On April 3, 2023 Alpha Tau Medical Ltd. ("Alpha Tau", or the "Company") (NASDAQ: DRTS, DRTSW), the developer of the innovative alpha-radiation cancer therapy Alpha DaRT, reported that its first patient with advanced inoperable pancreatic cancer has been treated in a feasibility and safety study of Alpha DaRT at the Jewish General Hospital ("JGH") in Montreal, Canada, which is an affiliated teaching hospital of McGill University, Faculty of Medicine (Press release, Alpha Tau Medical, APR 3, 2023, View Source [SID1234629731]).

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The trial seeks to recruit 30 participants who have Stage II, III, or IV pancreatic cancer and who have a pancreatic tumor which is deemed inoperable due to non-resectability, metastasis, or lack of fitness for surgery. The study will primarily examine the safety and feasibility of placing the Alpha DaRT sources in the tumor utilizing endoscopic ultrasound, and the overall safety of the procedure by measuring adverse events. In addition, the study will examine the efficacy of Alpha DaRT in terms of metrics such as overall response rate, overall survival and change in blood levels of CA19-9 (a blood-based biomarker often correlated with metrics such as disease progression). Additional information about the trial can be found at View Source

Alpha Tau CEO Uzi Sofer commented, "Getting this trial underway is another huge milestone for the Company, as we continue to focus on treating tumors in internal organs. We would like to thank Dr. Corey Miller of the JGH for enrolling and treating the first patient in this very important feasibility and safety trial." Mr. Sofer added, "This trial is a cornerstone of our overall strategy to broaden the use of the Alpha DaRT in other hard-to-treat indications such as cancers of the brain, lung, vulva and breast. We look forward to the preliminary results of this trial, which we hope will further our goal of advancing the use of Alpha DaRT across a range of indications and helping patients worldwide."

Corey Miller, MD, CM, FRCPC, Director of Therapeutic Endoscopy of the Division of Gastroenterology of the JGH, Assistant Professor of Medicine at McGill University, Associate Researcher at the Lady Davis Institute, and the principal investigator of the trial, commented "The treatment of this first patient represents a major milestone of an on-going partnership between the departments of Gastroenterology and Radiation Oncology of the JGH, the McGill Centre for Translational Research in Cancer (MCTRC) of the Lady Davis Institute, MEDTEQ+ (the pan-Canadian consortium for research and innovation in medical technologies) and the Institute TransMedTech." Dr. Miller continued "Patients with stage II, III, or IV of pancreatic cancer have limited and, often, ineffective treatment options. With the Alpha DaRT technology and our expertise in developing novel advanced endoscopic techniques, we are thrilled to offer patients with inoperable advanced pancreatic cancer an innovative therapeutic option. We hope that the Alpha DaRT treatment will offer better outcomes to these patients with such a challenging disease. We appreciate the unconditional support from Alpha Tau and the MCTRC who worked together to eliminate any barriers for opening this trial at our hospital and for securing a straightforward procedure for Alpha DaRT insertion into the pancreatic tumor."

About Alpha DaRT

Alpha DaRT (Diffusing Alpha-emitters Radiation Therapy) is designed to enable highly potent and conformal alpha-irradiation of solid tumors by intratumoral delivery of radium-224 impregnated sources. When the radium decays, its short-lived daughters are released from the sources and disperse while emitting high-energy alpha particles with the goal of destroying the tumor. Since the alpha-emitting atoms diffuse only a short distance, Alpha DaRT aims to mainly affect the tumor, and to spare the healthy tissue around it.