Cantargia publishes preclinical data on strong anti-tumor efficacy of nadunolimab in combination with chemotherapy

Cantargia (Cantargia AB; Nasdaq Stockholm: CANTA) today reported publication of preclinical results demonstrating that Cantargia’s lead candidate, the IL1RAP-binding antibody nadunolimab (CAN04), shows synergistic anti-tumor efficacy with chemotherapy through a mechanism likely to be highly relevant in the clinical situation. The effect is dependent on the unique capability of nadunolimab to simultaneously block both the alpha and beta forms of interleukin-1 (IL-1). These findings support the promising clinical interim data observed with nadunolimab in pancreatic cancer (PDAC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

“The published results clearly demonstrate that targeting IL1RAP in combination with chemotherapy is a potent therapeutic approach and provide solid support for development of nadunolimab as a novel treatment of cancer. They also highlight nadunolimab’s superior capacity to block the IL-1 system compared to other approaches being investigated clinically,” said Göran Forsberg, CEO of Cantargia.

The data, published in the peer reviewed journal Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy, show that chemotherapy causes release of IL-1α by tumor cells, which in turn triggers production of IL-1β by so-called stromal cells residing within tumor tissue. This finding is relevant as IL-1α and IL-1β are both known to cause tumor resistance to chemotherapy. The data further demonstrate that nadunolimab blocks the IL-1α-dependent interaction between tumor cells and stromal cells. Notably, the combination of nadunolimab and chemotherapy results in a stronger anti-tumor efficacy compared to chemotherapy control. The same effect is not achieved with an antibody which blocks IL-1β signaling only, suggesting that nadunolimab’s capacity to block both IL-1α and IL-1β is integral to its synergy with chemotherapy.

These findings are in agreement with the promising clinical interim efficacy data presented recently at the ASCO Annual Meeting 2022. In over 70 PDAC patients and 30 NSCLC patients evaluated in the phase IIa part of the clinical trial CANFOUR, nadunolimab in combination with chemotherapy results in efficacy well above historical controls for chemotherapy alone.

The article, titled “Blockade of IL-1α and IL-1β signaling by the anti-IL1RAP antibody nadunolimab (CAN04) mediates synergistic anti-tumor efficacy with chemotherapy”, is authored by Rydberg Millrud et al. and is available via the following link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00262-022-03277-3. Parts of the published data have previously been presented at scientific conferences.

Nadunolimab has a unique mode of action, mediating killing of IL1RAP-expressing tumor cells and blocking tumor-promoting signals from the two molecules IL-1α and IL-1β. Nadunolimab is currently being investigated in multiple clinical trials, in combination with chemotherapy, in various forms of cancer.

For further information, please contact
Göran Forsberg, CEO
Telephone: +46 (0)46-275 62 60
E-mail: goran.forsberg@cantargia.com

This information was submitted for publication, at 08.45 CET on 30 August 2022.

About Cantargia
Cantargia AB (publ), reg. no. 556791-6019, is a biotechnology company that develops antibody-based treatments for life-threatening diseases and has established a platform based on the protein IL1RAP, involved in a number of cancer forms and inflammatory diseases. The main project, the antibody nadunolimab, is being studied clinically in combination with chemotherapy or immune therapy with a primary focus on non-small cell lung cancer and pancreatic cancer. Positive interim data from the combination with chemotherapy indicate stronger efficacy than would be expected from chemotherapy alone. Cantargia’s second project, the antibody CAN10, addresses treatment of serious autoimmune/inflammatory diseases, with initial focus on systemic sclerosis and myocarditis.

Cantargia is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm (ticker: CANTA). More information about Cantargia is available at www.cantargia.com.

About nadunolimab (CAN04)
The antibody CAN04 binds strongly to its target IL1RAP and functions by inducing ADCC and blocking IL-1α and IL-1β signaling. Thereby, CAN04 can counteract the contribution of the IL-1 system to the immune suppressive tumor microenvironment and development of resistance to chemotherapy. CAN04 is investigated in multiple ongoing clinical trials. In the phase I/IIa study CANFOUR, first line combination therapy is investigated with standard chemotherapies in patients with PDAC (gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel) and patients with NSCLC (cisplatin/gemcitabine) (NCT03267316). Positive interim data for the combination therapies show durable responses in 73 patients with PDAC, resulting in median iPFS of 7.2 months and median survival of 12.7 months. Stronger efficacy was also observed in 30 NSCLC patients with median PFS of 6.8 months. A response rate of 53% was achieved, with even higher responses in non-squamous NSCLC patients previously treated with pembrolizumab. These results show stronger efficacy than expected from chemotherapy alone. CAN04 is investigated with chemotherapy also in the phase I study CAPAFOUR, with the FOLFIRINOX regimen for first line treatment of metastatic PDAC (NCT04990037), and in two further clinical studies, CESTAFOUR (NCT05116891) and TRIFOUR (NCT05181462), in additional forms of cancer, including biliary tact cancer, colorectal cancer and triple negative breast cancer. CAN04 is also evaluated with the immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab, with or without chemotherapy, in the phase I study CIRIFOUR (NCT04452214).

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