Esperance presents results from EP-100 Phase 1 study on solid tumors at ASCO annual meeting

Esperance Pharmaceuticals presented its Phase 1 study of EP-100, a novel targeted membrane‐disrupting peptide (tMDP) in advanced solid tumors at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois. EP‐100 is designed to seek and destroy cancer cells that over‐express luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) receptors on their surfaces. LHRH receptors are over‐expressed in a wide range of cancers. The Phase 1 study was designed to determine safety and maximum dose of EP-100, including a recommended dose for Phase 2 trials. Based on clinical experience of escalating doses in 38 patients in the Phase 1 study and on preclinical studies showing synergy of EP-100 with various chemotherapeutic agents, Esperance has begun enrollment of patients in a Phase 2 multi‐center trial for patients with advanced ovarian cancer randomized to EP‐100 in combination with paclitaxel versus paclitaxel alone.

"Results from the Phase 1 study suggest that LHRH expression is a viable target for therapy, and that EP-100 has potential as a targeted, well-tolerated therapeutic for tumor treatment in areas where many patients are running out of options," said lead investigator Ramesh K. Ramanathan, MD from the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center/TGen, (Scottsdale, AZ). "I look forward to continuing progress with this exciting, new drug candidate in various later stage clinical trials."

"This Phase 1 study provided us with the information we needed to move forward with clinical trials in specific LHRH receptor expressing tumor types that are resistant to treatment," said Hector Alila, PhD, President and CEO of Esperance Pharmaceuticals. "Specifically, we believe there is a compelling rationale for the study of EP‐100 in ovarian cancer—which is known to over-express LHRH receptors. To this end we initiated a Phase 2 study in ovarian cancer in May and are hopeful EP‐100 may hold promise for this patient population with very few treatment options."