AACR Conference Presentation
Released
Released
Announcement PDF
ABN 16 165 160 841
10th April 2024
ASX RELEASE
AACR CONFERENCE PRESENTATION
HIGHLIGHTS
•
Data from our Phase 1b ACCENT trial in pancreatic cancer has been presented at the
prestigious American Association of Cancer Research annual meeting
•
The data summary highlights that narmafotinib in advanced pancreatic patients appears safe
and well tolerated, with promising early signs of activity
Melbourne, Australia: Amplia Therapeutics Limited (ASX: ATX), (“Amplia” or the “Company”) is
pleased to announce that a poster, highlighting key data from the Phase 1b ACCENT trial, was
presented overnight at the annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research, being held
in San Diego, USA. The ACCENT trial is the company’s lead clinical program, exploring the activity of
our best-in-class FAK inhibitor narmafotinib, in combination with standard-of-care chemotherapy, in
advanced pancreatic cancer patients.
The poster outlines the scientific rationale for the use of FAK inhibitors in pancreatic cancer treatment
and details the clinical design of the ACCENT trial. Data highlights from the presented data for the 14
patients in the Phase 1b trial include:
• Demonstration of the excellent pharmacokinetics of the drug in patients, supporting once-aday daily dosing
• Excellent safety and tolerability data
• Response data showing a disease control rate, as best response, of 100% (= 6 partial responses
and 8 stable disease)
• Evidence that the higher doses of 200 and 400 mg resulted in better outcomes
• Promising duration on trial showing 9 of 14 patients stayed on trial for >5 months.
A copy of the poster is attached to this announcement.
Amplia’s CEO Dr Chris Burns commented: “We are delighted to present this early data from the
ACCENT trial to the broader scientific and clinical community at such a high profile conference. Such
disclosures allow us to discuss the data with world-leading experts in FAK biology and oncology drug
development, as well as potential collaboration partners in pharma and biotech.”
This ASX announcement was approved and authorised for release by the Board.
- End Investor Contact:
Dr Chris Burns
Chief Executive Officer
chris@ampliatx.com
Media Contact:
H^CK Director, Haley Chartres
haley@hck.digital
+61 423 139 163
Level 17, 350 Queen Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Email info@ampliatx.com
www.ampliatx.com
About Amplia Therapeutics Limited
Amplia Therapeutics Limited is an Australian pharmaceutical company advancing a pipeline of Focal
Adhesion Kinase (FAK) inhibitors for cancer and fibrosis. FAK is an increasingly important target in the
field of cancer and Amplia has a particular development focus in fibrotic cancers such as pancreatic
cancer. FAK also plays a significant role in a number of chronic diseases, such as idiopathic pulmonary
fibrosis (IPF). For more information visit www.ampliatx.com and follow Amplia on Twitter (@ampliatx),
Threads (@ampliatx) and LinkedIn.
Phase 1b/2a of narmafotinib (AMP945) in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane®) standard of care
as first-line therapy in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer (ACCENT trial): interim analysis
Terrie-Anne Cock1, Anthony Bishop1, Nicole Kruger1, Sarah McCormack1, Marion Harris2, Sumitra Ananda3, Lara Lipton4, Adnan Nagrial5, Nick Pavlakis6, Warren Joubert7, Laura Donato8, Jason D. Lickliter1, Christopher J. Burns1
1Amplia Therapeutics, Melbourne, Australia, 2Monash Medical Centre, Melbourne, Australia, 3Epworth Cancer Services Clinical Institute, Melbourne, Australia, 4Sunshine Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, 5Westmead Cancer Care Centre, Sydney Australia, 6GenesisCare, Sydney Australia, 7Greenslopes Oncology,
Brisbane, Australia and 8 IQVIA Biotech, Sydney, Australia
Best Response by RECIST v 1.1
Dosing Regimens
Background
Narmafotinib (AMP945) is a selective and orally bioavailable inhibitor
of Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK).
