On November 12, 2020 Oncorus, Inc. (Nasdaq:ONCR), a viral immunotherapies company focused on driving innovation to transform outcomes for cancer patients, reported third quarter 2020 financial results and highlighted recent achievements and developments (Press release, Oncorus, NOV 12, 2020, View Source [SID1234570765]).

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"We’ve made significant strides thus far in 2020 advancing our mission to realize the full promise of viral immunotherapy for cancer patients, including the commencement of a Phase 1 clinical trial for our lead clinical candidate, ONCR-177, as well as entering into a clinical trial collaboration with Merck to study ONCR-177 in combination with KEYTRUDA as part of the trial," said Theodore (Ted) Ashburn, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Oncorus.

Dr. Ashburn further commented, "Bolstered by the completion of our IPO last month and a strong cash position, we continue to progress our pipeline of intratumorally and intravenously administered viral immunotherapies across our oncolytic Herpes Simplex Virus (oHSV) and Synthetic Virus Platforms. Our goal is to treat a broad spectrum of cancers to bring the full potential of this therapeutic class to as many patients as possible."

Third Quarter 2020 and Recent Highlights

Completed initial public offering (IPO) in October. Oncorus’s common stock commenced trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol "ONCR" on October 2, 2020. The IPO, at a public offering price of $15.00 per share, raised $98.4 million in aggregate gross proceeds, including shares sold to the underwriters pursuant to the partial exercise of their option to purchase additional shares.
Initiated Phase 1 clinical trial of ONCR-177. In June, Oncorus initiated a Phase 1 clinical trial of its lead product candidate, ONCR-177, an intratumorally administered oHSV viral immunotherapy being developed for multiple solid tumor indications. The Phase 1 open-label, multi-center, dose escalation and expansion clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of ONCR-177 and to determine the recommended Phase 2 dose, as well as its preliminary anti-tumor activity, alone and in combination with Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab), in patients with advanced and/or refractory cutaneous, subcutaneous or metastatic nodal solid tumors. Oncorus anticipates reporting interim data from the Phase 1 clinical trial in the second half of 2021 through the second half of 2022.
Announced clinical trial collaboration with Merck. In July, Oncorus announced a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, through a subsidiary, to evaluate the combination of ONCR-177 with KEYTRUDA, as part of the ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial of ONCR-177 in adult patients with advanced and/or refractory cutaneous, subcutaneous or metastatic nodal solid tumors.
Continued to advance lead Synthetic Virus Platform programs toward clinical candidate nominations. Oncorus continues to advance its lead synthetic, intravenously (IV) administered viral immunotherapy programs based on the coxsackievirus A21 (CVA21) and the Seneca Valley Virus and expects to nominate clinical candidates for both programs in the first half of 2021. IV administration of viral immunotherapies is an attractive approach for improving the standard of care for many oncology patients because it allows for all tumors in a patient, including the micro-metastases that are sometimes difficult to detect and treat, to be treated directly. In addition, it allows for the potential treatment of certain tumors, such as those of the lung, that are less amenable to repeat intratumoral injection of anti-cancer therapies for both safety and feasibility reasons. Oncorus’s Synthetic Virus Platform includes its novel lipid nanoparticle delivery strategy designed to overcome the challenges caused by neutralizing antibodies that have limited the efficacy of previous industry efforts to treat tumors utilizing IV administration of CVA21.
Continued to advance second oHSV viral immunotherapy candidate, ONCR-GBM. Leveraging its oHSV Platform, Oncorus is pursuing ONCR-GBM to specifically target brain cancer, including glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). Oncorus is utilizing its knowledge of microRNA expression to engineer a microRNA attenuation strategy to protect healthy brain tissue and select a combination of payloads that address the specific drivers of immune suppression in brain cancer. Oncorus plans to nominate its ONCR-GBM clinical candidate in the second half of 2021.
Third Quarter Financial Results

Cash and cash equivalents were $54.0 million as of September 30, 2020, excluding the proceeds from the Company’s initial public offering in October 2020, compared to $45.3 million as of December 31, 2019.
Research and development expenses for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 were $6.9 million compared to $6.2 million for the corresponding period in 2019. The increase in research and development expenses was mainly attributable to increases in clinical trial costs for the Company’s Phase 1 clinical trial as well as increased personnel-related expenses driven by increased headcount.
General and administrative expenses for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 were $2.0 million compared to $1.5 million for the corresponding period in 2019. The increase in general and administrative expenses was primarily attributable to increases in audit and legal activity and related expenses as well as personnel-related expenses driven by increased headcount.
Other income (expense), net, for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 was an expense of $10.6 million compared to income of $0.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2019. Other expense in 2020 included a non-cash charge of $10.6 million related to an increase in the fair market value of the Company’s Series B preferred stock tranche rights liability that was settled in September 2020, upon the closing of the second tranche of the Series B financing, which occurred prior to the IPO.
Net loss attributable to common stockholders for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 was $22.4 million, or $(21.73) per share, compared to a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $9.2 million, or $(9.67) per share for the same period in 2019. The share and loss per share amounts do not reflect the impact of the Company’s IPO, which closed in October 2020.
Financial Guidance

Based upon its current operating plans and cash and cash equivalents, including the net proceeds from the IPO, the Company expects to have sufficient capital to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements into 2023.