On March 12, 2020 Tyligand Bioscience, Ltd., a leader in small molecule drug discovery and development, and Context Therapeutics LLC, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on hormone driven cancers, reported the signing of collaboration agreements for the development, manufacturing, registration and future commercialization of onapristone extended release (ER) (Press release, Tyligand Bioscience, MAR 12, 2020, View Source [SID1234644992]).

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Onapristone ER is currently being evaluated in patients with progesterone receptor positive (PR+) ovarian and endometrial cancers in the ongoing Phase 2 ONWARD 220 clinical trial. Initiation of additional Phase 2 clinical trials in ER+, PR+, HER2- breast cancer and endometrial cancers are planned for mid-2020.

Under the terms of the agreements, Tyligand will be solely responsible for the design and optimization of a novel manufacturing process for onapristone ER to meet Context’s development and future commercialization needs, and standards for quality, safety and cost. Upon completion of specific performance-based milestones, Tyligand will be granted the exclusive right and will be solely responsible for the development and commercialization of onapristone ER in China, Hong Kong and Macau (the "Territory"), and Context will be eligible to receive royalties on net sales of onapristone ER in the Territory. Context will retain rest of world rights to commercialize onapristone ER.

"We are thrilled to partner with Tyligand as we accelerate onapristone ER’s Phase 2 evaluation and prepare for Phase 3," said Martin Lehr, CEO of Context. "Tyligand is renowned for its expertise in process development and has strong networks with manufacturing and clinical capabilities in China and the U.S. Partnering with Tyligand will enable Context to optimize and efficiently scale our manufacturing and clinical capacity to support the evaluation and future commercialization of onapristone ER, our experimental oral therapy, to address the unmet need in treating patients with PR+ cancers."

"Even with the major advances in cancer therapies in recent years, treatment options for patients with hormone driven cancers remain limited," said Tony Zhang, CEO of Tyligand."Onapristone ER has the potential to be the first-in-class therapeutic agent specifically targeting progesterone receptors and the best-in-class treatment option for breast, endometrial and ovarian cancers. We are proud to partner with Context to develop onapristone ER and make this innovative medicine ultimately more accessible for patients around the world."

On March 12, 2020 BridgeBio Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: BBIO) affiliate company QED Therapeutics reported that patients have been dosed in separate Phase 3 and Phase 2 clinical trials of infigratinib in cancer indications (Press release, BridgeBio, MAR 12, 2020, View Source [SID1234556926]).

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The Phase 3 PROOF 302 trial sponsored by QED is studying infigratinib for the adjuvant (post-surgery) treatment of invasive urothelial carcinoma. A second, investigator-initiated trial, led by Sameek Roychowdhury, M.D., Ph.D., of The Ohio State University (OSU) Comprehensive Cancer Center, is studying infigratinib for the treatment of advanced and metastatic solid tumors with confirmed FGFR gene fusions/translocations or other FGFR alterations.

In the PROOF 302 trial, investigators are enrolling subjects with invasive urothelial cancer harboring susceptible FGFR3 genetic alterations who are at high risk of recurrence following surgical resection. Subjects will be randomized (1:1) to receive once daily oral infigratinib or placebo. The primary outcome is disease-free survival, and secondary outcomes include metastasis-free survival, overall survival, and safety and tolerability measures.

"Many patients with invasive urothelial carcinoma will have their cancer recur within two years after surgery," said PROOF 302 trial lead Sumanta Pal, M.D., professor of medical oncology and therapeutics research at City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Correspondingly, I believe there are many patients who could benefit from an oral, post-surgery treatment option that targets FGFR3 alterations, the genetic driver of many urothelial carcinomas."

The Phase 2 study at OSU and selected sites within the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN) will evaluate the efficacy of infigratinib in patients who have advanced or metastatic solid tumors that are positive for FGFR1-3 gene fusions/translocations or other FGFR alterations. The open-label study will assess overall response rate as the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes include progression-free survival, best overall response, disease control rate, overall survival and measures of safety and tolerability.

"Increasingly, oncologists are learning to classify their patients’ cancers based on genetic mutations, going beyond the origin of the tumor," noted Dr. Roychowdhury. "Given the activity we have seen with infigratinib in FGFR2-fusion-driven bile duct cancers and FGFR3-altered urothelial carcinoma, our hope is that infigratinib will demonstrate similar activity in additional cancers that appear to be driven by alterations in FGFR. There appear to be multiple FGFR alterations that can drive cancer growth—and we hope to see these patients benefit too."

For additional information on the PROOF 302 trial, including eligibility, patients should ask their physician, visit clinicaltrials.gov, or email [email protected].

