FN Media Group Presents USA News Group News Commentary


VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 23, 2023 - USA News Group - Despite being a relatively rare form of cancer, pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest in the oncology field, the third leading cause of cancer death in the USA. Still not fully understood, pancreatic cancer's 5-year survival rate is currently only 12%. New analysis of data from the National Program of Cancer Registries database, covering around 65% of the US population, suggests that the incidence of pancreatic cancer among individuals younger than 55 years is increasing more rapidly than in those 55 years or older, and also more quickly in women than in men. As more and more cases of young people are showing up, calls from the leading pancreatic cancer organization PanCAN to increase funding for research are getting louder. Thankfully, within the biotech sector, there have been plenty of developments giving hope in the fight against pancreatic cancer, including those from Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ:ONCY) (TSX:ONC), Eli Lilly and Company, Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY), BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX), and even 23andMe Holding Co (NASDAQ:ME).

One of the more promising developments in treatment is pelareorep, the flagship drug candidate of Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ:ONCY) (TSX:ONC), which was given a Fast Track Designation (FTD) for treating advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer by the FDA in late 2022. The FDA's decision came almost immediately after an update on ONCY's GOBLET study, which delivered amazing results, including a 69% objective response rate (ORR) in the first group of patients tested and one even having a rare complete response (CR).

"Our core programs in pancreatic and breast cancer are both progressing rapidly towards registrational studies on the back of the impressive clinical data showing the potential of pelareorep as a backbone immunotherapy," said Dr. Matt Coffey, President and CEO of Oncolytics Biotech.

In the months that followed, pelareorep's progress caught the attention of PanCAN, which selected the ONCY drug to be included in its Precision Promise study as part of a pivotal Phase 3 trial. Further aiding the cause, PanCAN recognized the drug developer's efforts by rewarding them with its second annual PanCAN Therapeutic Accelerator Award, which comes with a US$5 million grant to further develop leading-edge treatments.

"With a five-year survival rate of 12%, pancreatic cancer patients cannot afford to wait for new treatment options," said Julie Fleshman, JD, MBA, President and CEO of PanCAN. "This urgent unmet need was the driving inspiration behind the Precision Promise platform trial, which was designed specifically to identify, accelerate, and de-risk the development of promising pancreatic cancer treatments. We are thrilled to be bringing pelareorep into Precision Promise as a new investigational therapy to study against the current standard of care."

Now, with the $5M grant in hand, Oncolytics Biotech can continue the next stage of its research focused on pelareorep, including pursuing a new combination with modified FOLFIRINOX chemotherapy with or without an immune checkpoint inhibitor. Previous to the award, ONCY successfully raised another US$15 million to continue advancing its clinical programs in both pancreatic and metastatic breast cancers, with significant support from an institutional investor.

"This generous grant will enable early and late-stage patients with pancreatic cancer to potentially benefit from another commonly employed chemotherapy backbone, as FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine + nab-paclitaxel are the most frequently used chemotherapy standards of care in both the first and second-line setting," said Dr. Coffey. "By teaming up with PanCAN, we believe we may be able to expedite development and provide pancreatic cancer patients with a bespoke immunotherapeutic treatment option."

According to their Q2 2023 financial results, Oncolytics is equipped with an excellent cash runway position. On a pro forma basis, including the net proceeds from the public offering, Oncolytics had CAD$42.7 million on June 30, 2023, which should last them into the second half of 2024.

Last fall, Eli Lilly and Company received FDA approval for its Retevmo® (selpercatinib), the first and only RET inhibitor for adults with advanced or metastatic solid tumors with a RET gene fusion, regardless of type.

"In the LIBRETTO-001 trial, selpercatinib demonstrated clinically meaningful and durable responses across a variety of tumor types in patients with RET-driven cancers, including pancreatic, colon and other cancers in need of new treatment options," said Vivek Subbiah, M.D., associate professor of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and co-investigator for LIBRETTO-001. "These data and FDA approval of the tumor-agnostic indication underscore the importance of routine, comprehensive genomic testing for patients across a wide variety of tumor types."

As well, Lilly is seeking first-line KRAS treatment with its AACR data release from earlier this year. The KRAS G12 mutation is a specific alteration in the DNA of the KRAS gene. It happens at the 12th spot and switches out one building block, known as glycine, for another one, often either aspartic acid or valine. This change is frequently seen in different kinds of cancer like lung, colorectal, and pancreatic.

Perhaps the next form of treatment that's getting increased attention is cancer vaccines, especially the collaboration between Roche Holding AG (OTC:RHHBY) and BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX). Their efforts are built upon a concoction of several powerful drugs that target the immune system towards cancers with mRNA vaccine technology.

