- Statistically significant difference in progression-free survival continues to be seen in non-squamous patient population
- Promising overall survival data, notably in subgroups of interest for the upcoming Phase 3 trial
- Company to hold conference call today, Monday, September 29 at 1:30 PM EDT/7:30 PM CET to discuss data
STRASBOURG, France I September 29, 2014 I Transgene SA (NYSE-Euronext: TNG)(Paris:TNG) today announced the presentation1 of more mature data from the Phase 2b part of the TIME trial with TG4010 MUC1 targeted immunotherapy at the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2014 Congress in Madrid, Spain. The data presented show promising and consistent results in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), particularly in the large subgroup of patients with non-squamous disease. The poster presented at ESMO can be found on the Company’s website at www.transgene.fr.
Elisabeth Quoix, M.D., Head of the Department of Pulmonology at the University Hospital of Strasbourg and Coordinating Investigator of the TIME study, said: “The field of cancer immunotherapy holds great promise, and we have recently seen some exciting breakthroughs for treating various cancers with this type of treatment. The results presented at ESMO with Transgene’s TG4010 in lung cancer are promising and I look forward to seeing this novel immunotherapy product candidate advance further through development.”
Philippe Archinard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Transgene, said: “We are excited about the results presented this week with TG4010 in advanced non-small cell lung cancer. While the overall survival data are not yet fully mature, they show a clear trend in favor of the TG4010 arm, and we are hopeful that they will improve further over time. With such positive results, as well as recent encouraging interactions with regulatory authorities, we continue to advance our plans for the Phase 3 trial, as well as our strategic partnering discussions.”
The TIME trial is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluating TG4010 in combination with chemotherapy in the first-line treatment of MUC1 positive advanced (Stage IV) NSCLC patients. A total of 222 patients were enrolled in the Phase 2b portion of the trial, and enrollment is now completed. The primary endpoint2 of the Phase 2b part of the study is to prospectively validate the TrPAL predictive biomarker3; the safety and efficacy of TG4010 in combination with chemotherapy in this patient population were also assessed, including in pre-specified subgroups.
On May 27, 2014, the Company announced that the primary endpoint of PFS in the normal TrPAL group was met. The high TrPAL group has not yet met the required number of events to conduct the primary analysis.
A recent analysis was conducted with a more mature data set. In the subgroup of patients with non-squamous histology – 88% of patients in the trial – statistically significant differences in PFS, as well as compelling and clinically meaningful differences in OS, continue to be observed. The OS data continue to mature.
Consistent with previous communications, these improvements were even more notable in the so-called “low”4 TrPAL groups of patients.
TG4010 was well tolerated, and the nature and incidence of adverse events in the TG4010 arm were consistent with previous Phase 2 clinical trials. The most frequent TG4010-related adverse events were mild to moderate injection site reactions. To date, over 350 patients have been treated with TG4010 and the product has been consistently well tolerated across trials.
Recent interactions with regulatory authorities have encouraged Transgene to move forward with the preparations for the Phase 3 part of the TIME trial. This trial is planned to enroll only patients with non-squamous disease. Transgene is seeking a global development and commercialization partner for TG4010 and talks are ongoing with potential partners.
About TG4010:
TG4010, a novel MUC1 targeting immunotherapy, is in development for the treatment of metastatic NSCLC in combination with first-line chemotherapy. TG4010 is a recombinant vaccinia virus of the Ankara strain (MVA) expressing the coding sequences of the MUC1 antigen and of the cytokine, Interleukin-2 (IL2). In healthy cells, the MUC1 protein is normally found on the surface of epithelial cells in many types of tissue and works to protect these cells. In tumor cells, several modifications of MUC1 can occur: over expression, hypo-glycosylation and changes in cellular localization. These changes transform the MUC1 protein into a highly immunogenic tumor associated antigen (TAA) and make it an attractive target for cancer immunotherapy. Thus, the strategy is to induce MUC1 antigen expression in a non-tumor environment, i.e., where the immune system is fully functional, in order to induce both innate and MUC1 specific adaptive immunity. In addition to NSCLC, the MUC1 TAA is expressed in many other solid tumor types, such as lung, breast, colorectal, kidney and prostate cancers. TG4010 is also being studied in pre-clinical tests in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors.
The work related to TG4010 is a contribution to ADNA (Advanced Diagnostics for New Therapeutic Approaches), a program dedicated to personalized medicine, coordinated by Institut Mérieux and supported and partially funded by the French public agency, BPI.
About non-small cell lung cancer:
Lung cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide with an estimated 1.8 million cases and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths, accounting for an estimated nearly 1.6 million deaths in 2012, the latest figures available. NSCLC represents approximately 85 percent or more of all lung cancers. Recent statistics estimate that there were approximately 313,000 cases of lung cancer in the European Union (EU) in 2012, and 268,000 people in the EU died from this disease. In the U.S., deaths due to lung cancer are expected to account for about 27% of all cancer deaths in 2014, more than any other cancer type. It is estimated that there will be over 224,000 new cases of lung cancer in the U.S. in 2014 and over 159,000 deaths due to this disease. Lung cancer remains one of the cancer types with the worst prognosis (five-year survival rate for NSCLC of 17% in the U.S.), underlining the unmet need in this disease.
Current treatments for lung cancer include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and targeted molecular therapy, but only one third of patients present resectable (able to be removed by surgery) disease at diagnosis. The poor prognosis in patients with advanced disease is improved by platinum-based chemotherapies that produce longer survival times. However, the medical need for developing new treatments for NSCLC remains extremely high and new approaches are necessary to significantly change the outcome of the disease.
About Transgene:
Transgene (NYSE-Euronext: TNG), a member of the Institut Mérieux Group, is a publicly traded French biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and manufacturing targeted immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Transgene’s programs utilize well-tolerated viruses with the goal of indirectly or directly killing infected or cancerous cells. The Company’s two lead clinical-stage programs are: TG4010 for non-small cell lung cancer and Pexa-Vec for liver cancer. The Company has several other programs in clinical and pre-clinical development that are based on its core viral vector technology. Transgene is based in Strasbourg, France, and has additional operations in Lyon, as well as satellite offices in China and the U.S. Additional information about Transgene is available at www.transgene.fr.
SOURCE: Transgene
