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Cogent Biosciences to Host Investor Webcast on December 11, 2023 at 8:00 AM ET to Review Clinical Data Being Presented at American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting

On December 4, 2023 Cogent Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: COGT), a biotechnology company focused on developing precision therapies for genetically defined diseases, reported the details of its investor webcast being held Monday, December 11, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. ET (5:00 a.m. PT) (Press release, Cogent Biosciences, DEC 4, 2023, View Source [SID1234638121]). The SUMMIT data are being presented in an oral presentation at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting on December 9, 2023 at 1:30 p.m. ET (10:30 a.m. PT), and the APEX data are being presented in a poster session on December 11, 2023.

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The webcast event will be led by Andrew Robbins, Cogent’s President and Chief Executive Officer and will include a SUMMIT data presentation by PD Dr. Frank Siebenhaar, M.D., Head University Outpatient Clinic, Institute of Allergology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and an APEX data presentation by Pankit Vachhani, M.D., assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology.

The live webcast can be accessed on the Investors and Media page of Cogent’s website at investors.cogentbio.com/events. A replay of the webcast will be available approximately two hours after the completion of the event and will be archived for up to 30 days.

Can-Fite’s Namodenoson for the Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer Patients: Progress
in Clinical Development

On December 4, 2023Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE American: CANF) (TASE: CANF), a biotechnology company advancing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs that address oncological and inflammatory diseases, reported that it completed the design of a Phase IIa study protocol for the treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer and plans to submit the protocol shortly to ethical committees for approval (Press release, Can-Fite BioPharma, DEC 4, 2023, View Source [SID1234638119]).

Can-Fite completed the protocol design of the CF102-222PC clinical study entitled: "A Phase II Open-Label Study of the Safety and Activity of Namodenoson in the Treatment of Advanced Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma".

This is a multicenter open-label trial in patients with advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma whose disease has progressed on at least 1st-line therapy or who refuse standard treatment. The trial will evaluate the safety, clinical activity, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of Namodenoson in this population. All patients will receive oral Namodenoson 25 mg administered twice daily for consecutive 28-day cycles. Patients will be evaluated regularly for safety. Approximately 20 evaluable patients will be enrolled. The primary objective of this trial is to characterize the safety profile of Namodenoson and the secondary objective is to evaluate the clinical activity as determined by the Objective Response Rate (ORR) using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST 1.1), Progression-Free Survival (PFS), Disease Control Rate (DCR), Duration of Response (DoR), and Overall Survival (OS).

The study will be conducted by Dr. Salomon Stemmer, a leading key opinion leader, at the Institute of Oncology, Rabin Medical Center, Israel.

"This Phase IIa study is designed as an open-label one, enabling us to assess the safety and potential efficacy of Namodenoson in pancreatic cancer patients whose disease has progressed despite first-line treatment. Our positive Namodenoson data in pancreatic carcinoma experimental models together with the positive data in the Phase II advanced liver cancer study, with a patient showing overall survival of 7 years, encouraged us to initiate the current Phase IIa study," stated Can-Fite’s Medical Director Dr. Michael Silverman.

Namodenoson recently received peer-reviewed recognition for its efficacy findings in pancreatic cancer including from the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) which accepted Can-Fite’s study titled "Namodenoson Inhibits the Growth of Pancreatic Carcinoma via De-regulation of the Wnt/β-catenin Signaling Pathway" for a poster presentation at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer, and from Biomolecules, a scientific journal focused on the function and mechanism of bioactive molecules, which published an article titled "Namodenoson Inhibits the Growth of Pancreatic Carcinoma via Deregulation of the Wnt/β-catenin, NF-κB, and RAS Signaling Pathways".

About Namodenoson

Namodenoson is a small orally bioavailable drug that binds with high affinity and selectivity to the A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR). Namodenoson was evaluated in Phase II trials for two indications, as a second line treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma, and as a treatment for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). A3AR is highly expressed in diseased cells whereas low expression is found in normal cells. This differential effect accounts for the excellent safety profile of the drug.

PharmaMar gets the approval of Zepzelca® (lurbinectedin) for the treatment of metastatic Small-Cell Lung Cancer in Macao, China

On December 4, 2023 PharmaMar (MSE:PHM) reported that its licensing partner, Luye Pharma Group Ltd, has received marketing approval for Zepzelca (lurbinectedin) by the Pharmaceutical Administration Bureau in Macao for the treatment of adult patients with metastatic Small-Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC), with disease progression on or after platinum-based chemotherapy (Press release, PharmaMar, DEC 4, 2023, View Source [SID1234638114]).

The approval of lurbinectedin in Macao is mainly based on data from two clinical trials. One based on the data from the open-label, multi-center, single-arm monotherapy clinical trial in 105 adult patients with relapsed SCLC (including patients with platinum-sensitive and platinum-resistant disease), that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) used to grant accelerated approval for lurbinectedin. The other, conducted in China, was a single-arm, dose-escalation, and dose-expansion clinical trial aiming to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and preliminary efficacy of lurbinectedin in Chinese patients with advanced tumors, including relapsed SCLC.

In April 2019, PharmaMar and Luye Pharma signed an agreement for the development and commercialization of lurbinectedin in SCLC.

