On June 6, 2022 VBI Vaccines Inc. (Nasdaq: VBIV) (VBI), a biopharmaceutical company driven by immunology in the pursuit of powerful prevention and treatment of disease, reported that new tumor response and overall survival (OS) data from the ongoing Phase 2a study of VBI-1901, the Company’s cancer vaccine immunotherapeutic candidate, in recurrent glioblastoma (GBM) was presented at the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Annual Meeting on June 5 (Press release, VBI Vaccines, JUN 6, 2022, View Source [SID1234615614]). The expanded Phase 2a data were selected for presentation in both a poster session and a poster discussion session.
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"We continue to be motivated by the data seen in this Phase 2a study of VBI-1901 as we endeavor to provide new treatment options to patients with very few available to them," said David E. Anderson, Ph.D., VBI’s Chief Scientific Officer. "Considering the high mortality rate among GBM patients, particularly in the recurrent setting, median overall survival of approximately 13-15 months seen in our two study arms suggests an additional survival benefit of nearly six months in comparison with historical control data in the recurrent population after treatment with a monotherapy.1 Moreover, the correlation of tumor responses and clinical response benefit observed in tandem is very encouraging. We remain in close discussion with our study investigators and scientific advisors as we move toward the next stages of development in both the recurrent and frontline GBM settings, and look forward to advancing this development program as diligently as possible."
Key results from the ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) poster presentation:
Data were collected as of May 9, 2022
VBI-1901 + GM-CSF Study Arm – High Dose Part A + Part B (n=16)
Two (2) partial tumor responses and five (5) stable disease seen across Part A and Part B
18-month overall survival (OS) of 25% (n=4/16)
Median OS (mOS) reached at 12.9 months, comparing favorably to 8-month mOS for standard-of-care1
One patient remains on protocol beyond two years, with a 93% tumor reduction relative to initiation of treatment at the beginning of the study – this reduction has been sustained for over 6 months
VBI-1901 + GSK’s AS01B Adjuvant System2 (n=10)
Five (5) stable disease observed
18-month overall survival (OS) of 40% (n=4/10)
Achieved mOS of 14.6 months, comparing favorably to 8-month mOS for standard-of-care1
With few effective treatment options available for recurrent GBM patients, historical control data have demonstrated OS to be ~60% at 6-months and ~30% at 12-months after treatment with a monotherapy.1
This dataset continues to build upon data first shared at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) 2021, which resulted in Fast Track Designation granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in June 2021, and then updated at the World Vaccine & Immunotherapy Congress in December 2021.
Next Steps for VBI-1901
Based on the data seen to date in the Phase 1/2a study in recurrent GBM patients, VBI expects to assess VBI-1901 in randomized, controlled clinical studies in both primary and recurrent GBM patients in the next phase of development:
Q3 2022: Expected initiation of next phase of development in recurrent GBM setting, aiming to expand the number of patients in the ongoing Phase 1/2a study and adding a control arm, with the potential for accelerated approval based on tumor response rates and improvement in overall survival
Q4 2022: Evaluation of VBI-1901 in the primary GBM setting expected to initiate as part of the Individualized Screening Trial of Innovative Glioblastoma Therapy (INSIGhT), a Phase 2 adaptive platform trial
To learn more about VBI’s ongoing Phase 1/2a study and the INSIGhT trial, visit clinicaltrials.gov (Respective Identifiers: NCT03382977 and NCT02977780).
About Fast Track Designation
The Fast Track program facilitates the expedited development and review of new drugs or biologics that are intended to: 1) treat serious or life-threatening conditions, and 2) demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs. A therapeutic that receives Fast Track Designation is eligible for some or all of the following: 1) more frequent meetings with FDA to discuss the development plan and data needed to support approval, 2) more frequent written communication from FDA relating to the design of the proposed clinical trials and use of biomarkers, 3) Accelerated Approval and Priority Review, if relevant criteria are met, and 4) Rolling Review, which means the company can submit completed sections of its Biologic License Application (BLA) or New Drug Application (NDA) for review by FDA, instead of waiting until all sections of the application are completed.
Fast Track Designation was granted to VBI-1901, adjuvanted with granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), for the treatment of first-recurrent GBM.
About VBI-1901 and GBM
VBI-1901 is a novel cancer vaccine immunotherapeutic candidate developed using VBI’s enveloped virus-like particle (eVLP) technology to target two highly immunogenic cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigens, gB and pp65. Scientific literature suggests CMV infection is prevalent in multiple solid tumors, including glioblastoma (GBM). GBM is among the most common and aggressive malignant primary brain tumors in humans. In the U.S. alone, 12,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. The current standard of care for treating GBM is surgical resection, followed by radiation and chemotherapy. Even with aggressive treatment, GBM progresses rapidly and has a high mortality.