On August 13, 2024 Candel Therapeutics, Inc. (Candel or the Company) (Nasdaq: CADL), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing multimodal biological immunotherapies to help patients fight cancer, reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024, and provided a corporate update (Press release, Candel Therapeutics, AUG 13, 2024, View Source [SID1234645800]).
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"The second quarter of 2024 represented a pivotal period for Candel, characterized by robust clinical advancements and key regulatory successes, that further validate our innovative approach to cancer immunotherapy," said Paul Peter Tak, MD, PhD, FMedSci, President and Chief Executive Officer of Candel. "Our encouraging overall survival phase 2 data for CAN-2409 highlights the potential of our lead candidate to address a significant unmet need for non-small cell lung cancer patients, who are non-responsive to immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment, and for patients with borderline resectable pancreatic cancer. In addition, the FDA granting orphan drug designation for CAN-3110 in recurrent high-grade glioma underscores the promise of this first-in-class, novel asset developed for difficult-to-treat cancers."
Dr. Tak continued, "Our inclusion in the Russell 3000 Index also marks a significant milestone in Candel’s growth and offers an opportunity to increase our recognition within the investment community. These achievements, coupled with a successful R&D event at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper), have set a strong foundation as we approach several key readouts in the latter half of 2024."
Second Quarter 2024 & Recent Highlights
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Program Updates
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CAN-2409 – Pancreatic Cancer
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In early April, announced positive updated survival data from the phase 2 randomized controlled clinical trial of CAN-2409 plus valacyclovir (prodrug), together with standard of care (SoC) chemoradiation, in borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).
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Data showed notable improvements in estimated median overall survival (mOS) of 28.8 months after experimental treatment with CAN-2409 versus 12.5 months in control group.
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At 24 months, survival rate was 71.4% in CAN-2409 treated patients after chemoradiation and prior to surgery versus 16.7% in the control group. At 36 months, estimated survival was 47.6% in the CAN-2409 group after chemoradiation and prior to surgery versus 16.7% in the control group.
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No new safety signals were observed, providing further support that multiple injections of CAN-2409 have been generally well-tolerated to date, with no dose-limiting toxicities and no cases of pancreatitis reported.
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Analysis of resected tumors showed the formation of dense aggregates of immune cells, including CD8+, cytotoxic tumor infiltrating lymphocytes and dendritic cells, within the tumor microenvironment after CAN-2409 administration, confirming the activation of a robust antitumoral immune response.
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Received orphan drug designation from the FDA for CAN-2409 for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.
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CAN-2409 – Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer ▪
Presented topline overall survival data from the phase 2 clinical trial of CAN-2409 plus valacyclovir in combination with continued immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy in patients with stage III/IV NSCLC inadequately responding to ICI therapy at the 2024 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Annual Meeting.
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Data showed mOS of 20.6 months in patients with progressive disease despite ICI treatment compared to published results of less than 12 months with SoC docetaxel-based chemotherapy in similar patient populations.1
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CAN-2409 treatment resulted in activation of the systemic immune response after two administrations of CAN-2409, including increased numbers of circulating cytotoxic and memory T cells associated with subsequent prolonged survival.
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As of the April 1, 2024 data cut-off date, CAN-2409 treatment in NSCLC continued to exhibit a favorable safety and tolerability profile.
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CAN-3110 – Recurrent High-Grade Glioma
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Received orphan drug designation from the FDA for CAN-3110 for the treatment of rHGG.
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Presented a Trial-in-Progress poster at the 2024 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Annual Meeting on the ongoing phase 1b clinical trial exploring multiple doses of CAN-3110 in patients with rHGG.
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enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform
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Presented preclinical data at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting unveiling the second candidate from the enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform, a first-in-class multimodal immunotherapy candidate to induce tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS), being developed as a novel therapeutic for solid tumors.
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Corporate Updates
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Hosted successful NSCLC Research and Development panel during the 2024 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Annual Meeting, featuring prominent scientific and medical thought leaders discussing the topline overall survival data from the phase 2 clinical trial of CAN-2409 in NSCLC.
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Announced inclusion in the Russell 3000 Index, effective July 1, 2024, as part of FTSE Russell’s annual reconstitution of its U.S. equity indexes.
Anticipated Milestones
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Updated phase 1b data (Arm C) for CAN-3110 in rHGG expected in H2 2024.
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Phase 2b topline data for CAN-2409 in low-to-intermediate-risk, localized, non-metastatic prostate cancer expected in Q4 2024.
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Phase 3 topline disease-free survival data for CAN-2409 in localized intermediate/high-risk prostate cancer expected in Q4 2024.
Financial Results for Second Quarter Ended June 30, 2024
Research and Development Expenses: Research and development expenses were $5.0 million for the second quarter of 2024 compared to $5.9 million for the second quarter of 2023. The decrease was primarily due to lower clinical development costs driven by a reduction in regulatory, manufacturing and clinical trial costs for CAN-2409 programs and lower payroll-related expenses following the corporate restructuring in the fourth quarter of 2023. These decreases were partially offset by increased stock-based compensation expense. Research and development expenses included non-cash stock compensation expense of $1.3 million for the second quarter of 2024 compared to $0.3 million for the second quarter of 2023.
General and Administrative Expenses: General and administrative expenses were $3.6 million for both the second quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2023. There was a small decrease, primarily due to lower insurance costs and recruiting costs. These decreases were partially offset by increased professional and consulting fees. General and administrative expenses included non-cash stock compensation expense of $0.6 million for the second quarter of 2024 compared to $0.4 million for the second quarter of 2023.
Net Loss: Net loss for the second quarter of 2024 was $22.2 million, compared to a net loss of $9.6 million for the second quarter of 2023, and included other expense, net of $13.7 million and $35,000, respectively, primarily due to the change in the fair value of the Company’s warrant liability.
Cash Position: Cash and cash equivalents, as of June 30, 2024, were $21.5 million, as compared to $35.4 million as of December 31, 2023. Based on current plans and assumptions, the Company expects that its existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to fund its current operating plan into the first quarter of 2025.