Medicenna Announces March 31, 2018 Year-End Results and Provides Update on Clinical Program

On June 27, 2018 Medicenna Therapeutics Corp. ("Medicenna" or the "Company") (TSX: MDNA, OTCQX: MDNAF), a clinical stage immunotherapy company, reported its operational and financial results for the year ended March 31, 2018 (Press release, Medicenna Therapeutics, JUN 27, 2018, View Source [SID1234527482]).

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"We are quite pleased with the progress we have made this year," said Fahar Merchant, PhD, Chairman, President and CEO. "We are past the mid-stage of the Phase 2b clinical trial of MDNA55 in patients with recurrent glioblastoma (rGBM), a uniformly fatal form of brain cancer, and have seen early signs of tumor response and impressive overall survival rate at 6 months (OS-6) of 90 percent following a single treatment with low doses of MDNA55. With exceptional drug distribution and a desirable safety profile to date, we plan to treat the remaining patients before the end of 2018 at the higher maximum tolerated dose with an option for repeat treatment in patients showing benefit. We have also accelerated the development of MDNA109, the only CD122 biased high-affinity IL-2 in development, designed to selectively stimulate cancer-fighting T and natural killer (NK) cells and expect to have a long-acting lead candidate in the next six months. Finally, we graduated to the main board of the TSX and listed on the OTCQX. We have laid the groundwork for success in fiscal 2018 and look forward to achieving key milestones in fiscal 2019."

Program updates for the year ended March 31, 2018 are as follows:

MDNA55

On October 10, 2017, results from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) funded on-going Phase 2b rGBM study were presented at the 2017 Congress of Neurological Surgeons (Boston, MA) demonstrating successful delivery in brain cancer patients and a reassuring safety profile for MDNA55 as well as a substantially higher proportion of the target tissue being covered than in similar previously conducted trials. In some cases, close to 100 percent of the tumor and the 1cm margin around it (at risk for tumor spread) had been successfully covered.

In November, further drug distribution and safety data were presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuro-Oncology (San Francisco, CA) on the first 15 patients in the study confirming earlier results presented at the 2017 Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

On May 2, 2018, Medicenna announced that half the patients in the ongoing Phase 2b study of MDNA55 in recurrent glioblastoma had been recruited and that the data to date demonstrated solid safety results and early signals of efficacy based on the findings of the Safety Review and Clinical Advisory Committees, comprised of key opinion leaders and study investigators. Following the recruitment milestone, the protocol was amended to implement optimal methodologies for treatment of the remaining patients, including more personalized dosing based on tumor load, incorporation of advanced imaging to more reliably measure treatment responses, and the ability to administer a second dose of MDNA55 where appropriate.

On April 27, 2017 we announced the issuance of a US Patent related to our lead clinical candidate MDNA55. U.S. Patent 9,629,899, issued to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and licensed exclusively to Medicenna, covers the combination of MDNA55 with other anti-cancer therapeutic agents.
Superkine Platform

MDNA109 is an IL-2 Superkine licensed from Stanford University and has been engineered to make existing cancer therapies work for more people. By selectively boosting the cancer fighting T and NK cells, it can dramatically improve the anti-tumor activity of treatments such as checkpoint inhibitors, cancer vaccines, CAR-T therapies and oncolytic viruses. New long-acting variants of MDNA109 have shown promising early pre-clinical results in aggressive models of melanoma when administered sub-cutaneously (under the skin) potentially allowing convenient once weekly or bi-weekly treatments as opposed to daily intravenous (IV) infusions.

The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office issued Medicenna a patent related to the Company’s Superkine platform. U.S. Patent 9,738,696, issued to the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University ("Stanford") and licensed exclusively to Medicenna, covers the composition of engineered IL-4 Superkines.
Operational Highlights

On August 1, 2017, the Company announced the graduation of its common shares to the main board of the TSX, the premier stock exchange in Canada.

On September 21, 2017, the Company appointed William W. Li, MD, an experienced oncology drug development expert, to its Board of Directors.

