On November 8, 2018 Veracyte, Inc. (Nasdaq: VCYT) reported the publication of "real world" data showing that the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier (GSC) enables even more patients to avoid unnecessary surgery in thyroid cancer diagnosis compared to the company’s flagship, original Afirma Gene Expression Classifier (GEC) (Press release, Veracyte, AUG 8, 2018, View Source [SID1234531100]). The findings are published online in Endocrine Practice, the journal of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists"

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In the study, researchers from Memorial Healthcare System in Hollywood, Fla., reviewed data from all patients in their practice whose thyroid nodules were deemed indeterminate (i.e., not clearly benign or cancerous) by cytopathology review and who subsequently received results from genomic testing with the Afirma GSC (n=139) or the Afirma GEC (n=481). They found that the Afirma GSC identified 47 percent more thyroid nodules as benign than the first-generation test (61.2 percent vs. 41.6 percent). Use of the next-generation test also reduced overall surgery rates among all patients with indeterminate thyroid nodules by 45 percent. The researchers determined that sensitivity for the Afirma GSC in their practice was 97 percent.

The RNA sequencing-based Afirma GSC demonstrated especially strong performance in distinguishing benign from cancerous Hürthle cells – a category of thyroid cell that has historically been challenging to diagnose by cytopathology or molecular methods. The Afirma GSC identified 64.7 percent of Hürthle cell dominant biopsies as benign compared to 17.3 percent with the original test and dramatically reduced overall surgery referrals in this group by 57.3 percent.

"Our data suggest that the Afirma GSC is helping us to further reduce unnecessary surgeries among our patients with indeterminate thyroid nodules by enhancing the original test’s specificity while maintaining its high sensitivity," said R. Mack Harrell, M.D., cofounder of the Memorial Center for Integrative Endocrine Surgery and lead author of the new study. "A key reason for this change is the Afirma GSC’s ability to rule out cancer in Hürthle-dominant thyroid nodules. This is important because Hürthle-dominant cases comprise 22 percent of the indeterminate thyroid nodules we evaluate."

Dr. Harrell’s practice began using the Afirma GEC when it was introduced in January 2011. They have been offering patients the Afirma GSC since it became available in August 2017.

"This new publication adds to the growing body of real-world data confirming the utility and consistent performance of the Afirma GSC across a variety of clinical settings," said Bonnie Anderson, Veracyte’s chairman and chief executive officer. "Developed using a novel combination of RNA sequencing and machine learning technology, the Afirma GSC helps even more patients with benign thyroid nodules get clearer answers and avoid unnecessary surgery, further benefitting them, their physicians and the healthcare system."

About Afirma

Veracyte’s Afirma solution provides a comprehensive offering in thyroid cancer diagnosis for physicians evaluating patients with thyroid nodules. The Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier combines RNA sequencing data with machine learning to identify patients with benign thyroid nodules among those with indeterminate cytopathology results in order to avoid unnecessary surgery and preserve the thyroid. Since the commercial introduction of Afirma in 2011, Veracyte has performed over 100,000 genomic tests, and estimates it has saved more than 40,000 patients from unnecessary thyroid surgery and removed an estimated $800 million in surgery costs from the healthcare system. The Afirma classifier is proven in over 20 published clinical studies, is included in most leading clinical guidelines and is covered as medically necessary by Medicare and all major U.S. health plans. The company’s Afirma Xpression Atlas platform, introduced in May 2018, provides extensive genomic data that may inform surgery strategy and treatment options for patients with thyroid nodules that are suspicious for cancer or cancerous. The RNA sequencing-based platform measures 761 DNA variants and 130 RNA fusions in over 500 genes shown to be associated with thyroid cancer on thyroid nodule fine needle aspiration samples.

On November 8, 2018 OncBioMune Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCQB:OBMP) ("OncBioMune" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of a proprietary therapeutic cancer vaccine immunotherapy and targeted cancer therapies, reported its upcoming Phase 2 clinical trials of ProscaVax for prostate cancer and other corporate developments (Press release, Oncbiomune, NOV 8, 2018, http://oncbiomune.com/2018/11/08/oncbiomune-phase-2-clinical-trial-to-begin-enrollment-company-announces-other-development-and-corporate-milestones/ [SID1234531154]).

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Phase 2 Trial, Early-Stage Prostate Cancer

The Company’s lead Phase 2 trial of ProscaVax for prostate cancer (View Source) is being hosted by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), a teaching hospital of Harvard University, and its affiliate hospital. The Company reported that the trial will commence on or about December 17, 2018. Enrollment is scheduled for 120 patients (80 in the ProscaVax arm, 40 in active surveillance arm).

