Date: 2012-01-23
Type of information: Initiation of preclinical development
phase: 1
Announcement: initiation
Company: Active Biotech (Sweden)
Product: TASQ (tasquinimod)
Action
mechanism: immunomodulator/immunotherapy product. TASQ (tasquinimod, ABR-215050) binds to a molecule called S100A9 which is expressed in the white blood cells involved in the regulation of immune responses. S100A9 interacts with two known pro-inflammatory receptors (Toll like receptor 4 (TLR4) and receptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE)) and this interaction is inhibited by TASQ (Björk et al PLoS Biology, April 2009).
Disease: chemorefractory metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC)
Therapeutic area: Cancer - Oncology
Country: USA
Trial
details: The primary objective for the CATCH trial (Cabazitaxel (Jevtana®) And Tasquinimod in Men with Castration-Resistant Heavily pre-treated Prostate Cancer) is to determine the ecommended dose of TASQ in combination with cabazitaxel based on safety and tolerability in men with chemorefractory metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Secondary objectives include efficacy as measured by progression free survival, and overall survival. The study will include about 30 CRPC patients.
Latest
news: Active Biotech has announced that a Phase I Investigator sponsored clinical trial, led by Dr.Andrew Armstrong at Duke University Hospital, US, has been announced for its prostate cancer project TASQ. Given previous significant activity observed with both TASQ and taxane chemotherapy in CRPC, there is a strong rationale for the study of the combined use of these agents. In preclinical model systems of castrate-resistant prostate cancer, TASQ combined with taxane-based chemotherapy has been shown to further delay tumor progression.
A global, pivotal, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase III study of TASQ in patients with metastatic CRPC is also ongoing. The aim of the study is to confirm TASQ's effect on the disease, with radiological PFS as the primary endpoint and overall survival as secondary endpoint. The study will include about 1,200 patients in more than 250 clinics.