On October 18, 2017, the Company’s common shares were listed on the OTCQX, a segment of the OTC marketplace reserved for high-quality non-U.S. companies, under the symbol, "MDNAF."
Annual Financial Results

Net loss for the year ended March 31, 2018 was $7,465,452, compared to a net loss of $7,631,265 for the year ended March 31, 2017. The decrease in net loss in the year ended March 31, 2018 compared with the year ended March 31, 2017 was primarily a result of one-time costs incurred in the prior year including a liquidity payment and a non-cash listing expense of $1,784,414 resulting from the reverse takeover transaction completed in the year ended May 31, 2017. These decreases from the prior year were offset by increased spending on the Phase 2b clinical trial of MDNA55 as well as increased costs incurred on the pre-clinical pipeline, specifically MDNA109 during the year ended March 31, 2018.

Research and development expenses for the year ended March 31, 2018 were $5,090,146, compared to $4,229,110 for the year ended March 31, 2017. The increase is primarily due to costs associated with the initiation of discovery and pre-clinical activities associated with the Superkine programs including MDNA109 as well as the development of MDNA57 (second generation MDNA55). In addition, clinical costs increased significantly in the current year due to patient treatment and related expenses in the Phase 2b clinical trial of MDNA55 for which the first patient was treated in April 2017. These increases were partially offset by reduced costs associated with the manufacture, testing and stability studies of MDNA55 drug product, as well as lower licensing, patent legal fees and royalty expense due to the one-time liquidity payment discussed above.

General and administrative expenses for the year ended March 31, 2018 were $2,334,684, compared to $1,684,671 for the year ended March 31, 2017. The increase is primarily due to higher stock-based compensation expense, fees associated with the graduation of Medicenna’s common shares from the TSX Venture exchange to the main TSX Board, the OTCQX listing, investor relations activities and fees paid to the Board of Directors. The noted increases are partially offset by lower salary and benefit costs in the year ended March 31, 2018 due to severance costs incurred in the prior year as well as lower legal, professional and finance expenses in the year ended March 31, 2018 due to costs related to the reverse takeover transaction incurred in the prior year.

Medicenna had a cash balance of $3,938,734 at March 31, 2018.

Outlook

The Company will focus on completing patient enrollment for its Phase 2b clinical trial for MDNA55 in the fourth quarter of calendar 2018 and expects top-line clinical results in early 2019. Medicenna also plans to select a MDNA109 lead candidate with extended half-life characteristics.

Array BioPharma Announces FDA Approval of BRAFTOVI™ (encorafenib) in Combination with MEKTOVI® (binimetinib)

On June 27, 2018 Array BioPharma Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRY) reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved BRAFTOVI capsules in combination with MEKTOVI tablets for the treatment of patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma with a BRAFV600E or BRAFV600K mutation, as detected by an FDA-approved test (Press release, Array BioPharma, JUN 27, 2018, View Source [SID1234527481]). BRAFTOVI is not indicated for the treatment of patients with wild-type BRAF melanoma.

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"We are thrilled with the approval of BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI, which help fill a critical unmet need for patients with advanced BRAF-mutant melanoma, a serious and deadly type of skin cancer," said Ron Squarer, Chief Executive Officer, Array BioPharma. "As presented at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper), BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI is the first targeted treatment to demonstrate over 30 months median overall survival in a Phase 3 trial. These products represent a new standard of care for BRAF-mutant melanoma patients and we sincerely thank the patients and dedicated researchers who participated in our clinical program."

BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI are now available to order through select specialty pharmacies in the U.S. market.

"Despite recent advances, there remains a significant unmet need for treatments that are both effective and well-tolerated for patients with BRAF-mutant melanoma," said Keith T. Flaherty, M.D., Director of the Termeer Center for Targeted Therapy, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School. "Now, physicians and patients have the option to consider treatment with BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI, which has been shown to delay disease progression, improve overall survival and is generally well-tolerated."

"Nearly half of patients diagnosed with metastatic melanoma test positive for the BRAF mutation," said Valerie Guild, Co-Founder and President of the AIM at Melanoma Foundation. "Today’s approval is welcome news for the melanoma community as it arms BRAF-mutant late-stage melanoma patients with an important new targeted treatment in their fight against this devastating disease."

The approval of BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI is based on results from the Phase 3 COLUMBUS trial, which demonstrated the combination doubled median progression-free survival (mPFS) compared to vemurafenib, alone (14.9 months versus 7.3 months, respectively [HR (0.54), (95% CI 0.41-0.71), p<0.0001]). Only 5% of patients who received BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI discontinued treatment due to adverse reactions.