This study will evaluate the safety and efficacy of ProscaVax, OncBioMune’s prostate cancer vaccine (a combination of prostate cancer associated prostate specific antigen (PSA) with the biological adjuvants interleukin-2 (IL-2) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)) in patients with low-risk localized prostate cancer. The goal of the study is to determine if vaccine administration results in a change in the rate of prostate cancer progression when compared to a no-treatment control group of active surveillance patients. Active surveillance is a frequently used disease management option for patients with localized prostate cancer that elect to work with their doctor to monitor the disease for progression before taking more drastic intervention measures, such as surgery or radiotherapy that are often accompanied by unpleasant side effects, including impotence and urinary incontinence.

In the ProscaVax arm of the study, during the first 4 months of induction treatment, 6 doses of the Proscavax vaccine will be administered intradermally at weeks 1, 2, 3, 7, 11, and 15, followed by maintenance booster injections once every month which will alternate between low dose IL-2 alone (at weeks 19, 27 and 35) and Proscavax vaccine (at weeks 23, 31, 39) for 6 months.

Primary outcomes for the study are:

Prostate cancer progression measured by PSA test (Time Frame: At pre-study, every 3 months until 2 years starting at week 7 for the ProscaVax arm and at study entry for the active surveillance arm)
Prostate cancer progression measured by digital rectal examination (Time Frame: At pre-study and then every 6 months for 2 years)
Prostate cancer progression measured by prostate biopsy (Time Frame: At pre-study and then every 12-months for 2 years)
Secondary Outcomes for the study are:

PSA doubling time (Time Frame: At pre-study, and then every 3 months until 2 years, starting at week 7 for ProscaVax arm and at study entry for active surveillance arm)
Assessment of Adverse Events (Time Frame: From first injection until 30 days past the 24-month assessments)
Management anticipates providing interim results throughout the trial as they are available, tentatively beginning during the second quarter of 2019.

Phase 2 Trial, Late-Stage Prostate Cancer

This study, which is expected to get the FDA green light in the coming weeks, is being hosted by Urology Clinics of North Texas, a preeminent 10-center urology group in Texas serving the Dallas, Fort Worth, Collin, Rockwall and Tarrant County areas. The trial is similar in design to and builds upon the successfully completed Phase 1a trial of ProscaVax and will treat hormone-naïve recurrent prostate cancer patients with increasing PSA that have failed previous conventional therapies. Per protocol, following FDA approval, the trial is scheduled to enroll 30 biochemically progressing prostate cancer patients. The study is anticipated to take three years to complete.

As previously announced, OncBioMune has signed a work order with the leading Contract Research Organization Theradex Oncology for its services throughout this clinical trial. An independent Institutional Review Board (IRB) is being used for this trial, which is expected to reduce IRB review times. Once approved by the FDA and IRB, the clinical trial information will be submitted to clinicaltrials.gov, where the summary of the clinical trial will then be publicly available.

In the completed Phase 1a clinical trial, at 19 weeks post-therapy, 80 percent of the patients (n=20) treated with ProscaVax demonstrated stable disease/no prostate cancer progression. At 43 weeks post-therapy, overall survival was 100% for all 20 patients and 12 of the 17 evaluable patients (70.6%) continued to live with stable, progression-free disease.

As with the BIDMC Phase 2 trial, OncBioMune anticipates releasing interim data as available detailing the safety and efficacy data from ProscaVax therapy.

Corporate Developments

Dr. Jonathan Head, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman at OncBioMune, last week spoke about the development of ProscaVax at Oncology Meeting Innovations’ 2018 Global Summit on Genitourinary Malignancies in Banff, Alberta, Canada. Dr. Head’s presentation was well received and sparked interest in ProscaVax as a compelling experimental immunotherapeutic vaccine targeting prostate cancer at the earliest stage, where no current therapies exist, and in the late stage, where the limited number of FDA-approved therapies frequently fail. Dr. Head’s presentation will be available this week on the Company’s website on the "Investors" > "Events and Presentations" tab.

The Company recently made a significant improvement to its balance sheet with the retirement of $900,000 in debt. The Company continues to focus on improving its liquidity and strengthening its balance sheet in support of the clinical trials and additional continued development of ProscaVax. In furtherance of these efforts, OncBioMune reported that it is planning to host a shareholder conference call in December 2018. The Company expects to disclose details on the call in connection with the filing of its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2018.

