Genome & Company (CEO Bae Ji-soo and Park Han-soo), a company specializing in immunotherapy drugs, signed a Clinical Trial Collaboration and Supply Agreement (CTCSA) with MSD for biliary tract cancer.
After signing the CTCSA, Genome & Company evaluated the safety and effectiveness of combination therapy with MSD immunotherapy KEYTRUDA® (ingredient name: pembrolizumab) and ‘GEN-001’ for patients with biliary tract cancer. A phase 2 clinical trial will be conducted to do this. Genome & Company will oversee and conduct the clinical trial as a sponsor, and MSD will supply Keytruda® used in the clinical trial as a co-investigator.
‘GEN-001’ is an oral microbiome treatment candidate whose main ingredient is a single strain of Lactococcus lactis isolated and identified from a healthy person .
Biliary tract cancer is one of the cancer types with a poor prognosis after diagnosis, with treatment options limited to chemotherapy and the 5-year survival rate of patients being only 5-15%. MDPI Cancers 2021, an SCI-level academic journal, confirmed that immune cells were infiltrated around cancer cells in 70% of biliary tract cancer patients, confirming the relationship between immune cells and biliary tract cancer.
Bae Ji-su, CEO of Genome & Company, said, “Genome & Company is expanding the combination clinical trial of its representative pipeline ‘GEN-001’ to MSD Keytruda®, following the existing German Merck and Pfizer Bavencio®, and PD-1 and PD- All L1 series will be conducting clinical trial cooperation with global pharmaceutical companies. “This means that Genome & Company has been recognized for its technology in the global cancer immunotherapy market,” he said. “Through this clinical trial collaboration, both companies hope that the combination therapy of ‘GEN-001’ and Keytruda® will be a useful treatment for patients with biliary tract cancer.” “I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
Meanwhile, KEYTRUDA® is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, New Jersey, USA.
Source: Pangyo Techno Valley Official Newsroom
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