Nuvectis Pharma Announces Positive Data for NXP900 in a Preclinical Model of Group 4 Medulloblastoma, a Type of Brain Cancer That Affects Predominantly Pediatric Patients

Nuvectis Pharma, Inc. recently announced positive data for NXP900 in a preclinical xenograft model of Group 4 Medulloblastoma presented on June 12, 2022, at SIOPE Brain Tumour Group in Hamburg, Germany, by scientists from the Pediatric Solid Tumour Biology and Therapeutics Team led by Prof. Louis Chesler of The Institute of Cancer Research in London, UK, in collaboration with the Institute of Genetics & Cancer at The University of Edinburgh.

“Group 4 Medulloblastoma is a rare disease that mostly affects pediatric patients, in which aberrant SRC signaling was identified as a hallmark of the disease,” said Ron Bentsur, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Nuvectis. “NXP900’s abilities to inhibit the SRC kinase and to cross the blood-brain barrier have been previously demonstrated, translating into potent and durable tumor growth inhibition in this preclinical model. We believe that these results support further development of NXP900 in Group 4 Medulloblastoma and we are excited about the therapeutic potential of NXP900 in this devastating disease.”

Key Results

• The study was conducted in a mouse model of Group 4 Medulloblastoma.
• Mice in each group were treated with either vehicle or NXP900 (referred to as eCF506) for 28 days.
• Treatment with NXP900 resulted in substantial tumor growth inhibition and a survival benefit versus the control.

Medulloblastoma is a primary central nervous system (CNS) tumor that can occur in both children and adults, and it is a leading type of brain cancer in children. Four subgroups of medulloblastoma tumors have been identified (WNT, SHH, Group 3 and Group 4), each with a distinct molecular profile and prognosis. Groups 3 and Group 4 are considered the most severe. The standard treatment approach for Medulloblastoma includes surgical resection, chemotherapy and radiation.

The estimated overall prevalence of Medulloblastoma (including adults and children) in the U.S. is 3,840 (NCI, Center for Cancer Research), with approximately 500 new cases diagnosed each year in children. The majority of the diagnoses are in children between the ages of five and nine years of age, with Group 4 accounting for approximately 40% of all cases. Group 4 Medulloblastoma is considered severe, with metastatic disease present in about 35% of cases at the time of diagnosis, making treatment more challenging and leading to poor patient outcomes.

Additional treatment options are needed for Group 4 Medulloblastoma patients who are not candidates for tumor resection and/or who have failed or are ineligible for chemotherapy and radiation therapies. Proteomic and phosphoproteomic analyses previously identified aberrant ERBB4-SRC signaling as a hallmark of Group 4 Medulloblastoma (Forget et al., 2018, Cancer Cell 34, 379-395), validating the SRC kinase as a potential therapeutic target in this most common medulloblastoma subgroup.

Nuvectis Pharma, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative precision medicines for the treatment of serious conditions of unmet medical needs in oncology. The Company’s pipeline includes NXP800, a clinical-stage HSF1-pathway inhibitor, and NXP900, a SRC/YES1 kinase inhibitor in IND-enabling studies. For more information, visit www.nuvectis.com.