Krakow, Poland – May 28, 2021 – Ryvu Therapeutics (WSE: RVU), a clinical stage drug discovery and development company focusing on novel small molecule therapies that address emerging targets in oncology, announced today that its Clinical Trial Application (CTA) to commence a single-agent, open-label Phase I/II trial, investigating the safety and efficacy of RVU120 (SEL120) in patients with relapsed/refractory metastatic or advanced solid tumors in Poland, has been fully approved by the Polish Office for Registration of Medicinal Products, Medical Devices and Biocidal Products, and the respective Central Ethics Committee.
Following the above-mentioned approvals, Ryvu Therapeutics will be able to initiate a clinical study and start enrolling patients in Poland.
The study is designed in two phases. Phase I part has the key objectives of assessing safety and tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), and preliminary anti-tumor activity of RVU120 (SEL120) during dose escalating cohorts, and determination of the recommended phase II dose (RP2D), and the phase II part, subsequently will include specific tumor indications, enrolled at distinct study groups, such as Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC).
“With approvals from Polish Office for Registration of Medicinal Products, Medical Devices, and Biocidal Products and Central Ethics Committee, we are making another important step in the clinical development of our flagship RVU120 (SEL120) program. We are very excited to develop RVU120 (SEL120) as a potential treatment in both hematological and solid malignancies,” – comments Setareh Shamsili, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer, and EVP at Ryvu Therapeutics.
“We are delighted that the new Phase I/II RVU120 (SEL120) study in patients with solid tumors will be conducted in Poland. Clinical Trial Applications in other European countries will be submitted over the coming months,” – adds Setareh Shamsili.
About RVU120 (SEL120)
RVU120 (SEL120) is a highly selective first-in-class CDK8/CDK19 inhibitor, which has demonstrated efficacy in a number of solid tumor types in in vitro and in vivo models as well as in onco-hematological malignancies. The first-in-human (FIH) phase I study with RVU120(SEL120), in relapsed or refractory AML or high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (HRMDS), is currently enrolling patients in 5 investigational sites in USA (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04021368).
Current translational data suggest that RVU120 (SEL120) is particularly effective in undifferentiated AML STAT5-positive cancers. Administration of RVU120 (SEL120) in orthotopic AML patient derived xenograft models reduced tumor burden to the level undetectable in the peripheral blood, decreased splenomegaly and resulted in partial bone marrow recovery at well tolerated doses, providing therefore a strong rationale for the clinical development of RVU120 (SEL120) as an effective treatment for AML and potentially other hematological malignancies.
On March 25, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted an orphan drug designation (ODD) to RVU120 (SEL120), for the treatment of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
On April, 2021 U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, placed a partial clinical hold on the first in human Phase Ib, dose escalation clinical trial of RVU120 in patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) AML and high-risk MDS. Patients who are currently taking RVU120 may continue treatment. Ryvu continues to work closely with the FDA to resolve the partial clinical hold with the objective of resuming enrollment in the study. RVU120 (SEL120) was discovered with the Ryvu Therapeutics discovery engine platform and has received support from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Therapy Acceleration Program® (TAP), a strategic initiative to partner directly with innovative biotechnology companies and leading research institutions to accelerate the development of promising new therapies for blood cancers. More information about TAP program is available at: https://www.lls.org/therapy-acceleration-program.