THESE 4 Biotech Stocks are Ramping Up the Fight Against the Deadliest Form of Cancer March 24, 2022 - Baystreet.ca Ahead of World Cancer Day, the European Commission presented its Beating Cancer Plan (BCP). However, there are already critics that are skeptical over whether the plan will have an appropriate amount of focus for cancer’s deadliest form: pancreatic cancer. There are currently no immunological treatments for pancreatic cancer, however THESE 4 biotech stocks are joining the fight with their latest developments: Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY), NovoCure Limited (NASDAQ:NVCR), Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS), and FibroGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGEN).Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY)Positive safety results have been shared regarding Roche’s anti-PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab being tested in combination with an immunotherapeutic agent, pelareorep in patients with metastatic pancreatic, metastatic colorectal, and advanced anal cancers.Roche continues to support the fight against multiple types of cancer, including a recent $290 million investment in diagnostics developer Freenome, that already has an FDA-approved blood cancer screening test for colorectal cancer. Freenome is also preparing for clinical trials of its diagnostic in as many as 10 other types of cancer, including the potential for testing breast, lung and pancreatic cancers.NovoCure Limited (NASDAQ:NVCR)NovoCure is also partnered with Roche to develop Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) in combination with Roche’s anti-PD-L1 therapy atezoizumab, for patients diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (mPDAC)—the most common form of pancreatic cancer.Designed to enroll approximately 75 patients in the EU and United States, the phase 2 study will test the safety and efficacy of TTFields together with atezolizumab, gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel as a first-line treatment for mPDAC.TTFields are intended principally for use together with other standard-of-care cancer treatments. To date, more than 20,000 patients have been treated with TTFields.Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)Later this year, Novartis is expected to continue yielding data in 2022 for the phase 3 trial of its anti-TGF-β MAb NIS793. There’s also a new arm, testing its PD-1 MAb spartalizumab and anti-IL-1 beta antibody canakinumab, would soon be added to the non-industry-sponsored multi-arm phase 3 Precision Promise study—which is expected to continue giving the sector valuable information against the most common type of pancreatic cancer.Novartis received FDA Orphan Drug Designation for NIS792 in late July 2021. NIS793 is a potential first in class novel antibody specific for Transforming Growth Factor Beta (TGFβ), which is known to have an important role in metastatic pancreatic ductal carcinoma (mPDAC) and other solid tumors. As well, Novartis's spartalizumab and canakinumab, plus chemo, was announced to be added to Precision Promise in early 2022.FibroGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGEN)Expected in the second half of this year will be an interim analysis from the pivotal Lapis study of pamrevlumab from FibroGen. The project is a first-in-class inhibitor of connective tissue growth factor, which is said to promote tumour growth.The Lapis study is testing pamrevlumab plus chemotherapy as a neoadjuvant therapy in locally advanced disease. Fibrogen plans to discuss the interim results of the trial when they’re delivered with the FDA, with the goal of supporting an accelerated approval filing.Pamrevlumab is also being tested in metastatic disease, in the prior-mentioned phase 2/3 Precision Promise adaptive clinical run by the US patient group the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (Pancan). In the Precision Promise study, pamrevlumab is given plus chemotherapy versus standard of care in first/second-line metastatic patients, with the primary measure of overall survival.
THESE 4 Biotech Stocks are Ramping Up the Fight Against the Deadliest Form of Cancer March 24, 2022 - Baystreet.ca Ahead of World Cancer Day, the European Commission presented its Beating Cancer Plan (BCP). However, there are already critics that are skeptical over whether the plan will have an appropriate amount of focus for cancer’s deadliest form: pancreatic cancer. There are currently no immunological treatments for pancreatic cancer, however THESE 4 biotech stocks are joining the fight with their latest developments: Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY), NovoCure Limited (NASDAQ:NVCR), Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS), and FibroGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGEN).Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY)Positive safety results have been shared regarding Roche’s anti-PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab being tested in combination with an immunotherapeutic agent, pelareorep in patients with metastatic pancreatic, metastatic colorectal, and advanced anal cancers.Roche continues to support the fight against multiple types of cancer, including a recent $290 million investment in diagnostics developer Freenome, that already has an FDA-approved blood cancer screening test for colorectal cancer. Freenome is also preparing for clinical trials of its diagnostic in as many as 10 other types of cancer, including the potential for testing breast, lung and pancreatic cancers.NovoCure Limited (NASDAQ:NVCR)NovoCure is also partnered with Roche to develop Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) in combination with Roche’s anti-PD-L1 therapy atezoizumab, for patients diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (mPDAC)—the most common form of pancreatic cancer.Designed to enroll approximately 75 patients in the EU and United States, the phase 2 study will test the safety and efficacy of TTFields together with atezolizumab, gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel as a first-line treatment for mPDAC.TTFields are intended principally for use together with other standard-of-care cancer treatments. To date, more than 20,000 patients have been treated with TTFields.Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)Later this year, Novartis is expected to continue yielding data in 2022 for the phase 3 trial of its anti-TGF-β MAb NIS793. There’s also a new arm, testing its PD-1 MAb spartalizumab and anti-IL-1 beta antibody canakinumab, would soon be added to the non-industry-sponsored multi-arm phase 3 Precision Promise study—which is expected to continue giving the sector valuable information against the most common type of pancreatic cancer.Novartis received FDA Orphan Drug Designation for NIS792 in late July 2021. NIS793 is a potential first in class novel antibody specific for Transforming Growth Factor Beta (TGFβ), which is known to have an important role in metastatic pancreatic ductal carcinoma (mPDAC) and other solid tumors. As well, Novartis's spartalizumab and canakinumab, plus chemo, was announced to be added to Precision Promise in early 2022.FibroGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGEN)Expected in the second half of this year will be an interim analysis from the pivotal Lapis study of pamrevlumab from FibroGen. The project is a first-in-class inhibitor of connective tissue growth factor, which is said to promote tumour growth.The Lapis study is testing pamrevlumab plus chemotherapy as a neoadjuvant therapy in locally advanced disease. Fibrogen plans to discuss the interim results of the trial when they’re delivered with the FDA, with the goal of supporting an accelerated approval filing.Pamrevlumab is also being tested in metastatic disease, in the prior-mentioned phase 2/3 Precision Promise adaptive clinical run by the US patient group the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (Pancan). In the Precision Promise study, pamrevlumab is given plus chemotherapy versus standard of care in first/second-line metastatic patients, with the primary measure of overall survival.