New and updated preclinical and clinical data presented by biopharma firms at the European Hematology Association 2021 Virtual Congress, including: Abbvie, Acceleron, Agios, Alexion, Aptose, Autolus, Beigene, Bergenbio, Bluebird, BMS, Caelum, Celyad, Constellation, Curis, Editas, Equillium, Forma, Genentech, Global Blood, Imago, Imara, Immunicum, Keros, Menarini, Mustang, Novartis, Oryzon, Protagonist, Ryvu.
Suzhou Zelgen Biopharmaceuticals Co. Ltd. won approval from China’s NMPA for Zepsun (donafenib tosylate) to treat patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma who have not received systemic treatment. The small-molecule drug, independently developed by Zelgen, is a multitarget kinase inhibitor.
At the 2021 virtual annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO), results of the VISION trial testing the addition of Novartis AG’s radiopharmaceutical Lutetium-177-PSMA-617 (Lutetium-PSMA) to individualized standard-of-care regimens in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer improved both overall survival and radiographic progression-free survival.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. has released top-line phase III results from its CAR T therapy Breyanzi (lisocabtagene maraleucel) that could support its use earlier in patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma, outperforming standard stem cell transplant therapy.
New and updated preclinical and clinical data presented by biopharma firms at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting, including: Antengene.
Phase II data from Iovance Biotherapeutics Inc. in advanced melanoma at the recent meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology turned up an important relationship between previous anti-PD-1 therapy exposure and the durability of treatment response. Findings added weight to the idea that tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) should be deployed earlier in therapy.
With Pharmabcine Inc.’s anti-angiogenic antibody TTAC-0001 (olinvacimab) already in testing against recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) and metastatic triple negative breast cancer, CEO Jin-San Yoo is now giving serious thought to starting trials to test it in children with brain tumors. Plans to begin four additional trials between the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022 are also underway.
Remegen Ltd.’s HER2-targeted disitamab vedotin became the first domestic antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) to win marketing approval in China, just three months after the company scored its first NDA approval in China for its lupus drug Tai’ai (telitacicept). The news sent Remegen’s share price (HKEX:9995) up 12.8% in Hong Kong on June 9.
Taking its mission as looking at how cells function as opposed to looking at them anatomically, Kojin Therapeutics Inc. is launching with a $60 million series A to accelerate its ferroptosis-, or iron-dependent cell death-, based discovery platform for tackling hard-to-treat diseases, including drug-resistant cancers.
Byondis BV is gearing up for a U.S. filing of an antibody-drug conjugate (ADCs) in advanced HER2-positive breast cancer, but CEO Marco Timmers has grand plans to partner up with big pharma and expand into other diseases.