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LONDON (Alliance News) - Scancell Holdings PLC on Friday said it has established a clinical advisory board and has begun manufacturing and toxicity testing on its tumour drug candidate.
Shares in immunotherapy company Scancell were up 14% at 4.35 pence in morning trade.
The new advisory board, consisting of "six world class clinical oncologists" will give guidance and support as Scancell gears up for clinical trials of Modi-1 in the first quarter of 2020 as a treatment for multiple types of tumours.
In preparation for the phase 1/2 clinical trial, Scancell is conducting good manufacturing practice synthesis at its facilities in the Netherlands and has signed an agreement with AMRI to "formulate, manufacture, and package the Modi-1 GMP final product for clinical testing".
A preclinical toxicity testing programme for Modi-1 began in April and is expected to complete in the second half of 2019.
Modi-1 is the lead candidate from its Moditope class of immunotherapy agents, which are intended to overcome immune system suppression caused by tumours. This allows the body's own immune system to attack and destroy tumours.
At present, Mod-1 is being developed to treat many types of solid tumours, such as breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and head and neck cancer.
The new clinical advisory board will be led by Robert Coleman, who is emeritus professor of Medical Oncology at Weston Park Hospital and the University of Sheffield.
Other members include Christian Ottensmeier, who is professor of Experimental Cancer Medicine at the University of Southampton, and the University of Nottingam's Clinical Oncology professor, Poulam Patel.
Scancell Chief Executive Cliff Holloway said: "We are delighted to welcome all six experienced clinicians to our clinical advisory board and the creation of this board is part of our wider strategy to fully develop and deliver the full potential of the Moditope platform across multiple tumour types."
"The initial focus of the board will be to inform the clinical strategy for the planned Modi-1 clinical trial and to ensure the best possible outcome in several solid tumour indications...Significant progress has been made towards completing the GMP manufacture of the Modi-1 product and the preclinical testing required prior to the anticipated start of the trial early in 2020."