Viracta Therapeutics, Inc. (VIRX) experienced an increase of 8.21% in aftermarket following the announcement that the company has dosed the first patient in Phase 1b/2 Trial of Nana-val. However, the last trading session closed at $2.68 with an increase of 11.2%.
Dosing First Patient Phase 1b/2 Trial by VIRX – What’s up?
VIRX announced on 31st January 2022 that the company has successfully dosed the first patient in Phase 1b/2 Trial of Nana-val. The start of dosing in this clinical trial is a significant milestone for Viracta and a crucial step toward potentially broadening the therapeutic usefulness of the targeted all-oral Nana-val combination beyond lymphoma. Moreover, the prognosis for advanced NPC patients is bleak, and improved therapy alternatives are urgently needed. However, VIRX is excited to see how this innovative combination therapy performs in the clinic and whether there are any synergies with a PD-1 inhibitor.
Preclinical Vecabrutinib Data – Latest News by VIRX
VIRX announced the new preclinical data on vecabrutinib on 13th December 2021. According to the reports, the CART19 cells’ cytotoxic activity was boosted by vecabrutinib, although their proliferative capability was maintained. Moreover, in a mouse mantle cell lymphoma model, vecabrutinib improved the anti-tumor efficacy of CART19 cells. Not only this but Vecabrutinib decreased the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines linked to CAR T-cell therapy-related side effects, which matched findings from a previous Phase 1 clinical trial testing vecabrutinib as a treatment for B-cell malignancies. Last but not the least, only vecabrutinib drove CAR-T cell proliferation at high doses as compared to ibrutinib in a direct comparison.
What’s Next?
These intriguing preliminary results highlight the promise of vecabrutinib to boost CAR T-cell efficacy. Furthermore, the good results of vecabrutinib could potentially increase the use and tolerance of CAR T-cell treatments and enhance the outlook for patients with a range of malignancies if transferred to the clinic.
Orphan Drug Designation – More About it
VIRX reported on 29th November 2021 that FDA has granted orphan drug designation to nanatinostat and valganciclovir. This new orphan medication designation highlights the possible advantages of the all-oral kick-and-kill strategy to EBV-positive tumors. Moreover, Nana-val has shown preliminary efficacy in a number of EBV-positive lymphoma subtypes, notably DLBCL.
Furthermore, VIRX is dosing patients in the pivotal NAVAL-1 study, which includes EBV-positive DLBCL patients. And they are looking forward to the program’s ongoing progress, with sites now available for recruitment in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Last but not the least, they hope to further develop Nana-val as a new and actionable therapeutic in situations where many patients relapse after standard treatment.