All participants receive oral narmafotinib once daily at the selected
dose on Day -8 to Day -2 (7 doses total) of a monotherapy Run-In
period, prior to the first treatment cycle. Each 28-day treatment cycle
includes IV nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane®) and gemcitabine on Days 1, 8
and 15, and oral narmafotinib priming on Days 3 to 6, 10 to 13, and 24
to 27, inclusive.
Inclusion
Aberrant FAK signaling has been implicated in the progression of
cancer, where it is involved in promoting tumor growth, adhesion,
angiogenesis, invasion, and migration, as well as immunomodulation
and remodeling of the fibrotic tumor microenvironment2-4. FAK is
frequently overexpressed in a variety of cancers, including pancreatic
ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)4, a highly fibrotic and aggressive
malignancy with a poor 5-year survival rate,5 in which high FAK
expression correlates with poor prognosis6,7.
ACCENT Study Overview
ACCENT trial (NCT05355298) is a Phase 1b/2a, open label study of the
pharmacokinetics, safety and efficacy of narmafotinib in combination
with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane®) standard of care as
first-line therapy in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. The
trial is a single-arm open label study conducted in two stages.
Key Eligibility Criteria
Exclusion
• Diagnosis of metastatic or not surgically
resectable PDAC
• ECOG status of 0 or 1
• Measurable disease per RECIST 1.1
• Life expectancy ≥ 3 months
• Acceptable hematologic and clinical
laboratory chemistry values
• Received prior systemic treatment for
PDAC, except as a radiosensitizer,
provided >6 months have elapsed since
last dose and no toxicities >grade 1 are
still present
• Known brain metastases, unless treated
and well-controlled for > 3 months
• GI condition that could interfere with
swallowing or absorption of medication
Patient demographics: Part A dose escalation
14 patients were treated with narmafotinib + gemcitabine/nabpaclitaxel (Abraxane®)
• Males n=7 (50%)
• Females n=7 (50%)
• Average age: 62 years old
• Predominantly Caucasian
Contact
Terrie-Anne Cock
Amplia Therapeutics
Email: TerrieAnne@ampliatx.com
Website: www.ampliatx.com
References
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
400mg-->200mg
Classification
400mg-->100mg
400mg
0
-20
-40
Partial
response
-60
-80
Best Overall
Response
(n)
14
CR
0 (0%)
PR
6 (43%)
SD
8 (57%)
DCR (PR+SD)
14 (100%)
PD
0 (0%)
Not Evaluable
0 (0%)
Investigator assessed
• Narmafotinib combined with gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel
(Abraxane®) demonstrated promising dose related trend in the
first 14 patients – with ORR of 43%.
• This compares favorably with the reported response rate of 23%
with gemcitabine/Abraxane® in the pivotal Phase III trial8.
• Two patients had dose adjustments due to AEs from 400mg to
100mg and 400mg to 200mg
Time on treatment
1
– withdrawn
due to
chemotoxicities
3
4
5
6
7
PD
8
PR
Ongoing
withdrawal for non-PD reasons
9
10
11
13
3000
100mg Narmafotinib
200mg Narmafotinib
14
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Duration of Treatment (days)
400mg Narmafotinib
2000
100mg
200mg
400mg-->100mg
400mg-->200mg
400mg
1000
0
0
4
8
12
16
20
24
Hour
Pharmacokinetics from single dose of
narmafotinib (Day -8)
• Narmafotinib-related events - the following occurred in more than
one participant: diarrhea, gastroesophageal reflux disease,
nausea, vomiting, fatigue, pyrexia, and macro-papular rash
• No treatment related deaths and only two narmafotinib related
SAEs: febrile infection, and fatigue
• All other SAEs reported to date have either been unrelated or
assessed as related to gemcitabine/Abraxane®
• No dose limiting toxicities (DLTs) were noted in the 100 mg and
200 mg cohorts. A single DLT (Grade 3 Nausea >72 h) was reported
at the 400 mg dose
• Two patients had dose adjustments due to AEs from 400mg to
100mg and 400mg to 200mg
• No MTD was defined for narmafotinib
Grade 3 or above
System Organ
Class
Related
Unrelated
Narma- Gemci- NabAny
Not
fotinib tabine Paclitaxel
All Events
Related Related
(N=15) (N=14) (N=14)
Preferred
Term
n (%) E
Blood and lymphatic
system disorders
Gastrointestinal
disorders
Anaemia
0
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
1 (7) 1
Nausea
Vomiting
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
0
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
0
1 (7) 1
0
1 (7) 1
0
2 (13) 3
2 (13) 3
2 (13) 3 2 (13) 2
3 (20) 5
Toxicity to
various agents
0
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
1 (7) 1
Dehydration
0
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
1 (7) 1
0
1 (7) 1
Fatigue
General disorders &
administration site Febrile infection
conditions
Pyrexia
Injury, poisoning &
procedural
complications
Metabolism &
nutrition disorders
Participants who experienced multiple events within a category are counted only once in the specific category (n),
however each instance of the event is counted (E). Percentage (%) of participants (n) are calculated based on the
number of participants for the respective dose level (N).
