Noxopharm, a clinical-stage Australian drug development company currently working with 乔治临床( George Clinical ), is seeking to establish Veyonda®, an innovative dosage formulation of the experimental anti-cancer drug idronoxil, as “an essential adjunct to all forms of radiotherapy in the treatment of prostate cancer, both late-stage and early-stage prostate cancer,” according to an announcement last week.

Through a collaboration with 乔治临床( George Clinical ), Noxopharm has engaged a group of high caliber US-based medical oncologists with deep expertise in sarcoma research and treatment. These experts and 乔治临床( George Clinical ) will help design and execute the study which is aimed at determining the tolerability, safety and efficacy of Veyonda® in combination with doxorubicin. The company currently is in dialogue with the FDA with the aim of commencing the study during Q4 2019.

According to Noxopharm, of the nine patients allocated to the higher dosage of Veyonda®, 56% showed stable disease or a partial response over the eight-month term of the study. “The company and its medical advisors regard this outcome as significant, given that all patients were heavily-pretreated and with extensive and progressive Stage 4 chemo-resistant disease,” the announcement said.

“Along with the positive signals emerging from our DARRT-1 study and the excellent progress being made in the LuPIN trial, both of which are being studied in prostate cancer, the CEP-1 data gives us confidence that we can bring Veyonda® to market as a versatile treatment for a range of cancers,” stated Noxopharm CEO Greg van Wyk, M.D.

CEP will now focus on a combination of Veyonda® and doxorubicin in sarcomas based on pre-clinical data, previously published in vitro and in vivo data; the generally poor response rates of sarcomas to chemotherapy and radiotherapy; and the commercial incentives associated with a new treatment for sarcomas.

Veyonda® is an innovative dosage formulation of the experimental anti-cancer drug, idronoxil which inhibits the oncogene, Ecto-NOX disulfide-thiol exchanger type 2, leading to inhibition of the key secondary pro-survival messenger, sphingosine-1-phosphate. This enhances the DNA-damaging effects of both radiotherapy and cytotoxic chemotherapy, in turn triggering up-regulation of the body’s innate immune system. Sarcomas represent a rare collection of complex cancers that can develop and spread from the body’s connective tissues in lethal fashion. Over the last few decades, traditional treatment with surgery and/or chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy has not significantly improved outcomes for most sarcomas.   

Noxopharm is a clinical-stage Australian drug development company with offices in Sydney, New York and Hong Kong. The company has a primary focus on the development of drugs based on a phenolic chemical structure, with Veyonda® the first pipeline product.