The most common adverse reactions (≥25%) in patients receiving BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI were fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and arthralgia.

As announced in February 2018, BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI reduced the risk of death compared to treatment with vemurafenib 960 mg daily [hazard ratio (HR) of 0.61, [95% CI 0.47, 0.79, p <0.001] in the planned analysis of overall survival (OS) from the COLUMBUS trial. Median OS was 33.6 months for patients treated with the combination, compared to 16.9 months for patients treated with vemurafenib as a monotherapy. These positive results add to the growing body of clinical evidence supporting the BRAF/MEK inhibitor combination therapy and Array and its partners are working to formally submit these results with global regulatory authorities.

Array BioPharma is committed to providing access and reimbursement support to all patients. Array offers a $0 copay for eligible, commercially-insured patients. For more information about treatment of BRAFTOVI in combination with MEKTOVI, visit www.braftovimektovi.com.

The full prescribing information for BRAFTOVI can be found here:
View Source

The full prescribing information for MEKTOVI can be found here:
View Source

About BRAF-mutant Metastatic Melanoma
Melanoma develops when unrepaired DNA damage to skin cells triggers mutations that may lead them to multiply and form malignant tumors. Metastatic melanoma is the most serious and life-threatening type of skin cancer and is associated with low survival rates. [1, 2] There are a variety of gene mutations that can lead to metastatic melanoma. The most common genetic mutation in metastatic melanoma is BRAF. There are about 200,000 new cases of melanoma diagnosed worldwide each year, approximately half of which have BRAF mutations, a key target in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. [1, 3, 4, 5]

About BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI
BRAFTOVI is an oral small molecule BRAF kinase inhibitor and MEKTOVI is an oral small molecule MEK inhibitor which target key enzymes in the MAPK signaling pathway (RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK). Inappropriate activation of proteins in this pathway has been shown to occur in many cancers including melanoma, colorectal cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, thyroid and others. In the U.S., BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI are approved for the treatment of unresectable or metastatic melanoma with a BRAFV600E or BRAFV600K mutation, as detected by an FDA-approved test. BRAFTOVI is not indicated for treatment of patients with wild-type BRAF melanoma.

Array has exclusive rights to BRAFTOVI and MEKTOVI in the U.S. and Canada. Array has granted Ono Pharmaceutical exclusive rights to commercialize both products in Japan and South Korea and Pierre Fabre exclusive rights to commercialize both products in all other countries, including Europe, Asia and Latin America.

BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI are not approved outside of the U.S. The European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the Swiss Medicines Agency (Swissmedic) and the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), are currently reviewing the Marketing Authorization Applications submitted by Pierre Fabre, and Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency has accepted the Manufacturing and Marketing Approval applications submitted by Ono Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd.

About COLUMBUS
The COLUMBUS trial (NCT01909453) is a two-part, international, randomized, open label Phase 3 trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of BRAFTOVI (encorafenib) in combination with MEKTOVI (binimetinib) compared to vemurafenib and encorafenib monotherapy in 921 patients with locally advanced, unresectable or metastatic melanoma with BRAFV600 mutation. All secondary efficacy analyses, including overall survival, are descriptive in nature. Over 200 sites across North America, Europe, South America, Africa, Asia and Australia participated in the trial.

Indications and Usage
BRAFTOVI (encorafenib) and MEKTOVI (binimetinib) are kinase inhibitors indicated for use in combination for the treatment of patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma with a BRAFV600E or BRAFV600K mutation, as detected by an FDA-approved test.

Limitations of Use: BRAFTOVI is not indicated for the treatment of patients with wild-type BRAF melanoma.

BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI Important Safety Information
The information below applies to the safety of the combination of BRAFTOVI and MEKTOVI unless otherwise noted.

Warnings and Precautions
New Primary Malignancies: New primary malignancies, cutaneous and non-cutaneous malignancies can occur. In the COLUMBUS trial, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, including keratoacanthoma, occurred in 2.6% and basal cell carcinoma occurred in 1.6% of patients. Perform dermatologic evaluations prior to initiating treatment, every 2 months during treatment, and for up to 6 months following discontinuation of treatment. Discontinue BRAFTOVI for RAS mutation-positive non-cutaneous malignancies.

Tumor Promotion in BRAF Wild-Type Tumors: Confirm evidence of BRAFV600E or BRAFV600K mutation prior to initiating BRAFTOVI.