"Our team and stakeholders have worked vigilantly to make 2018 a milestone year at OncBioMune. We believe that our concerted efforts have built considerable momentum as we look ahead to 2019," commented Dr. Head. "There is still much work to be done to meet our goal of developing the world’s first therapeutic prostate cancer vaccine, but all that we have accomplished so far this year with positioning for two significant clinical trials certainly gives us reason to be very optimistic about where we are heading for our company, our shareholders and the oncology community."

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About Prostate Cancer

According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men other than skin cancer, with about 1 in 9 men diagnosed during their lifetime. ACS estimates that about 164,690 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed during 2018 and approximately 29,430 men will die from the disease this year. Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men, trailing only lung cancer. Approximately 2.9 million men are living with prostate cancer today. The average age of diagnosis is 66, with the disease considered rare in men under the age of 40.

On November 7, 2018 Sysmex Corporation reported that actual financial results during the six months ended September 30, 2018, differed in some respects from the forecast announced on May 9, 2018 (Press release, Sysmex, NOV 7, 2018, View Source [SID1234530822]). In addition, Sysmex
has revised its financial forecast for the full fiscal year ending March 31, 2019. These differences are described below.

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1. Differences between Actual and Forecast of Consolidated Financial Results for the Six Months Ended September 30, 2018 (April 1, 2018 to September 30, 2018)

Reasons for the Differences and Revision
On the consolidated sales front, in the first six months of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019, sales in the Japan and EMEA regions were lower than previously forecast. As for profit, we worked to curtail selling, general and administrative expenses, but these reductions were unable to overcome the impact on profits of lower-than-expected sales. In addition, we recorded an exchange loss. As a result, operating profit, profit before tax and profit attributable to owners of the parent were lower than previously forecast.

Consequently, we have revised downward our forecast for the full fiscal year ending March 31, 2019, as we now expect sales, operating profit, profit before tax and profit attributable to owners of the parent to be below our previously forecast figures.

The foreign exchange assumptions used for calculating financial forecasts from the third quarter onward remain unchanged from our initial assumptions, at US$1.00 = ¥110 and €1 = ¥130.

On November 7, 2018 Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:KPTI), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation to selinexor, the Company’s first-in-class, oral SINE compound for the treatment of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who have received at least two prior therapies and are not eligible for high dose chemotherapy with stem cell rescue or CAR-T therapy (Press release, Karyopharm, NOV 7, 2018, View Source [SID1234530907]). Selinexor is currently being studied in the ongoing Phase 2b SADAL study in patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who are not eligible for stem cell transplantation for which top-line results will be presented at the upcoming American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) 2018 Annual Meeting.

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Karyopharm previously received Fast Track Designation for selinexor as a potential new treatment for patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least three prior lines of therapy. In October 2018, the U.S. FDA accepted Karyopharm’s New Drug Application for selinexor seeking accelerated approval as a new treatment for patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma. The FDA has assigned a Priority Review and given an action date of April 6, 2019 under the Prescription Drug User-Fee Act (PDUFA).

The FDA’s Fast Track program facilitates the development of drugs intended to treat serious conditions and that have the potential to address unmet medical needs. A drug program with Fast Track status is afforded greater access to the FDA for the purpose of expediting the drug’s development, review and potential approval. In addition, the Fast Track program allows for eligibility for Accelerated Approval and Priority Review, if relevant criteria are met, as well as for Rolling Review, which means that a drug company can submit completed sections of its New Drug Application (NDA) for review by FDA, rather than waiting until every section of the NDA is completed before the entire application can be submitted for review.

"The receipt of Fast Track designation from the FDA for selinexor in relapsed DLBCL underscores the great unmet medical need for this aggressive form of lymphoma," said Sharon Shacham, PhD, MBA, Founder, President and Chief Scientific Officer of Karyopharm. "Pending positive results from the Phase 2b SADAL study, we plan to submit a second NDA to the FDA in the first half of 2019, with a request for accelerated approval, for oral selinexor as a potential new treatment for patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL."

About the Phase 2b SADAL Study

The multicenter, open-label Phase 2b SADAL (Selinexor Against Diffuse Aggressive Lymphoma) study is evaluating oral selinexor in patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who have received two to five prior therapies and who are not currently eligible for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In this study, approximately 125 patients will receive 60mg oral selinexor twice weekly in 4-week cycles. At least 50% of study participants must have the GCB sub-type. Objective response rate is the primary endpoint of the study, with duration of response a key secondary endpoint.

