On October 5, 2020 Unum Therapeutics Inc. ("Unum") (NASDAQ: UMRX), a biotechnology company focused on developing precision therapies for genetically defined diseases, reported its name change to Cogent Biosciences, Inc. ("Cogent") (Press release, Unum Therapeutics, OCT 5, 2020, View Source [SID1234568092]). Beginning on October 6, 2020, Cogent will trade on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol "COGT", and Cogent’s common stock will trade under a new CUSIP number, 19240Q102. The new name reflects Cogent’s mission to design rational precision therapies that treat the underlying cause of disease and improve the lives of patients. Cogent is also pleased to provide an update on recent scientific and operational progress since its July acquisition of Kiq LLC, including the announcement of an upcoming oral presentation of Phase 1/2 clinical data in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) with Cogent’s lead asset, PLX9486, at the 2020 Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS) Annual Meeting to be held virtually November 18 – 21. In connection with the change of the Company’s corporate name, Cogent anticipates that the name of PLX9486 will be changed to CGT9486.

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"Our new name reflects the evolution of our company to focus on developing precision therapies for genetically defined diseases and paves the path forward as we strive to deliver real solutions for patients in serious need of new treatment options," said Chuck Wilson, PhD, President and CEO of Cogent. "Over the past three months, we have made significant progress in shifting the focus of the company to align with our future vision, and we look forward to presenting additional data on our lead program PLX9486 at CTOS 2020 as we continue to make progress in advancing the program for the treatment of patients suffering from Systemic Mastocytosis and GIST."

Cogent remains on track to advance PLX9486 as a single agent in Advanced Systemic Mastocytosis patients in the first half of next year and Indolent Systemic Mastocytosis patients in the second half of 2021. Additionally, Cogent plans to further develop PLX9486 in combination with sunitinib in GIST patients and plans to initiate an additional clinical study in GIST in the second half of 2021.

An updated corporate presentation, which includes additional preclinical data highlighting the potency of PLX9486 against KIT D816V, is now online at Cogent’s new website, www.cogentbio.com.

PLX9486 + Sunitinib Combination data to be presented in Oral CTOS Abstract

Cogent’s lead precision therapy is PLX9486, a potent and selective precision kinase inhibitor that is designed to target KIT mutations present in Systemic Mastocytosis and GIST. New details of the open-label Phase 1/2 clinical study testing the combination of PLX9486 with sunitinib in 18 adult patients with advanced GIST, will be presented as an oral presentation at the upcoming 2020 CTOS Annual Meeting.

Title: The Potent and Selective Kit Inhibitor PLX9486 Dosed in Combination with Sunitinib Demonstrates Promising Progression Free Survival (PFS) in Patients with Advanced Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST): Final Results of a Phase 1/2 Study

Date: Friday, November 20, 2020 from 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. ET

Presenter: Jonathan Trent, M.D., Ph.D., University of Miami Health System, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center

The oral presentation will contain detailed results from the combination of PLX9486 and sunitinib in patients with advanced GIST. Previously announced topline results demonstrated 11 months median progression free survival with the combination of PLX9486 and sunitinib in heavily treatment-experienced patients with advanced GIST, with two-thirds of patients having previously received three or more lines of therapy. PLX9486 was well-tolerated, and the most commonly occurring treatment emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were predominantly £ Grade 2. PLX9486 has been dosed in more than 50 patients both as a single agent and as part of a combination therapy. Based on the data, Cogent believes the combination of PLX9486 and sunitinib has the potential to address an unmet medical need in patients living with GIST.

Operational Update

Cogent’s current cash balance includes gross proceeds of a $104.4 million private placement concurrent with the Kiq acquisition, as well as $8.1 million from the BOXR sale with potential near-term milestones of up to $3.4 million. This funding provides Cogent with runway into 2023. More details on Cogent’s cash position will be provided in November in the Q3 earnings call.

Cogent has retained senior personnel from Unum who bring critical expertise in clinical science, clinical operations, regulatory affairs, and project management, and the company has continued to grow the team over the past three months with new hires following the completion of the Kiq acquisition.