Roche’s Tecentriq plus platinum-based chemotherapy reduced the risk of disease worsening or death in people with previously untreated advanced bladder cancer

On August 5, 2019 Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) reported that the Phase III IMvigor130 study met its co-primary endpoint of investigator-assessed progression-free survival (PFS) (Press release, Hoffmann-La Roche, AUG 5, 2019, View Source [SID1234538118]). The combination of Tecentriq (atezolizumab) plus platinum-based chemotherapy showed a statistically significant reduction in the risk of disease worsening or death (PFS) in people with previously untreated locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) compared with chemotherapy alone. Encouraging overall survival (OS) results were observed at this interim analysis; however, these data are not yet mature and follow-up will continue until the next planned analysis.

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Safety in the Tecentriq plus chemotherapy arm appeared consistent with the known safety profiles of the individual medicines and no new safety signals were identified with the combination. Results will be presented at an upcoming medical meeting and shared with health authorities globally, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA).

"IMvigor130 is the first positive Phase III study of a cancer immunotherapy combination in previously untreated advanced bladder cancer, an aggressive disease with high unmet need," said Sandra Horning, M.D., Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Product Development. "These results support our broad clinical development programme for Tecentriq in bladder cancer, as well as our approach of combining immunotherapy with chemotherapy or other medicines to improve patient outcomes, and we look forward to discussing them with health authorities."

Tecentriq was the first cancer immunotherapy approved in bladder cancer. Currently, there are four ongoing Phase III studies evaluating Tecentriq alone and in combination with other medicines in early and advanced bladder cancer. Roche has an extensive development programme for Tecentriq, including multiple ongoing and planned Phase III studies, across lung, genitourinary, skin, breast, gastrointestinal, gynaecological, and head and neck cancers. This includes studies evaluating Tecentriq both alone and in combination with other medicines.

About the IMvigor130 study
IMvigor130 is a multicentre, partially blinded, randomised Phase III study, evaluating the efficacy and safety of Tecentriq in combination with chemotherapy or alone versus chemotherapy alone for people with mUC who have not received prior systemic therapy for metastatic disease. It enrolled 1213 people who were randomised to receive:

Tecentriq plus platinum-based chemotherapy (gemcitabine with either cisplatin or carboplatin), or
Tecentriq, or
Platinum-based chemotherapy (gemcitabine with either cisplatin or carboplatin) plus placebo (control arm).
In the Tecentriq combination arm, co-primary endpoints are OS and PFS as assessed by investigator using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors Version 1.1 (RECIST v1.1).

About bladder cancer
In 2018, there were over half a million new cases of bladder cancer diagnosed globally, with around 200,000 deaths from the disease.1 Urothelial carcinoma, which develops in the cells of the bladder lining, is the most common type of bladder cancer, accounting for about 90% of all cases.2 In total, 30% of cases are considered advanced based on muscle-invasive or metastatic disease.3

About Tecentriq
Tecentriq is a monoclonal antibody designed to bind with a protein called PD-L1, which is expressed on tumour cells and tumour-infiltrating immune cells, blocking its interactions with both PD-1 and B7.1 receptors. By inhibiting PD-L1, Tecentriq may enable the activation of T cells. Tecentriq is a cancer immunotherapy that has the potential to be used as a foundational combination partner with other immunotherapies, targeted medicines and various chemotherapies across a broad range of cancers. The development of Tecentriq and its clinical programme is based on our greater understanding of how the immune system interacts with tumours and how harnessing a person’s immune system combats cancer more effectively.

Tecentriq is approved in the US, EU and/or countries around the world, either alone or in combination with targeted therapies and/or chemotherapies in various forms of non-small cell and small cell lung cancer, certain types of mUC, and in PD-L1-positive triple-negative breast cancer.

About Roche in cancer immunotherapy
For more than 50 years, Roche has been developing medicines with the goal to redefine treatment in oncology. Today, we’re investing more than ever in our effort to bring innovative treatment options that help a person’s own immune system fight cancer.

By applying our seminal research in immune tumour profiling within the framework of the Roche-devised cancer immunity cycle, we are accelerating and expanding the transformative benefits with Tecentriq to a greater number of people living with cancer. Our cancer immunotherapy development programme takes a comprehensive approach in pursuing the goal of restoring cancer immunity to improve outcomes for patients.

To learn more about the Roche approach to cancer immunotherapy please follow this link: View Source

Autolus Therapeutics to Report Second Quarter 2019 Financial Results and Host Conference Call on August 8

On August 2, 2019 Autolus Therapeutics plc (Nasdaq: AUTL), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation programmed T cell therapies, reported that it will release its second quarter 2019 financial results and operational highlights before open of U.S. markets on Thursday, August 8, 2019 (Press release, Autolus, AUG 2, 2019, View Source [SID1234550815]).

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Management will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET/1:30 p.m. BST the same day to discuss the company’s financial results and provide a general business update. To listen to the webcast and view the accompanying slide presentation, please go to: View Source

The call may also be accessed by dialing (866) 679-5407 for U.S. and Canada callers or (409) 217-8320 for international callers. Please reference conference ID 2763978 . After the conference call, a replay will be available for one week. To access the replay, please dial (855) 859-2056 for U.S. and Canada callers or (404) 537-3406 for international callers. Please reference conference ID 2763978.

