"Hmmmm!!..... Looks like there is a new twist to the story of our Phase 1 LuPIN study at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney.
First I urge you to read the Press Release of 5th of September for which you’ll find a link at the top of this thread. It was marked as “price sensitive” but didn’t seem to do a great deal. (Who Marks these as price sensitive or not sensitive anyway. Is it the company.... or the ASX?)
Essentially the PR is about the increase in patient numbers of this phase 1 trial from the original 16 patients now doubled to 32 patients. The relevent quote is this...
“ In the absence of any serious safety issues, the study’s investigators sought permission to increase the number of patients to 32 in order to provide a larger study size capable of delivering meaningful safety and efficacy endpoints.“
This didn’t seem to get much traction at the time.... although I figured it must be a good sign as phase 1 trials are normally only used to make sure there are no debilitating side effects. This trial of ours, dosing first with Veyonda is a new angle on an existing very large phase 3 metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer trial. This quote gives you the general idea of the scope and scale....
” Compared to traditional radiotherapy, this form of intravenous radiotherapy enables radiation to reach prostate cancer cells in both bone and soft tissues throughout the body. Approximately 80% of cases of prostate cancer are thought to be PSMA-positive and therefore eligible for this treatment.
PSMA-617 is licensed to US company, Endocyte Inc, who currently is conducting a Phase 3 registration study of Lu-PSMA in 750 men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (VISION Study) in 80 centres in the US, Canada and Europe.”
So.... this is a really big deal. A phase three trial that is well underway..... and Endocyte is the licensee of the 177 lutetium-PSMA-167 technology. And our small phase 1 trial is the first stage in seeing if we can further enhance the cancer killing effect that Endocyte have obviously seen already that has taken them into this huge registration trial.
Now a quote from our Press Release.
“ Aim of LuPIN Study
The primary objective of this Phase 1 study is to see if using Veyonda in conjunction with Lu-PSMA is safe.
The LuPIN study is testing whether Veyonda is able to boost the cancer-killing effect of current dosages of Lu-PSMA without increasing safety risks such as an enhanced risk of radiation sickness and local toxicity.
The additional 16 patients are expected to be recruited over the coming 6 months.”
Ok... so far so good. So why tell this story all over again. Well, the answer lies in this press release that has just been released today in the USA by Endocyte.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/novartis-buy-endocyte-2-1b-130646962.html
Here is a selected quote from the PR.....
Novartis To Buy Endocyte In $2.1B Deal.
Endocyte, Inc. (NASDAQ: ECYT) on Thursday announced its $2.1-billion cash sale to Novartis AG (NYSE: NVS). The deal values Endocyte at $24 per share, representing a 54-percent premium from the firm’s $15.56 Wednesday closing price.
Why It’s Important
Endocyte's radioligand portfolio, currently in mid-stage trials for cancer treatment, will supplement Novartis’ oncology pipeline of 33 candidates.
“We are thrilled that Novartis recognizes the potential for 177Lu-PSMA-617 to change the treatment landscape for men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), as well as the broader role that RLTs may potentially play in the treatment of cancer," Endocyte CEO and president Mike Sherman said in the press release. "The global reach and expertise of Novartis in developing and commercializing RLT therapies will be critical in efforts for patients to benefit from these therapies as quickly as possible. “
So there you have it. Novartis have bought out Endocyte. And Endocyte pick out this bullet point....
“potential for 177Lu-PSMA-617 to change the treatment landscape“
.... as their central quote of the Press Release.
I believe that this really will count as “price sensitive” for Noxopharm.... once the penny drops for a lot more investors that is!!. (grin)
Apples.
(20min delay)
