Losses widen as Evgen Pharma develops SFX-01

(Sharecast News) - Clinical-stage drug development company Evgen Pharma reported a slight widening of its post-tax loss in its final results on Monday, to £2.7m, from £2.6m in the prior year.
The AIM-traded firm, which is pre-revenue, said its cash outflow from operations totalled £2.6m in the year ended 31 March, compared to £2.3m a year earlier.

Its cash balance at year-end stood at £4.1m, up from £2m year-on-year, after the company completed an oversubscribed fundraising in May 2019, which brought in £5m before expenses.

On the operational front, Evgen reported positive results from the STEM trial of 'SFX-01' in metastatic breast cancer, which was presented at the European Society of Medical Oncology Congress in Barcelona, demonstrating the stabilisation of previously-progressive disease and objective responses in some patients.

Five patients who participated in the STEM trial received SFX-01 treatment for more than one year, with no tumour progression.

Results from the 'SFX-01 After Subarachnoid Haemorrhage' (SAS) trial did not meet primary or secondary efficacy endpoints, although the treatment was well tolerated with no safety concerns, supporting evaluation in other indications.

Significant progress was made in tablet formulation of SFX-01, that would underpin easier clinical use in a range of indications and yield economic and production benefits.

Memorandums of understanding were reached with Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, the University of Dundee and the University of Rochester in New York, to support clinical trials of SFX-01 in autism, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and chronic kidney disease, respectively.

A research collaboration was also launched with King's College London and the British Heart Foundation, to investigate how SFX-01 mediates upregulation of Nrf2 in the blood-brain barrier endothelium in-vivo.

Since year-end, Evgen also noted the publication of preclinical data in Oncogene, for SFX-01's role in targeting STAT3 signalling and inhibition of endocrine resistant stem-like cells in ER-positive breast cancer.

"We move forward with the confidence that the value of SFX-01 as a potential drug that is active against the two key pathways of Nrf2 and STAT3 will become increasingly clear," said executive chairman Barry Clare.

"These pathways are of significance in a range of diseases including cancer, autism and those where oxidative stress is a factor.

"We therefore believe that the fundamentals are in place to underpin sustainable share price growth and deliver the undoubted potential of SFX-01."

At 0911 BST, shares in Evgen Pharma were down 16.67% at 9p.