Bridge Biotherapeutics, a new drug candidate for lung cancer, begins administering BBT-176 to patients participating in clinical trials

On April 7, 2021 Bridge Biotherapeutics, a research and development company for innovative new drugs, reported that the first phase of clinical trials for BBT-176, a candidate for the next-generation lung cancer target anticancer drug, began in earnest, and that it was administered to patients participating in the clinical trial on the 2nd (Press release, Bridge Biotherapeutics, APR 7, 2021, View Source;pn=6&sn=1&idx=64 [SID1234577708]).

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!

BBT-176 is a novel epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR TKI) targeting the C797S specific EGFR mutation. The C797S mutation is known as an acquired resistance mutation that appears after treatment with tagriso (ingredient name: osimertinib) in Non-small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC). Bridge Biotherapeutics has secured data related to the tumor suppression effect of brain metastasis, including the tumor suppression effect against the C797S positive triple mutation in animal models, through the preclinical development previously advanced.

This clinical trial, which is first initiated by three domestic institutions, targets patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with an EGFR mutation. ) We plan to closely grasp patient group data by mutation by applying procedures, etc.

BBT-176 In the first phase of clinical phase 1/2, the Dose Escalation Study evaluates the safety and tolerability of the drug to be tested to determine the recommended phase 2 dose. Next, in the Dose Expansion Study, which is expected to enter Korea and the United States within this year, ▲ Objective Response Rate (ORR), ▲ Objective Response Rate (ORR) according to version 1.1 of the Solid Tumor Response Assessment (RECIST) ; Duration of Response) and ▲ Progress-free Survival (PFS). The clinical trial is planned to be conducted on about 90 patients.

Bridge Biotherapeutics CEO Jeong-gyu Lee said, "I think it is meaningful to be the first to start the clinical trial of BBT-176, a new anticancer drug candidate targeting C797S mutant non-small cell lung cancer, in Korea, which has no treatment options worldwide." Based on the development strategy, the entire development team will do their best to conduct the clinical trials with full accuracy and speed based on the development strategy. I will add it."

More detailed information related to the BBT-176 clinical trial, which was launched this time , can be found in the Clinical Trial Information menu in the Korea Food and Drug Administration’s Integrated Drug Information System website .

On the other hand, Bridge Biotherapeutics, which started to discover its own candidates this year, started to discover and develop new candidates for non-small cell lung cancer drugs that can effectively meet various unmet medical demands, including C797S double mutation.

BioInvent receives IND approval for Phase I/IIa trial of anti-TNFR2 antibody BI-1808

On April 7, 2021 BioInvent International AB ("BioInvent") (Nasdaq Stockholm: BINV) reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the Investigational New Drug (IND) for the Phase I/IIa clinical study of the immuno-modulatory anti-TNFR2 antibody BI-1808 (Press release, BioInvent, APR 7, 2021, View Source [SID1234577707]).

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!

"FDA approval of the Phase I/IIa study of BI-1808 is another important milestone for BioInvent as we continue to broaden our exciting pipeline of anti-cancer antibodies. TNFR2 is increasingly attracting interest as revealed by the recent deals in the field. The development of BI-1808 is supported by an impressive set of preclinical data and is one of three BioInvent lead candidates in clinical development," said Martin Welschof, CEO of BioInvent.

The Phase I/IIa study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and potential signs of efficacy of BI-1808 as a single agent, and in combination with the anti-PD-1 therapy Keytruda in patients with ovarian cancer, non-small cell lung cancer and CTCL. It is planned to be carried out in the U.S., Denmark, Hungary, the United Kingdom and Russia and is already enrolling patients.

The anti-TNFR2 antibody BI-1808 is a first-in-class drug candidate and is part of BioInvent’s tumor-associated regulatory T cells (Treg)-targeting program. This has emerged from the F.I.R.S.T platform technology that simultaneously identifies new targets and high-quality antibodies, generating promising new drug candidates to target the tumor microenvironment (TME). TNFR2 is particularly upregulated on Tregs of the TME and has been shown to be important for tumor expansion and survival, representing a new and promising target for cancer immunotherapies.

AVM Biotechnology Announces Full Enrollment of First Cohort of Relapsed/Refractory Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Patients Dosed with AVM0703 at major Cancer Centers in USA

On April 7, 2021 AVM Biotechnology reported that the first cohort has been fully enrolled in their clinical study (NCT04329728 "The WWRD Study") (Press release, AVM Biotechnology, APR 7, 2021, https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/avm-biotechnology-announces-full-enrollment-of-first-cohort-of-relapsedrefractory-non-hodgkins-lymphoma-patients-dosed-with-avm0703-at-major-cancer-centers-in-usa-301263637.html [SID1234577706]). All three patients had failed multiple prior therapies, and one had failed two transplants. These patients are reportedly all doing very well, and one was quoted as saying, "I feel great!" Three major US Cancer Centers are actively enrolling study participants. AVM Biotechnology is excited to advance AVM0703 to the next dose level cohort of no-option lymphoma patients. The drug has been well tolerated, without safety issues, as expected. The study is an adaptive design/expansion cohort trial such that cohort enrollment of relapsed/refractory Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma patients for the pivotal trial can immediately follow the dose-escalation phase.

