CANbridge’s CAN-008 Approved for Phase I/II Trial in Newly-Diagnosed Glioblastoma Multiforme in Taiwan

2016/07/26

Beijing, China, July 26, 2016 — CANbridge Life Sciences, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing Western drug candidates in China and North Asia, announced that the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) has approved the Investigational New Drug (IND) application for a Phase I/II clinical study of CAN-008, plus temozolomide (TMZ), during and after radiation therapy, in patients with newly-diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). The study design  consists of an open-label, dose-escalation Phase I trial, and a multi-center, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase II trial. The Phase I trial will evaluate safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and preliminary efficacy. The Phase II trial will evaluate efficacy and safety. The combined Phase I/II trial will enroll a total of approximately 55 patients.  The Phase I portion of the trial will commence in August 2016. 

“The approval of our first human clinical trial marks CANbridge’s transition to a clinical stage company, validating our business strategy and regulatory approach to develop promising Western drug candidates for underserved conditions in the Asian market, “ said James Xue PhD, CANbridge Chairman and CEO.   “That we will be moving forward in a front-line setting is also good news for glioblastoma patients in Taiwan, and the rest of Asia, who have very few treatment options.” 

“This approval by the TFDA is a very important step in the development of CAN008 for patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) brain tumors,” said Mark Goldberg,  MD, CANbridge Acting Chief Medical Officer. “Glioblastoma multiforme is a devastating type of brain tumor. Better therapies are desperately needed.  We are pleased to be able to move the clinical program forward and hope that CAN008 will prove to be an important advance, improving outcomes for patients with GBM. “

 

About CAN-008

CAN-008 is a fully human fusion protein consisting of the extracellular domain of CD95 fused to the Fc region of human IgG that inhibits the CD95 ligand, a member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) family. By blocking it, CAN-008 restores the immune system’s anti-tumor response and inhibits invasive tumor cell growth. In a European Phase II trial in patients with recurrent glioblastoma, conducted by the drug’s developer, privately-held Apogenix, patients with biomarkers for the CD95 ligand experienced the greatest benefits. In July 2015, CANbridge acquired an exclusive license to develop, manufacture and commercialize CAN-008 for GBM and other indications, in China, Hong Kong and Macau, which was recently expanded to include Taiwan.

 

About CANbridge Life Sciences

CANbridge Life Sciences, Ltd. is a bio-pharmaceutical company accelerating development and commercialization of specialty healthcare products for serious and critical medical conditions in China and North Asia (Korea and Taiwan).  CANbridge develops partnerships with Western bio-pharmaceutical companies with clinical-stage pharmaceutical, medical device or diagnostic products that are either unavailable in China/North Asia or address medical needs that are underserved in the region. CANbridge also licenses, or obtains exclusive rights to commercialize, drug and device products that are approved in their home markets for commercialization in China and North Asia.  CANbridge has an agreement with EUSA Pharma, to commercialize Caphosol® in China for the prevention and treatment of oral mucositis caused by cancer treatments, and a license with Apogenix to develop, manufacture and commercialize immune-oncology therapy, APG101, for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme in China, Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan, where it will be developed as CAN008, and a world-wide license (ex-North America) with AVEO Oncology to develop, manufacture and commercialize clinical-stage ErbB3 (HER3) inhibitory antibody candidate AV-203, renamed by CANbridge as CAN017. 

Led and backed by a highly-seasoned executive team, with extensive Chinese drug development experience, CANbridge has the capability to select, acquire, develop and commercialize future therapeutics and diagnostics targeting the unmet medical needs of Chinese and East Asian patients with serious or critical conditions.  

CANbridge is privately-held and headquartered in Beijing, China.  For more on CANbridge Life Sciences, please go to www.canbridgepharma.com

 

Contact:

CANbridge Life Sciences

James Xue                                                                    

CEO 

+8610.8414.8018

  781.995.0074

 

Deanne Eagle

Planet Communications

917.837.5866