Cardiomyopathy: In the COLUMBUS trial, cardiomyopathy occurred in 7% and Grade 3 left ventricular dysfunction occurred in 1.6% of patients. Cardiomyopathy resolved in 87% of patients. Assess left ventricular ejection fraction by echocardiogram or MUGA scan prior to initiating treatment, 1 month after initiating treatment, and then every 2 to 3 months during treatment. The safety has not been established in patients with a baseline ejection fraction that is either below 50% or below the institutional lower limit of normal.

Venous Thromboembolism (VTE): In the COLUMBUS trial, VTE occurred in 6% of patients, including 3.1% of patients who developed pulmonary embolism.

Hemorrhage: In the COLUMBUS trial, hemorrhage occurred in 19% of patients and ≥Grade 3 hemorrhage occurred in 3.2% of patients. Fatal intracranial hemorrhage in the setting of new or progressive brain metastases occurred in 1.6% of patients.

Ocular Toxicities: In the COLUMBUS trial, serous retinopathy occurred in 20% of patients; 8% were retinal detachment and 6% were macular edema. Symptomatic serous retinopathy occurred in 8% of patients with no cases of blindness. In patients with BRAF mutation-positive melanoma across multiple clinical trials, 0.1% of patients experienced retinal vein occlusion (RVO). Permanently discontinue MEKTOVI in patients with documented RVO. In COLUMBUS, uveitis, including iritis and iridocyclitis, was reported in 4% of patients. Assess for visual symptoms at each visit. Perform ophthalmic evaluation at regular intervals and for any visual disturbances.

Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD): ILD, including pneumonitis, occurred in 0.3% of patients with BRAF mutation-positive melanoma across multiple clinical trials. Assess new or progressive unexplained pulmonary symptoms or findings for possible ILD.

Hepatotoxicity: In the COLUMBUS trial, the incidence of Grade 3 or 4 increases in liver function laboratory tests was 6% for alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and 2.6% for aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Monitor liver laboratory tests before and during treatment and as clinically indicated.

Rhabdomyolysis: In the COLUMBUS trial, elevation of laboratory values of serum creatine phosphokinase (CPK) occurred in 58% of patients. Rhabdomyolysis was reported in 0.1% of patients with BRAF mutation-positive melanoma across multiple clinical trials. Monitor CPK periodically and as clinically indicated.

QTc Prolongation: In the COLUMBUS trial, an increase in QTcF to >500 ms was measured in 0.5% (1/192) of patients. Monitor patients who already have or who are at significant risk of developing QTc prolongation. Correct hypokalemia and hypomagnesemia prior to and during BRAFTOVI administration. Withhold, reduce dose, or permanently discontinue for QTc >500 ms.

Embryo-Fetal Toxicity: BRAFTOVI or MEKTOVI can cause fetal harm when administered to pregnant women. Nonhormonal contraceptives should be used during treatment and for at least 30 days after the final dose for patients taking BRAFTOVI + MEKTOVI.

Adverse Reactions
The most common adverse reactions (≥20%, all Grades, in the COLUMBUS trial) were: fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, arthralgia, myopathy, hyperkeratosis, rash, headache, constipation, visual impairment, serous retinopathy.

In the COLUMBUS Trial, the most common laboratory abnormalities (≥20%, all Grades) included: increased creatinine, increased CPK, increased gamma glutamyl transferase, anemia, increased ALT, hyperglycemia, increased AST, and increased alkaline phosphatase.

Drug interactions
Avoid concomitant use of strong or moderate CYP3A4 inhibitors or inducers and sensitive CYP3A4 substrates with BRAFTOVI. Modify BRAFTOVI dose if concomitant use of strong or moderate CYP3A4 inhibitors cannot be avoided.

Merck to Hold Second-Quarter 2018 Sales and Earnings Conference Call on July 27

On June 27, 2018 Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, reported that it will hold its second-quarter 2018 sales and earnings conference call with institutional investors and analysts at 8:00 a.m. EDT on Friday, July 27 (Press release, Merck & Co, JUN 27, 2018, View Source [SID1234527479]). During the call, company executives will provide an overview of Merck’s performance for the quarter.

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Investors, journalists and the general public may access a live audio webcast of the call on Merck’s website at View Source A replay of the webcast, along with the sales and earnings news release and supplemental financial disclosures, will be available at www.merck.com.

