FORT WORTH, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NanOlogy, LLC, a clinical-stage oncology company, announced today that additional data from its Phase 2 dose-rising and expansion clinical trial of intracystic NanoPac® for mucinous cystic neoplasms of the pancreas were presented via poster by Somashekar Krishna, MD, MPH of The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and The James Comprehensive Cancer Center during Digestive Disease Week held virtually from May 21-23, 2021. NanoPac is composed of large surface area microparticles of pure paclitaxel designed as a drug depot for local administration and sustained drug release over several weeks. In this study, the investigational drug was delivered once or twice via endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle injection following aspiration of cyst fluid in patients with branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (BD-IPMNs) or mucinous cystic neoplasms (MCNs).
The 6-month trial enrolled 19 subjects and was completed in late 2020. The clinical study report was submitted to FDA in April 2021 and clinical trial results can be found at NCT03188991 in clinicaltrials.gov. Overall, the drug was well tolerated with no dose limiting toxicities or drug-related significant adverse events observed. Reduction in cyst volume was demonstrated in 14/19 (74%) of subjects at 6 months.
Dr. Krishna presented a series of five subjects enrolled at his clinical site in whom additional testing revealed no detectable DNA mutations in 2/4 subjects following NanoPac treatment, all of whom were positive at baseline. Absence of DNA indicates the possibility of cyst epithelial lining necrosis, a key goal in treatment. In addition, high concentrations of paclitaxel (>1000 ng/mL) were found in cyst fluid prior to the second injection at the 3-month timepoint confirming retention of NanoPac in the cyst while plasma concentrations were never greater than 3.5 ng/mL at any timepoint.
Large IPMNs or MCNs grow rapidly and are at high risk for progression to pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest of all cancers. Surgery is recommended to eliminate the risk, but a significant number of patients refuse or cannot withstand surgery due to the associated morbidities. For these patients, there are few therapeutic options and no approved drug therapies. Additional studies of NanoPac are being considered to further evaluate its potential in these patients.
In addition to this trial, NanOlogy’s clinical programs are advancing in pancreatic, lung, genitourinary, and dermal cancers. Data from preclinical and clinical studies in a variety of solid tumors indicate persistent tumor kill, antitumoral immune response, and minimal local or systemic toxicity.
The NanOlogy large surface area microparticle (LSAM) therapeutic platform is based on a proprietary supercritical precipitation technology that converts taxane API crystals into stable LSAMs of pure drug for tumor-directed therapy and sustained drug release. The taxane particles are covered by composition of matter patents issued in the US (US 9,814,685, US 10,507,195, & US 10,993,927), Europe, Japan, and Australia all valid until 2036, plus applications pending globally. These composition of matter patents form the foundation of an extensive intellectual property portfolio protecting the investigational drugs, methods, and technology.
About NanOlogy
NanOlogy, LLC (www.nanology.us) is a private clinical stage oncology company formed in 2015 to improve the treatment of solid tumors based on a proprietary supercritical precipitation technology platform.
Disclaimers
This announcement contains forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, including statements about our product development, business, and other activities. Such statements are subject to the risks and uncertainties inherent in any pharmaceutical development program which may cause actual results to differ materially due to developmental, clinical trial, regulatory, market, competitive, technological, or other factors. All forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this announcement and the company disclaims any intent or obligation to update these statements. NanOlogy investigational drugs have not been proven to be safe and effective as required by U.S. FDA and have not been approved by FDA or any other jurisdiction for commercial distribution. NanOlogy and NanoPac are trademarks of NanOlogy LLC registered in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.
