CPRIT funds would support comparative outcomes clinical trials of BPX-501 in AML patients

HOUSTON, TX, USA I November 17, 2016 I Bellicum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:BLCM), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel cellular immunotherapies for cancers and orphan inherited blood disorders, today announced that the Company received notice of a Product Development award totaling approximately $16.9 million from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (“CPRIT”) to support clinical studies of its lead product candidate BPX-501.

Assuming successful contract negotiations and execution, the CPRIT award would fund a portion of a three-year global clinical program comprising clinical trials for adult and pediatric patients with high- and intermediate-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The proposed studies are designed to evaluate the benefit of BPX-501 and rimiducid in the context of in vivo and ex vivo T-cell depleted haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (haplo-HSCT).

“We are proud to have been approved by CPRIT and its Oversight Committee for this award to help accelerate the clinical development of BPX-501 and rimiducid in hematologic cancers,” said Tom Farrell, President and CEO of Bellicum Pharmaceuticals. “Patients with higher risk AML have very limited treatment options, and we’ve seen promising early results with BPX-501 in pediatric AML patients. The CPRIT award proceeds would allow us to more fully evaluate whether BPX-501 can improve haploidentical transplant outcomes in higher risk AML patients.”

About CPRIT

To date, CPRIT has awarded $1.67 billion in grants to Texas researchers, institutions and organizations. CPRIT provides funding through its academic research, prevention, and product development research programs. Programs made possible with CPRIT funding have reached all 254 counties of the state, brought more than 110 distinguished researchers to Texas, advanced scientific and clinical knowledge, and provided more than three million life-saving education, training, prevention and early detection services to Texans.

About Bellicum Pharmaceuticals

Bellicum is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing cellular immunotherapies for cancers and orphan inherited blood disorders. Bellicum is using its proprietary Chemical Induction of Dimerization (CID) technology platform to engineer and control components of the immune system. Bellicum is developing next-generation product candidates in some of the most important areas of cellular immunotherapy, including hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), and CAR T and TCR cell therapies. More information can be found at www.bellicum.com.

SOURCE: Bellicum Pharmaceuticals