Invion (ASX:IVX) confirms significant effectiveness improvement when ICI used with INV043 drug

• Invion (IVX) confirms combination therapy of INV043 and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) is more effective than just ICI therapy in its latest proof-of-concept (PoC) study
• The findings are from Invion’s third PoC study undertaken by its research partner, Hudson Institute of Medical Research, with results showing around 65 per cent reduction of tumour size in mice with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC)
• It also shows clear tumour stabilisation and regression despite restricted treatment protocol and tumours were also significantly smaller than those in mice that received monotherapy
• The findings open up partnership possibilities as INV043 may provide potential for pharmaceutical companies with ICI drugs to improve clinical outcomes, develop new intellectual property and extend the patent life of their ICI therapies
• IVX shares hold steady at 1.3 cents as of 10:41 am AEST

Invion (IVX) confirmed a combination therapy of its flagship INV043 drug and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) is more effective than standalone ICI therapy in its latest proof-of-concept (PoC) study.

The findings were from the company’s third PoC study undertaken by its research partner, Hudson Institute of Medical Research.

This PoC was specifically designed to evaluate whether INV043 can be used in combination with immune checkpoint inhibition targeting PD-1 to improve outcomes in mice with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC).

The results showed around 65 per cent reduction of tumour size in mice with TNBC.

It also showed clear tumour stabilisation and regression despite restricted treatment protocol and tumours were also significantly smaller than those in mice that received monotherapy.

Research Group Head, Ovarian Cancer Biomarkers at the Hudson Institute Dr Andrew Stephens concluded that the results provide compelling rationales for combination therapy.

“As INV043 induces both direct cell death in the tumour microenvironment as
well as the release of tumour neoantigens, we hypothesised that INV043 would combine with checkpoint inhibition to enhance the anti-tumour efficacy compared to either monotherapy alone,” Dr Stephens said.

Unlike previous PoC studies, administration was restricted to a small portion of the tumour to specifically probe the combination approach and immune-mediated changes following therapy in an animal model.

These results also open up partnership possibilities as INV043 may provide potential for pharmaceutical companies with ICI drugs to improve clinical outcomes, develop new intellectual property and extend the patent life of their ICI therapies.

IVX shares held steady at 1.3 cents as of 10:41 am AEST.