For additional information on the Phase 2 trial in metastatic solid tumors with FGFR gene alterations, including eligibility, patients should ask their physician, visit clinicaltrials.gov, or email [email protected].

On March 12, 2020 The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR)reported that it has recently been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the initiation of human clinical trials. The regulatory body accepted the Investigational New Drug (IND) application for ST-001, a unique intravenous (IV) nano-delivery system of the off-patent synthetic chemical compound fenretinide, for the experimental treatment of patients with T-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

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Fenretinide is a small-molecule which past studies have shown to be both safe and have cancer mitigating qualities. However, heretofore it has not been approved as a cancer therapeutic, largely due to the challenges of delivering it in adequate doses to tumor cells.

The molecule is highly hydrophobic, meaning poorly soluble in water. Therefore, the clinical use of fenretinide as a cancer therapeutic by itself is limited—that is, unless delivered to cancer cells in a manner via which the molecule’s insolubility will no longer be problematic. Existing technology has not yet solved this problem.

However, funded in part by an NFCR grant, a unique nanoparticle-based IV delivery system has been developed which shows promise in being able to address the insolubility challenge and administer therapeutically effective high doses of fenretinide. Phase I clinical trials for its safety are expected to begin later this year at the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

NFCR’s translational research support helped advance the cancer treatment technology, developed by scientists including the U.S. National Cancer Institute’s Ralph Parchment, Ph.D., to this crucial IND acceptance stage. Additionally, optimism for the prospect of the upcoming trials’ successful outcome is justified by earlier research on fenretinide conducted and published by multiple scientists, including Dartmouth College’s Michael Sporn, M.D., a former NFCR project director, showing the drug to be safe in humans after long periods of use.

"The acceptance by the FDA of ST-001’s IND application underscores the importance of research—basic and translational—in the battle against not only lymphoma, but all forms of cancer," said NFCR President and CEO Sujuan Ba, Ph.D. "It’s only novel research that can result in game-changing treatments for patients."

On March 12, 2020 Merck & Co reported that the rejection, which would have been for adults who have had platinum-containing chemotherapy, comes after a review of new evidence collected while the MSD blockbuster was available via the Cancer Drugs Fund.

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NICE says that there is still uncertainty surrounding the long-term benefit of the second-line immunotherapy treatment in comparison with other options, meaning it is not a "cost-effective use of NHS resources at its current price."

The organisation says that the drug will be withdrawn from the Cancer Drugs Fund once final guidance has been published, meaning that no new patients will be offered the treatment, although it will not affect those whose treatment was started before the final guidance was published.

As it stands, the list price for Keytruda is £2,630 per 100mg vial, which would be given as 200mg intravenously every three weeks. Even when the drug is offered with its agreed discount, the most plausible cost-effectiveness estimate remains above what NICE normally considers acceptable, even for end-of-life treatments.

The rejection marks the second NICE ‘no’ for MSD and Keytruda in the last month or so, as the organisation released a draft guidance rejecting the drug in combo with Pfizer’s Inlyta (axitinib) to treat advanced renal cell carcinoma in February.

Urothelial cancer begins in the lining of the bladder and is thought to be caused by prolonged exposure to harmful substances such as those found in tobacco smoke. It is the most common form of bladder cancer and accounts for nine in 10 of all cases.

On March 12, 2020, Celsion Corporation (the "Company") reported that it has entered into private exchange agreements (the "Exchange Agreements") with certain holders (the "Investors") of warrants issued in connection with the Company’s registered direct offering of common stock and warrants (the "Original Warrants") issued on March 3, 2020 (Press release, Celsion, MAR 12, 2020, View Source [SID1234555549]). The Original Warrants being exchanged provided for the purchase of up to an aggregate of 2,971,428 shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.01 per share (the "Common Stock") at an exercise price of $1.15, with an expiration date of September 3, 2025.

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Pursuant to the Exchange Agreements, in return for a higher exercise price of $1.24 per share of Common Stock, the Company issued new warrants to the Investors to purchase up to 3,200,000 shares of Common Stock (the "Exchange Warrants") in exchange for the Original Warrants. The Exchange Warrants, like the Original Warrants, are initially exercisable six months following their issuance (the "Initial Exercise Date") and expire on the five year anniversary of the Initial Exercise Date. Other than having a higher exercise price, different issue date, Initial Exercise Date and expiration date, the terms of the Exchange Warrants are identical to those of the Original Warrants, additional terms of which are more fully described under Item 1.01 of the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 3, 2020, which such terms are incorporated herein by reference.