Initially, there was little hope it would work in "cold" cancers with few mutations, such as pancreatic cancer, but that didn't deter the Roche/BioNTech efforts. In a limited continuing study that combines a custom BioNTech vaccine and modified FOLFIRINOX with Roche's Tecentriq, 8 out of 16 pancreatic cancer patients developed an immune reaction. Moreover, no relapses were observed in any of the patients after a year and a half, based on information released in Nature in May 2023.

Citing the severity of the disease, the News & Views editorial segment of Nature commented: "These data are exceedingly promising, and will provide the framework for a planned further clinical trial."

Also in the realm of DNA are new efforts coming from genetics testing company 23andMe Holding Com (NASDAQ:ME). Recently 23andMe received FDA clearance to report an additional 41 genetic variants in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that increase risk for breast, ovarian, prostate and pancreatic cancer, aiding their clients by potentially delivering an early warning that could lead to earlier diagnoses.

"We continue to be the first and only company with FDA clearance to provide genetic information on cancer risk directly to consumers, without a prescription," said Anne Wojcicki, CEO and Co-Founder of 23andMe. "We are proud to continue pioneering a path for greater access to health information by becoming the first company to receive PCCP clearance from the FDA under this novel approach, which will enable us to increase the pace at which we improve and expand our BRCA report."

The BRCA1 and BRCA2 variants may also be associated with an increased risk for prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, and potentially other cancers. It's believed that with early detection, the survival rate of pancreatic cancer can increase 6-fold.

As new developments for treatment and diagnosis become available, hopefully pancreatic patients and their families can be more optimistic for the future. For the first time since 2017, the survival rate has gone up two years in a row.

"We are heartened by another increase in five-year survival," said PanCAN President and CEO Julie Fleshman, JD, MBA. "It's an important milestone that shows we're headed in the right direction – and this means so much to all those affected by pancreatic cancer."

Bottom of Form

Article Source: https://usanewsgroup.com/2023/05/31/could-this-company-be-on-track-to-cure-pancreatic-and-breast-cancer-2/

Article Source:

USA News Group
http://USAnewsgroup.com info@usanewsgroup.com

DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this publication should be considered as personalized financial advice. We are not licensed under securities laws to address your particular financial situation. No communication by our employees to you should be deemed as personalized financial advice. Please consult a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decision. This is a paid advertisement and is neither an offer nor recommendation to buy or sell any security. We hold no investment licenses and are thus neither licensed nor qualified to provide investment advice. The content in this report or email is not provided to any individual with a view toward their individual circumstances. USA News Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Market IQ Media Group, Inc. ("MIQ"). MIQ has been paid a fee for Oncolytics Biotech Inc. advertising and digital media from the company directly. There may be 3rd parties who may have shares of Oncolytics Biotech Inc., and may liquidate their shares which could have a negative effect on the price of the stock. This compensation constitutes a conflict of interest as to our ability to remain objective in our communication regarding the profiled company. Because of this conflict, individuals are strongly encouraged to not use this publication as the basis for any investment decision. The owner/operator of MIQ own shares of Oncolytics Biotech Inc. which were purchased in the open market, and reserve the right to buy and sell, and will buy and sell shares of Oncolytics Biotech Inc. at any time without any further notice commencing immediately and ongoing. We also expect further compensation as an ongoing digital media effort to increase visibility for the company, no further notice will be given, but let this disclaimer serve as notice that all material, including this article, which is disseminated by MIQ has been approved by Oncolytics Biotech Inc.; this is a paid advertisement, we currently own shares of Oncolytics Biotech Inc. and will buy and sell shares of the company in the open market, or through private placements, and/or other investment vehicles.

While all information is believed to be reliable, it is not guaranteed by us to be accurate. Individuals should assume that all information contained in our newsletter is not trustworthy unless verified by their own independent research. Also, because events and circumstances frequently do not occur as expected, there will likely be differences between the any predictions and actual results. Always consult a licensed investment professional before making any investment decision. Be extremely careful, investing in securities carries a high degree of risk; you may likely lose some or all of the investment.

USA News Group is Source of all content listed above. FN Media Group, LLC (FNM), is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with USA News Group or any company mentioned herein. The commentary, views and opinions expressed in this release by USA News Group are solely those of USA News Group and are not shared by and do not reflect in any manner the views or opinions of FNM. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination and financial marketing solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM was not compensated by any public company mentioned herein to disseminate this press release.

This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected". You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

Media Contact Information:
FN Media Group, LLC
Media Contact e-mail:
editor@financialnewsmedia.com
U.S. Phone: +1(954)345-0611

SOURCE USA News Group