XNK Therapeutics AB (“XNK”) today announced that the first patient has been included in a Phase II clinical study to treat patients with Multiple myeloma using XNK’s leading autologous natural killer (NK) cell-based candidate drug in combination with Sanofi’s anti-CD38 antibody Sarclisa (Isatuximab).
“Having the first patient included in this clinical study is a key step in XNK’s development”, said Johan Liwing, CEO of XNK Therapeutics. “While our leading drug candidate is now entering into Phase II, we are in parallel dedicated to progressing our clinical development plan into other indications building on a Phase I/II first-in-human study”.
The present investigator-initiated, open, randomized, controlled, Phase II study ISA-HC-NK (EudraCT: 2020-000994-26) compares XNK’s leading candidate drug combined with Sanofi’s anti-CD38 antibody Isatuximab with Isatuximab alone as a consolidation treatment following autologous stem cell transplantation in patients with newly diagnosed Multiple myeloma. The clinical study takes place at the Karolinska University Hospital at its Huddinge site, and encompasses at total of 60 patients with 30 patients in each treatment arm.
“Combining NK cells that mediate antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) with targeted antibodies is an appealing concept. The idea envisaged is a synergetic effect with possible reduced toxicity, helping the Multiple myeloma patients maintaining a disease-free stage. This study is unique as it is the first investigator-initiated study randomizing patients to an NK cell-based therapy”, said Hareth Nahi, Associate Professor at Karolinska Institutet and Principal Investigator for the study.
XNK Therapeutics and Sanofi are both collaborative industrial partners within NextGenNK, a recently established Competence Center for the development of next-generation NK cell-based cancer immunotherapies coordinated by Karolinska Institutet and supported by Sweden’s Innovation Agency (Vinnova).
For more information, please contact:
Johan Liwing, CEO, XNK Therapeutics
Tel: +46 706 70 36 75
E-mail: johan.liwing@xnktherapeutics.com
About XNK Therapeutics AB
XNK Therapeutics is a clinical stage, immunotherapy company focusing its efforts on preventing and treating cancer by developing novel NK cell-based therapies. The company has established a leadership position in the clinical development and manufacture of autologous NK cell-based products using its proprietary technology platform. The company’s platform technology and leading investigational drug candidate have ideal properties for targeting cancers, including settings where allogeneic cell products are not readily applicable. It is foreseen that the product will bring a critical component to tomorrow’s cancer treatment strategies. XNK Therapeutics is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. For more info, please visit https://xnktherapeutics.com.
About Multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma (MM) is the third most frequent hematological malignancy worldwide. MM treatment has improved over the last two decades with the development and introduction of new agents leading to more effective treatments. Regardless of this, MM remains a fatal disease in the majority of cases. New therapies are needed in this context.
