing clinical trials were presented as abstracts last week through the DDW ePosters and ePresentations site (Press release, NanOlogy, MAY 14, 2020, View Source [SID1234558067]). The clinical trials are evaluating endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle injection (EUS-FNI) of NanoPac (submicron particle paclitaxel) suspension for treatment of locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC) and mucinous cystic neoplasms (MCNs/IPMNs) of the pancreas.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
The lead author of the abstract on intratumoral NanoPac for LAPC is Neil Sharma, MD (Parkview Cancer Institute – Fort Wayne, IN). The lead author of the abstract on intracystic NanoPac for MCNs/IPMNs is Mohamed O. Othman, MD (Baylor College of Medicine – Houston, TX).
Pancreatic Cancer
The Phase 2a dose-rising and expansion trial is evaluating over 6 months the safety and preliminary efficacy of NanoPac delivered intratumorally by EUS-FNI in patients with LAPC, concurrent with or following SOC therapy for the disease. After completing the dose-rising cohort (n=11), a dose expansion cohort has now fully enrolled (n=22) in which patients receive 2 monthly intratumoral (IT) injections of NanoPac. FDA has also recently allowed expansion of up to 30 additional patients who will receive up to 4 monthly IT injections.
Dr. Sharma’s abstract submitted to DDW in December 2019 reports data from the first 7 evaluable subjects from the dose expansion cohort. No drug-related local or systemic SAEs were reported including no reports of acute pancreatitis in any subject, 4 subjects had a partial response, 2 had stable disease, and 1 had progressive disease. Encouraging data has continued to accrue from the fully enrolled dose expansion (2- injection) cohort, which are expected to be presented later in 2020.
Pancreatic Cyst
The Phase 2a dose rising and expansion trial is evaluating over 6 months the safety and preliminary efficacy of NanoPac delivered intracystically by EUS-FNI following aspiration in patients with MCNs/IPMNs. The study has now completed enrollment (n=19) with patients in the dose expansion phase (n=8) receiving two intracystic injections of NanoPac 12 weeks apart.
Dr. Othman’s abstract also submitted in December reports data from the first 9 subjects who had completed the trial. No confirmed drug-related local or systemic SAEs were reported including no reports of acute pancreatitis. Plasma paclitaxel levels have not exceeded 1 ng/mL indicating that NanoPac particles are retained in the cyst over time. Evaluation of cyst volume showed decreases ranging from 8% to 89% in 8 subjects, 6 of whom showed a volume decrease > 50%. Cyst volume increased in 1 subject.
Based on encouraging results from both trials, NanOlogy is designing follow-on clinical protocols for evaluation by FDA.
In 2020, about 57,600 new cases of pancreatic cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. and 47,050 people will die from the disease. Pancreatic cancer is currently the third most frequent cause of cancer related death in western countries and is predicted to become the second leading cause of death from cancer within the next 10 years. It is one of the few cancers for which no meaningful improvement in survival has been achieved over recent time with only an 8% survival rate at 5 years.
MCNs/IPMNs are a subset of pancreatic cysts that risk progression to pancreatic cancer. While estimates vary widely, as many as 30,000 new cases of high risk MCNs/IMPNs are diagnosed annually in the U.S. These patients may ultimately be required to undergo surgical resection of the pancreas to remove the lesion, a complicated procedure associated with high morbidity. No approved drug therapy exists in the U.S to treat the condition.
In addition to pancreatic neoplasms, NanOlogy clinical programs are advancing in genitourinary, peritoneal, lung, and dermal cancers.
The NanOlogy submicron particle therapeutic platform is based on a proprietary production technology that converts taxane API crystals into stable submicron particles of pure drug with disproportionate size to surface area ratio. The particles are covered by two composition of matter patents (US 9,814,685) and (10,507,195) both valid until 2036 in the US and pending globally.