Adaptive Biotechnologies Receives New York State CLEP Approval for clonoSEQ to Detect and Monitor Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in Patients with Certain Blood Cancers

On August 2, 2019 Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation (Nasdaq:ADPT) ("Adaptive"), a commercial-stage biotechnology company that reads and translates the genetic code of the adaptive immune system with the goal of developing personalized diagnostics and therapeutics to improve patient lives, reported that the State of New York Clinical Laboratory Evaluation Program (CLEP) has approved the clonoSEQ Assay for the detection and monitoring of minimal residual disease (MRD) in patients with B-cell blood cancers (Press release, Adaptive Biotechnologies, AUG 2, 2019, View Source [SID1234538111]). In addition to CLEP approval, clonoSEQ is also the first test to be authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for MRD assessment in bone marrow samples from patients with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and multiple myeloma.

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The CLEP approval makes clonoSEQ testing accessible to patients in New York who have been diagnosed with B-cell cancers, a subset of lymphoid cancers that includes ALL, multiple myeloma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). Testing under CLEP may be performed using DNA from bone marrow, blood and archived tissue samples. With this approval, clonoSEQ MRD testing is now available in all 50 states and has a considerable and growing payor footprint (>140MM covered lives to date).

"New York State CLEP approval for clonoSEQ means patients in New York can now work with their cancer care team to incorporate clonoSEQ into their treatment regimen to accurately and reliably assess and monitor their disease over time, using multiple sample types, including blood samples," said, Chad Robins, CEO and co-founder, Adaptive Biotechnologies. "This rigorous approval also supports our ongoing work to expand access to patients and our pursuit of FDA authorization for new indications for clonoSEQ in other lymphoid cancers and sample types."

clonoSEQ has been ordered by clinicians in nearly 300 healthcare systems and institutions, including 27 of the 28 NCCN centers in the United States, and used by more than 30 biopharmaceutical companies in over 120 clinical trials.

"The approval gives patients in New York access to the standardized, FDA-cleared clinical MRD testing that is already being utilized throughout the rest of the country," said Dr. Ajai Chari, Associate Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology at The Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai, who was a past consultant for the clonoSEQ Assay.

About the clonoSEQ Assay

The clonoSEQ assay was granted de novo designation and marketing authorization by FDA for the detection and monitoring of minimal residual disease (MRD) in patients with multiple myeloma (MM) and B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) using DNA from bone marrow samples. clonoSEQ is the first and only FDA-authorized in vitro diagnostic assay for MRD testing. It is also the first clinical diagnostic powered by immunosequencing to receive FDA clearance. clonoSEQ leverages Adaptive’s proprietary immunosequencing platform to identify and quantify specific DNA sequences found in malignant cells, allowing clinicians to assess and

monitor MRD during and after treatment. The assay provides standardized, accurate and sensitive measurement of MRD that allows physicians to predict patient outcomes, assess response to therapy over time, monitor patients during remission and detect potential relapse. Clinical practice guidelines in hematological malignancies recognize that MRD status is a reliable indicator of clinical outcomes and response to therapy, and clinical outcomes are strongly associated with MRD levels measured by the clonoSEQ Assay in patients diagnosed with ALL and MM. clonoSEQ testing is covered by Medicare and an expanding list of private payors in alignment with the FDA label.

clonoSEQ is a single-site assay performed at Adaptive Biotechnologies. It is also available as a CLIA-regulated laboratory developed test (LDT) service for use in other lymphoid cancers. For important information about the FDA-cleared uses of clonoSEQ, including the full intended use, limitations, and detailed performance characteristics, please visit www.clonoSEQ.com/technical-summary.

Medicure Q2 2019 Results and Conference Call Dates

On August 2, 2019 Medicure Inc. ("Medicure" or the "Company") (TSXV:MPH, OTC:MCUJF), a pharmaceutical company, reported that it will release financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2019 on Thursday, August 8, 2019 (Press release, Medicure, AUG 2, 2019, View Source [SID1234538106]). The second quarter financial statements will be made available on the Company’s website at www.medicure.com. Medicure will hold a conference call and webcast regarding the results on Friday, August 9, 2019 at 7:30 AM Central Time (8:30 AM Eastern Time).

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Conference Call Info:

Topic: Medicure’s Q2 2019 Results

Call date: Friday, August 9, 2019

Time: 7:30 AM Central Time (8:30 AM Eastern Time)

Canada toll-free: 1 (888) 465-5079 Canada toll: 1 (416) 216-4169

United States toll-free: 1 (888) 545-0687

Passcode: 7554403#

Webcast: This conference call will be webcast live over the internet and can be accessed from the Medicure investor relations page at the following link: View Source

You may request international country-specific access information by e-mailing the Company in advance. Management will accept and answer questions related to the financial results and operations during the question-and-answer period at the end of the conference call. A recording of the call will be available following the event at the Company’s website.

About Medicure

AcelRx to announce second quarter 2019 results and provide an update on the company’s business on Monday, August 5th, 2019

On August 2, 2019 AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACRX), a specialty pharmaceutical company, reported that it will release second quarter financial results after market close on Monday, August 5th, 2019 (Press release, AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, AUG 2, 2019, View Source [SID1234538105]). AcelRx management will host a live webcast and conference call at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (2:00 p.m. Pacific Time) on August 5, 2019 to discuss the financial results and provide an update on the company’s business.

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The webcast is accessible by visiting the Investors page of the company’s website at www.acelrx.com and clicking on the webcast link on the Investors home page. The webcast will be accompanied by a slide presentation. A webcast replay will be available on the AcelRx website for 90 days following the call by visiting the Investor page of the company’s website at www.acelrx.com.

Investors who wish to participate in the conference call may do so by dialing (866) 361-2335 for domestic callers, (855) 669-9657 for Canadian callers or (412) 902-4204 for international callers.