October 23, 2018
Humanetics Corporation to Present At the Annual Meeting of the American society For Radiation Oncology
Presentation will provide an update of the clinical trial with BIO 300 in non-small cell lung cancer patients to mitigate radiotherapy toxicity
MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Humanetics Corporation (Humanetics) has been invited to present at the annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) being held October 21st through the 24th in San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Michael Kurman, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for Humanetics, will be presenting an overview of the study design and providing an update on the status of the Company’s on-going, multi-site, Phase 1b/2a trial in non-small cell lung cancer patients. The trial is investigating the safety and efficacy of BIO 300, a new drug candidate focused on mitigating toxicities to normal tissues resulting from cancer radiotherapy.
Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States and affects more than 230,000 individuals per year. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common type of lung cancer, comprising approximately 87% of all cases. A common treatment for NSCLC is radiotherapy, which is often accompanied by chemotherapy. Radiation can cause unwanted side-effects to otherwise healthy tissue surrounding the tumor or in the path of the radiation beam. These effects include esophagitis, pulmonary pneumonitis and fibrosis, all of which can contribute to lasting health problems and in severe cases can be fatal.
“Drugs that can prevent the unwanted side effects of radiotherapy are an urgent need for patients,” said Dr. Charles Simone, Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology and Medical Director of the Maryland Proton Therapy Center in Baltimore, Maryland. “Radiotherapy is an important standard of care and its use is forecast to grow. Drugs such as BIO 300 have the potential to significantly improve the quality of life and outcomes for our patients.” Dr. Simone is serving as a Principal Investigator for the BIO 300 clinical trial.
BIO 300 is an oral medication, taken once daily by the patient prior to their radiation treatment. Its properties as a radioprotectant were discovered by researchers at the U.S. Department of Defense, where it was studied as a potential agent to be used by warfighters to prevent injury from radiation on the battlefield. Humanetics acquired the rights to the drug and has active development programs ongoing in both oncology and for biodefense.