Institutional investors and analysts can participate in the call by dialing (706) 758-9927 or (877) 381-5782 and using ID code number 6975606. Members of the media are invited to monitor the call by dialing (706) 758-9928 or (800) 399-7917 and using ID code number 6985606. Journalists who wish to ask questions are requested to contact a member of Merck’s Media Relations team at the conclusion of the call.

Lynparza significantly delays disease progression in Phase III 1st-line SOLO-1 trial for ovarian cancer

On June 27, 2018 AstraZeneca and Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., US (Merck: known as MSD outside the US and Canada) reported positive results from the randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, Phase III SOLO-1 trial of Lynparza (olaparib) tablets (Press release, AstraZeneca, JUN 26, 2018, View Source [SID1234527478]).

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Women with BRCA-mutated (BRCAm) advanced ovarian cancer treated 1st-line with Lynparza maintenance therapy had a statistically-significant and clinically-meaningful improvement in progression-free survival compared to placebo. The safety and tolerability profile of Lynparza was consistent with previous trials. Based upon these data, AstraZeneca and MSD plan to initiate discussions with health authorities regarding regulatory submissions.

Sean Bohen, Executive Vice President, Global Medicines Development and Chief Medical Officer at AstraZeneca, said: "For the first time, we see a significant and clinically-impactful improvement in progression-free survival in the 1st-line maintenance setting for women with BRCA-mutated ovarian cancer treated with a PARP inhibitor. The SOLO-1 data reinforce the importance of knowing BRCA status at diagnosis, as this may enable women with BRCA-mutated ovarian cancer to receive Lynparza earlier. We would like to thank the investigators, hospitals and most of all the patients who took part in this trial, without whom medical advancements would not be possible."

Roy Baynes, Senior Vice President and Head of Global Clinical Development, Chief Medical Officer, MSD Research Laboratories, said: "Building on the strong data we’ve seen with Lynparza to date, the data from SOLO-1 reinforces Lynparza’s ability to provide meaningful disease control with a well-characterised safety and tolerability profile. We look forward to presenting the full data set for SOLO-1 at a future medical meeting and working with regulatory authorities to bring Lynparza to women with ovarian cancer in the 1st-line maintenance setting as quickly as possible."

Additionally, the ongoing GINECO/ENGOTov25 Phase III trial, PAOLA-1, is testing the effect of Lynparza in combination with bevacizumab as a 1st-line maintenance treatment in women with newly-diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, regardless of their BRCA status. Results are expected in 2019.

NOTES TO EDITORS
About SOLO-1

SOLO-1 is a Phase III randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Lynparza tablets as 1st-line maintenance monotherapy compared with placebo, in patients with BRCAm advanced ovarian cancer. The trial randomised 391 patients with a deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation who were in clinical complete or partial response following platinum-based chemotherapy. Eligible patients were randomised (2:1) to receive Lynparza 300mg tablets twice daily or placebo tablets twice daily. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival and key secondary endpoints included time to second disease progression or death and overall survival.

About ovarian cancer

Worldwide, ovarian cancer is the seventh most common cancer and the eighth leading cause of cancer death in women. The five-year survival rate for ovarian cancer worldwide is 30-40%. In 2012, there were nearly 239,000 new cases diagnosed and around 152,000 deaths. For newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, the primary aim of treatment is to delay progression of the disease for as long as possible and maintain the patient’s quality of life with the intent of achieving complete remission or cure.

About BRCA mutations

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are human genes that produce proteins responsible for repairing damaged DNA and play an important role in maintaining the genetic stability of cells. When either of these genes is mutated, or altered, such that its protein product either is not made or does not function correctly, DNA damage may not be repaired properly and cells become unstable. As a result, cells are more likely to develop additional genetic alterations that can lead to cancer.

About Lynparza
Lynparza (olaparib) was the first-in-class PARP inhibitor and the first targeted treatment to potentially exploit DNA damage response (DDR) pathway deficiencies, such as BRCA mutations, to preferentially kill cancer cells. Specifically, in vitro studies have shown that Lynparza-induced cytotoxicity may involve inhibition of PARP-enzymatic activity and increased formation of PARP-DNA complexes, resulting in DNA damage and cancer cell death. Lynparza is being tested in a range of DDR-deficient tumour types.