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!

Since originally approving the study, the FDA has approved a reduction in the interval between patients in a cohort, from 7 days to 48-hours and between cohorts, from 21 to 7 days of dosing for the first two cohorts. This reduction was approved in response to drug tolerance data submitted from patients treated under FDA approved compassionate use applications.

AVM0703 targets lymphoma while sparing normal lymphocytes, platelets, red blood cells, and stem cells.

"Considering the delay of many clinical studies due to the pandemic, we are gratified to see enrollment occurring so rapidly," said Janet R. Rea, AVM COO. "We are pleased to see these patients tolerate the drug well after failing multiple other therapies and look forward to seeing continued positive results with dose escalation."

The administration of a single dose of AVM0703 is believed to activate the innate immune system to launch novel gamma/delta Natural Killer T cells (NKT cells), and cytotoxic T cells that possess enhanced activity. Once triggered, these cells provide rapid onset of action and response. AVM0703 targets lymphoma while sparing normal lymphocytes, platelets, red blood cells, and stem cells. AVM believes this treatment could reduce the need for transfusions, lower the costs of cancer care associated with managing treatment side-effects, and improve quality of life for lymphoma patients.

"AVM0703 represents an entirely new approach for cancer and non-cancerous diseases. It has the potential to be a true game-changer. I am encouraged by the pre-clinical data and look forward to seeing results of this pivotal trial," said Dr. William Matsui, MD, Deputy Director of Livestrong Cancer Institute.

AVM0703 is available under Expanded Access or Compassionate Use guidelines.

About Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a broad heterogeneous constellation of lymphoproliferative disorders, is the seventh most common cancer in both men and women, affecting an estimated 77,240 people in the US each year. The overall five-year survival rate is approximately 72%, and over half of the newly–diagnosed cases are in people over age 65 years. Remission following initial established treatment is common, but the disease typically recurs or relapses in as many as 50% of the patients within two years,1 and in some patients, their disease is "refractory," or resistant to additional treatment. Second-line or so-called salvage therapy in these patients consists of stronger chemotherapy "cocktails" or, more recently, cell therapy or hematopoietic cell transplantation. Both approaches can have significant and serious side effects, and the response rates to salvage chemotherapy range from 26%2 to 45%3, with 50% of patients proceeding to autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). Four-year survival rates are less than 40% utilizing salvage chemotherapy and 60% for those who then undergo ASCT.3 Treatments and associated side effects, coupled with the medical fragility associated with these patients, leaves many of them no treatment options, i.e., "no-option". AVM Biotechnology is committed to providing an option to these patients.

AIkido Granted Sublicense to Technology for Targeted Psilocybin Treatment of Neuro-Inflamed Tissue in Cancer Patients

On April 7, 2021 AIkido Pharma Inc. (Nasdaq: AIKI) ("AIkido" or the "Company") reported that it has been granted an exclusive sublicense to technology related to the use of novel and proprietary central nervous system (CNS) homing peptides for the therapeutic treatment of neuroinflammatory disease in cancer patients (Press release, AIkido Pharma, APR 7, 2021, View Source [SID1234577705]).

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 homing peptides covered by the sublicense can be used to facilitate the delivery of therapeutic agents to inflamed CNS tissue. Psychedelics such as psilocybin have been shown to have anti-inflammatory activity in addition to their potential efficacy for treatment of neurological disorders such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Studies indicate that neuroinflammation of the brain and other CNS tissues in cancer patients contributes to, among other symptoms, the onset of cancer cachexia, which is characterized by loss of appetite, extreme weight loss and muscle wasting.

Anthony Hayes, CEO of AIkido Pharma, stated, "The novel homing peptides covered under this sublicense have the potential to allow the direct delivery of psilocybin to inflamed CNS tissue in cancer patients. This sublicense culminates our Letter of Intent previously announced on February 16, 2021. It complements our recently announced support of the psilocybin research for PTSD treatment at Mount Sinai Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research."

Quest Diagnostics To Release First Quarter 2021 Financial Results On April 22

On April 7, 2021 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX), the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services, reported that it will report first quarter 2021 financial results on Thursday, April 22, 2021, before the market opens (Press release, Quest Diagnostics, APR 7, 2021, View Source [SID1234577704]). It will hold its quarterly conference call to discuss the results beginning at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time on that day.

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 conference call can be accessed by dialing 888-455-0391 within the U.S. and Canada, or 773-756-0467 internationally, using the passcode: "7895081." The earnings release and live webcast will be posted on www.QuestDiagnostics.com/investor. The company suggests participants dial in approximately 10 minutes before the call.

A replay of the call may be accessed online at www.QuestDiagnostics.com/investor or by phone at 888-566-0490 for domestic callers or 203-369-3053 for international callers; no passcode is required. Telephone replays will be available from approximately 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time on April 22, 2021 until midnight Eastern Time on May 6, 2021.

Anyone listening to the call is encouraged to read the company’s periodic reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the discussion of risk factors and historical results of operations and financial condition in those reports.