BerGenBio Announces Safety Data from Dose Escalation Phase 1b in First Line NSCLC Patients

On October 7, 2024 BerGenBio ASA (OSE: BGBIO), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel, selective AXL kinase inhibitors for severe unmet medical needs, reported preliminary safety data from the Phase 1b portion of the BGBC016 study in first-line (1L) Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients (Press release, BerGenBio, OCT 7, 2024, View Source [SID1234647074]).

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The Phase 1b part of the study evaluated three escalating doses of BerGenBio’s selective AXL inhibitor bemcentinib in combination with standard chemo-immunotherapy (CIT), doublet chemotherapy and pembrolizumab, Keytruda, for the 1L treatment of advanced/metastatic NSCLC patients. The primary endpoint was the assessment of the safety profile of the combination in NSCLC patients regardless of their STK11 mutational status.

Key conclusions include:

All three selected doses demonstrated that the triplet combination is well tolerated with no new safety signals identified, supporting the further clinical development of bemcentinib and CIT in 1L NSCLC patients.
No dose-related impact on electrocardiographic changes (QTc), a known class effect of tyrosine kinase inhibitors, was reported for bemcentinib during the observation period.
Pharmacokinetic analyses confirmed adequate plasma exposure of bemcentinib, achieving levels consistent with that previously observed in responders in BerGenBio’s BGBC008 study of bemcentinib and pembrolizumab in second-line NSCLC patients.

Martin Olin, Chief Executive Officer of BerGenBio, commented: "The data show that bemcentinib has a manageable safety profile and gives us increased confidence in continuing the BGBC016 clinical trial. The global trial is currently enrolling patients in Phase 2a targeting patients with a mutation in the STK11 gene, and we look forward to sharing the first preliminary data as they mature."