CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--OvaScienceSM (NASDAQ: OVAS), a global fertility company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of new treatment options, announced today that presentations by fertility specialists offering the Company’s AUGMENTSM fertility treatment reported encouraging pregnancy rates in women who previously failed multiple cycles of in vitro fertilization (IVF). Clinical reports from two international IVF clinics will be featured at the Society for Reproductive Investigation (SRI) 62nd Annual Scientific Meeting. The AUGMENT treatment is not available in the United States.
Robert F. Casper, M.D., F.R.C.S.(C), Medical Director of TCART Fertility Partners of Toronto, Canada, a mitochondrial expert and one of the first IVF specialists to use the AUGMENT treatment in clinical practice, reported initial patient experiences in women whose ages ranged from 28 to 40 years and who had one to three previous failed IVF cycles, often with poor embryo quality. In 26 women who received the AUGMENT treatment, there were 9 clinical pregnancies1 out of 17 embryo transfers (53%).2
“We are impressed with the pregnancy rates that we have seen with the AUGMENT treatment in women who tried IVF multiple times and never had a successful pregnancy,” said Dr. Casper. “We are encouraged by these results and believe the AUGMENT treatment may offer a much needed fertility treatment for women who are seeking new options. We look forward to continuing to report our clinical experiences in a wide range of patients who may benefit from the AUGMENT treatment.”
The results reported in the poster presentation represent experiences from a small number of patients with different diagnoses, ages and prior IVF history. As of this reporting, pregnancy rates across IVF clinics that offer the AUGMENT treatment currently range from 25% - 53%, which includes clinics that are treating some of the more challenging infertility patients. OvaScience is collecting AUGMENT patient experience in a first-of-its-kind international registry, and anticipates sharing information from a broader patient experience when it is available.
The AUGMENT treatment is a fertility treatment specifically designed to use the mitochondria, or energy, from a woman’s own egg precursor cells – immature egg cells found inside the protective ovarian lining – to improve egg health. The treatment is available to patients in select international IVF clinics. Additional information can be found at www.augmenttreatment.com.
“These initial experiences are promising and demonstrate that our AUGMENT treatment is having a positive impact on pregnancy rates in a variety of women who are struggling with infertility,” said Michelle Dipp, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of OvaScience. “By improving egg health, even in women who previously failed IVF, the AUGMENT treatment may provide another opportunity for women to use their own eggs during IVF.”
The poster presentation is available on www.ovascience.com/technology/publications. Additional AUGMENT treatment clinical experience will be presented at the SRI meeting by Kutluk Oktay, M.D., F.A.C.O.G, of Gen-art IVF in Ankara, Turkey, on March 28 at 7:45am PST. The AUGMENT treatment presentations at SRI are based on self-reported patient experiences and physician evaluations.
About OvaScience
OvaScience (NASDAQ: OVAS) is a global fertility company dedicated to improving treatment options for women around the world. OvaScience is discovering, developing and commercializing new fertility treatments because we believe women deserve more options. Each OvaScience treatment is based on the Company’s proprietary technology platform that leverages the breakthrough discovery of egg precursor (EggPCSM) cells – immature egg cells found inside the protective ovarian lining. The AUGMENTSM treatment, a fertility option specifically designed to improve egg health, is available in certain IVF clinics in select international regions outside of the United States. OvaScience is developing the OvaPrimeSM treatment, which could increase a woman’s egg reserve, and the OvaTureSM treatment, a potential next-generation IVF treatment that could help a woman produce healthy, young, fertilizable eggs without hormone injections. For more information, please visit www.ovascience.com and www.augmenttreatment.com and connect with us on Twitter and Facebook.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements about the Company’s plans for the AUGMENT treatment and future pregnancy rates. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including risks related to: the possibility that international IVF clinics that we work with may determine not to begin or continue providing the AUGMENT treatment for commercial or other reasons; our expectation that the AUGMENT treatment and OvaPrime treatment meet the requirements of a class of products exempt from premarket review and approval under applicable regulations in those countries where we have launched or plan to introduce the AUGMENT treatment and plan to introduce the OvaPrime treatment; the commercial ramp up of the AUGMENT treatment, which we expect will depend upon the successful transition of ACE clinics to commercial operations, the addition of new ACE clinics, and the results from ACE clinic experience as they become available; the science underlying our treatment and treatments in development (including the AUGMENT, OvaPrime and OvaTure treatments), which is unproven; our ability to obtain regulatory approval where necessary for our potential treatments; our ability to develop our potential treatments, including the OvaPrime and OvaTure treatments, on the timelines we expect, if at all; our ability to commercialize the AUGMENT treatment and our potential treatments, including the OvaPrime treatment, on the timelines we expect, if at all; as well as those risks more fully discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of our most recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and/or Annual Report on Form 10-K. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release reflect our current views with respect to future events. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause our views to change. However, while we may elect to update these forward-looking statements in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our view as of any date subsequent to the date hereof.
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1 Clinical pregnancy is defined as a pregnancy diagnosed by ultrasound. http://www.eshre.eu/Guidelines-and-Legal/ART-glossary.aspx
2 Clinical experience presented show percentage of clinical pregnancies from embryo transfer.