Lynparza, which is being jointly developed and commercialised by AstraZeneca and MSD, is approved for advanced ovarian cancer and metastatic breast cancer and has been used in over 20,000 patients worldwide. Lynparza has the broadest and most advanced clinical trial development programme of any PARP inhibitor and AstraZeneca and MSD are working together to deliver it as quickly as possible to more patients across multiple cancer types. Lynparza is the foundation of AstraZeneca’s industry-leading portfolio of potential new medicines targeting DDR mechanisms in cancer cells.

Agios and CStone Pharmaceuticals Announce Exclusive Collaboration and License Agreement to Develop and Commercialize Ivosidenib in Greater China

On June 26, 2019 Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AGIO), a leader in the field of cellular metabolism to treat cancer and rare genetic diseases, and CStone Pharmaceuticals, a privately-held biopharmaceutical company devoted to developing a new generation of innovative drugs, reported an exclusive collaboration and license agreement for the development and commercialization of ivosidenib (TIBSOVO; AG-120) in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan ("Territory"), either as a monotherapy or in combination with other therapies (Press release, Agios Pharmaceuticals, JUN 26, 2018, View Source [SID1234537653]). Discovered and developed by Agios, ivosidenib is an investigational, first-in-class, oral, targeted inhibitor of the mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase-1 (IDH1) enzyme. CStone Pharmaceuticals will be responsible for conducting the development and commercialization activities for ivosidenib in hematologic and solid tumor indications in the Territory, with an initial focus in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and cholangiocarcinoma. Agios will retain all rights to ivosidenib in the rest of the world.

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"CStone Pharmaceuticals brings together a highly experienced leadership team and drug development capabilities that will enable us to reach patients with IDH1 mutant cancers in Greater China who could benefit from ivosidenib," said David Schenkein, M.D., chief executive officer at Agios. "In addition to the clinical development activities that CStone will be leading, we also have the opportunity to leverage CStone’s network to expand our ongoing and future global clinical trials of ivosidenib into Greater China."

Subject to the terms of the agreement, Agios will receive an upfront payment of $12 million and will be eligible to receive up to $412 million in milestone payments, of which $147 million are related to development and regulatory events and $265 million to the achievement of certain sales levels. Approximately half of the milestone payments are related to the development and commercialization of ivosidenib in AML, cholangiocarcinoma and other potential indications. The other half are payable only if development and commercialization of ivosidenib in brain cancer indications, including glioma, are pursued as part of the collaboration at a later date. In addition, CStone Pharmaceuticals will pay Agios tiered royalties ranging from the mid to high-teens as a percentage of annual net sales of ivosidenib in the Territory. CStone Pharmaceuticals will be responsible for all costs associated with development and commercialization activities for ivosidenib conducted in the Territory under the agreement.

"We’re very pleased to partner with Agios to advance the global development of ivosidenib, which has clearly demonstrated significant benefit to patients with AML as well as potential utility in other IDH1m cancers," said Frank Jiang, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer at CStone Pharmaceuticals. "Given ivosidenib is currently under U.S. FDA priority review for IDH1m relapsed or refractory AML patients, it is the most advanced program in our pipeline. The partnership will also allow us to explore ivosidenib in combination with other products in our portfolio."

About Ivosidenib (TIBSOVO / AG-120)
Ivosidenib is an investigational first-in-class, orally available, selective, potent inhibitor of the mutated IDH1 protein and is a highly targeted investigational medicine for the treatment of patients with cancers that harbor an IDH1 mutation. IDH1 is a metabolic enzyme that is mutated in a wide range of cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia, cholangiocarcinoma and glioma. Ivosidenib is currently under U.S. FDA priority review for IDH1m R/R AML patients with a PDUFA action date of August 21, 2018. The following clinical trials of ivosidenib are ongoing:

Phase 1 trial of ivosidenib or enasidenib in combination with 7+3 in patients with newly diagnosed IDHm AML who are eligible for standard-of-care chemotherapy
Phase 3 AGILE trial of ivosidenib in combination with azacitidine in patients with newly diagnosed IDH1m AML who are not eligible for standard-of-care chemotherapy
Phase 3 ClarIDHy trial of ivosidenib in advanced IDH1m cholangiocarcinoma
Perioperative study comparing ivosidenib and AG-881 in IDH1m low-grade glioma