Lurbinectedin is now approved in 14 countries around the world plus Macao. In the meantime, lurbinectedin Marketing Authorisation applications are under review for approval in Hong Kong and mainland China.

Lung cancer is the most common of all cancers in China in terms of incidence and mortality. In 2020, there were about 815,000 new cases of lung cancer and 714,000 deaths[1] caused by it, of which SCLC accounted for 13-17%[2].

APPROVAL FROM KOREAN REGULATOR TO INITIATE PHASE 2 ACCENT PANCREATIC CANCER TRIAL IN KOREA

On December 4, 2023 Amplia Therapeutics Limited (ASX: ATX), ("Amplia" or the "Company"), reported that the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) have approved the clinical trial to test narmafotinib (AMP945) in combination with gemcitabine and Abraxane, in advanced pancreatic cancer patients in Korea (Press release, Amplia Therapeutics, DEC 4, 2023, View Source [SID1234638106]).

This approval means that the five preselected clinical trial sites in Korea can be opened shortly to commence enrolment of patients. Six sites in Australia were opened in November and experience at these sites with the initial 1B Phase of the ACCENT trial will help optimise the recruitment and management of patients in this important Phase 2 stage of the trial both in Australia and Korea.

Amplia’s CEO and Managing Director Dr Chris Burns commented: "The approval from the Korean MFDS comes after many months of hard work from the Amplia team, who have worked closely with the Korean regulators, to achieve this important approval. The Korean health system and their clinical trial capability is world class, and recruitment into pancreatic cancer trials has been historically strong. We look forward to opening our planned sites in Korea and working with the excellent clinical groups, to further test the impact of our drug narmafotinib in the treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer."

About the ACCENT Trial

The protocol for the ACCENT trial is entitled ‘A Phase 1b/2a, Multicentre, Open Label Study of the Pharmacokinetics, Safety and Efficacy of AMP945 in Combination with Nab-paclitaxel and Gemcitabine in Pancreatic Cancer Patients’.

The trial is a single-arm open label study conducted in two stages. The Phase 1b stage of the trial, now complete, determined an optimal dose of AMP945 when dosed in combination with gemcitabine and Abraxane, in first-line patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.

The Phase 2a, second stage of the trial, is designed to assess efficacy of the triple drug combination of narmafotinib, gemcitabine and Abraxane. The primary endpoint is Objective Response Rate (ORR) with secondary endpoints including Progression Free Survival (PFS) and Overall Survival (OS). Safety and tolerability will continue to be assessed.

More information about the ACCENT trial, including a list of participating sites, can be found via our website and at ClinicalTrials.gov under the identifier NCT05355298. The Company will provide further updates as recruitment proceeds.

Carmot Therapeutics Enters into Definitive Merger Agreement with Roche

On December 3, 2023 Carmot Therapeutics Inc. (Carmot), a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing life-changing therapeutics for people living with metabolic diseases including obesity and diabetes, reported that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement for Roche to acquire Carmot at a purchase price of $2.7 billion upfront and the potential for $400 million in milestone payments (Press release, Carmot, DEC 3, 2023, View Source [SID1234638120]).

"We are proud of the pipeline that we have built in obesity and diabetes and the strong data we have generated to date," said Heather Turner, JD, Chief Executive Officer of Carmot. "With distinct routes of administration and the potential for combinations, we feel Carmot’s pipeline has the potential to meet patients where they are in their metabolic journey and have a significant impact on patients’ lives. We are confident that Roche will enable robust development of our programs and help us achieve our goal of delivering life-changing therapeutics for people living with metabolic and potentially other diseases."

Carmot’s clinical pipeline includes subcutaneous and oral incretins with best-in-class potential to treat obesity in patients with and without diabetes. CT-388 is a weekly injectable, Phase 2 ready, dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist for the treatment of obesity in patients with and without type 2 diabetes. CT-996, currently in Phase 1, is a once-daily oral, small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist intended to treat patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes. CT-868 is a Phase 2, once-daily subcutaneous injectable, dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist intended for the treatment of type 1 diabetes patients with overweight or obesity. Carmot also has preclinical programs in development for the treatment of metabolic diseases.

"The obesity epidemic is a worldwide crisis and only continues to worsen. By 2035 it is estimated that nearly half the world’s population will be overweight or obese1," said Tim Kutzkey, PhD, Chair of Carmot’s Board of Directors. "A health problem of this magnitude requires significant commitment and resources to address, and we believe that patients will be best served with Carmot’s pipeline backed by the drug development expertise, extensive resources and worldwide reach of Roche."

Terms of the Agreement

Under the terms of the agreement, Roche will pay Carmot’s equity holders $2.7 billion in cash at the closing of the transaction. Additionally, Carmot’s equity holders are entitled to receive payments of up to $400 million on the achievement of certain milestones. Carmot and its employees will join the Roche Group as part of Roche’s Pharmaceuticals Division.

The transaction is subject to the expiration or termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 and other customary closing conditions. The closing of the transaction is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2024.

Centerview Partners LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are acting as financial advisors and Cooley LLP is acting as legal counsel for Carmot.