About Selinexor

Selinexor is a first-in-class, oral Selective Inhibitor of Nuclear Export (SINE) compound. Selinexor functions by binding with and inhibiting the nuclear export protein XPO1 (also called CRM1), leading to the accumulation of tumor suppressor proteins in the cell nucleus. This reinitiates and amplifies their tumor suppressor function and is believed to lead to the selective induction of apoptosis in cancer cells, while largely sparing normal cells. To date, over 2,800 patients have been treated with selinexor. In April and September 2018, Karyopharm reported positive data from the Phase 2b STORM study evaluating selinexor in combination with low-dose dexamethasone in patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma. Selinexor has been granted Orphan Drug Designation in multiple myeloma and Fast Track designation for the patient population evaluated in the STORM study. Karyopharm’s New Drug Application (NDA) has been accepted for filing and granted Priority Review by the FDA, and oral selinexor is currently under review by the FDA as a possible new treatment for patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma. The Company also plans to submit a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in early 2019 with a request for conditional approval. Selinexor is also being evaluated in several other mid-and later-phase clinical trials across multiple cancer indications, including in multiple myeloma in a pivotal, randomized Phase 3 study in combination with Velcade (bortezomib) and low-dose dexamethasone (BOSTON), as a potential backbone therapy in combination with approved therapies (STOMP), in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (SADAL), liposarcoma (SEAL), and an investigator-sponsored study in endometrial cancer (SIENDO), among others. Additional Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 studies are ongoing or currently planned, including multiple studies in combination with approved therapies in a variety of tumor types to further inform Karyopharm’s clinical development priorities for selinexor. Additional clinical trial information for selinexor is available at www.clinicaltrials.gov.

On November 7, 2018 XOMA Corporation (Nasdaq: XOMA) ("XOMA" or the "Company") reported its intent to commence a rights offering pursuant to which the Company would raise approximately $20 million through the distribution of subscription rights to holders of its common stock and Series X preferred stock, which will entitle the holders to purchase shares of XOMA’s common stock at $13.00 per share (the "Rights Offering") (Press release, Xoma, NOV 7, 2018, View Source [SID1234531171]). The offering will be fully backstopped by BVF Partners L.P., the Company’s largest stockholder, which has agreed to purchase at a minimum its as-converted pro rata share of the offering amount, and will purchase an additional amount of securities, up to a total of approximately $20 million, that are not subscribed for by the Company’s other stockholders in the rights offering.

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Under the proposed Rights Offering, the Company plans to distribute non-transferable subscription rights to purchase a portion of a share of Common Stock for each share of Common Stock outstanding and for each share of common stock issuable on conversion of the Company’s outstanding shares of Series X Preferred Stock, at a subscription price per share of $13.00, to its stockholders of record as of the close of business on November 16, 2018 (the "Record Date"). The subscription rights will be exercisable for up to an aggregate of approximately 1,538,460 shares of Common Stock, with participation to be allocated among holders of its Common Stock and Series X Preferred Stock on a pro rata basis (assuming full conversion of the Series X Preferred Stock into shares of Common Stock), subject to the aggregate offering threshold and ownership limitations. The subscription rights are non-transferable and may be exercised only during the anticipated subscription period of Monday, November 19, 2018, through 5:00 PM EDT on Friday, December 14, 2018, unless extended. Any participant in the Rights Offering that, by exercise of its subscription right would become a holder of greater than 9.9% of the outstanding number of shares of Common Stock of the Company following the offering may elect to instead purchase Series Y Preferred Stock of the Company. The company intends to sell the Series Y Preferred Stock at $13,000 per share, and any such holder so electing would have a right to purchase one one-thousandth of a share of Series Y Preferred Stock for each share of Common Stock it had a right to purchase under the subscription rights. Each share of Series Y Preferred Stock will, subject to certain limitations, be convertible into 1,000 shares of common at the election of the holder. The Series Y Preferred Stock will generally have no voting rights, except as required by law, and will participate pari passu with any distribution of proceeds to holders of Common Stock in the event of the Company’s liquidation, dissolution or winding up.

The Rights Offering will be made pursuant to the Company’s effective shelf registration statement on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. The Company expects to mail subscription certificates evidencing the subscription rights and a copy of the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus for the Rights Offering shortly following the Record Date.

This press release is not intended to and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to subscribe for or buy or an invitation to purchase or subscribe for any securities in any jurisdiction, nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer of securities in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable law. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

BVF Partners L.P., the Company’s largest shareholder, owning approximately 17.9% of the Company’s outstanding common stock (and 48.6% on an as-converted basis), will backstop the Rights Offering and has agreed to purchase up to $20 million of Series Y Preferred Stock at price of $13,000 per share in a private placement within five days of conclusion of the Rights Offering, with the dollar amount to be purchased in such private placement reduced by the dollar amount sold by the Company (including to BVF Partners L.P., and its affiliates), in the Rights Offering.