Invion (ASX:IVX) has announced the findings of a study by the Peter MaCallum Cancer Centre on the effect of its INV043, when combined with an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy.
The company the findings are based on an in vivo study using immune-competent mouse models with anal squamous cell carcinomas (ASCC).
It said the combination therapy using INV043 with ICIs led to around 80 per cent control of ASCC tumours at the study endpoint, compared with ICI therapy alone, which achieved approximately 12 per cent control.
Invion said the mice under combination treatment maintained a healthy weight and no negative side effects from the combination therapy were noted.
“It’s very exciting to see how well INV043 worked in combination with an anti-PD-1 therapy, where standalone ICI therapy typically has a very low response rate,” said Professor Rob Ramsay, senior scientist at Peter Mac. “These results demonstrated exceptional, consistent, and highly significant tumour control. And when considered with the prior Hudson findings, provide a strong indication that a high level of control may also be achieved in clinical trials across a number of cancers.”
“These compelling findings demonstrate the potential of INV043 for use in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors, to substantially improve patient outcomes”, said Invion’s executive chairman and CEO Thian Chew. “The high impact opportunity to improve widely used ICI therapies, and ability to develop new combined IP with potential partners, provides us multiple pathways to commercialise PhotosoftTM technology, which we look to further demonstrate in our clinical trials.”
Michael Cho, founder of RMW Cho Group and originator of Photosoft, from which INV043 is derived, added, “We are thrilled to see our joint efforts, in conjunction with Peter Mac, demonstrate an impressive level of control on ASCCs.”