Conclusions
12
ng/ml
Part A (Phase 1b), patients were enrolled in a 3+3 design to
determine the narmafotinib recommended Phase 2 dose (RP2D), with
dose-escalation (100, 200 and 400 mg), with a primary objective of
determining recommended RP2D, and assessing safety and
tolerability of oral narmafotinib administered prior to IV
administration of gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel in participants with
advanced pancreatic cancer.
Part B (Phase 2a) is a Simon’s two stage design, with the primary
objectives of assessing safety, tolerability, and efficacy of the
combination using RECIST v1.1 (central read by indep't reviewers).
200mg
2
Pharmacokinetics
• Narmafotinib plasma PK
samples were collected on
Days -8, -7, 1, 3, 8, and 10
of Run-In/Cycle 1
• The PK for narmafotinib is
dose-proportional across
the dose range tested, and
the half-life supports once
a day dosing
• The chemotherapy regimen
used in this study did not
impact narmafotinib PK
Change from baseline (%)
FAK is a non-receptor tyrosine
kinase that acts through
numerous key signaling
pathways to mediate
communication between cells
and their environment and
plays a crucial role in normal
cellular stress response, acting
to buffer healthy cells from
dying when exposed to extreme
cellular stress1.
20
100mg
Safety
• All patients who completed their first 28-day cycle of treatment
elected to stay on narmafotinib
• 9 of 14 patients on drug > 5 months
• There was a dose dependent trend in duration of treatment with
the highest dose of narmafotinib (400 mg QD) associated with the
longest duration of treatment, 212 days (mean duration)
Lim ST, Chen XL, Lim Y, Hanson DA, Vo TT, Howerton K, Larocque N, Fisher SJ, Schlaepfer DD, Ilic D. Nuclear FAK promotes cell proliferation and survival through FERM-enhanced p53 degradation. Mol Cell. 2008 Jan 18;29(1):9-22.
Sulzmaier FJ, Jean C, Schlaepfer DD. FAK in cancer: mechanistic findings and clinical applications. Nat Rev Cancer. 2014 Sep;14(9):598-610.
Dawson JC, Serrels A, Stupack DG, Schlaepfer DD, Frame MC. Targeting FAK in anticancer combination therapies. Nat Rev Cancer. 2021 May;21(5):313-324.
Zhang Z, Li J, Jiao S, Han G, Zhu J, Liu T. Functional and clinical characteristics of focal adhesion kinases in cancer progression. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2022 Nov 2;10:1040311.
Siegel RL, Miller KD, Wagle NS, Jemal A, Cancer statistics, 2023. CA Cancer J Clin 2023; 73, 17-48.
Zaghdoudi S, Decaup E, Belhabib I, et al. FAK activity in cancer-associated fibroblasts is a prognostic marker and a druggable key metastatic player in pancreatic cancer. EMBO Mol Med. 2020;12(11):e12010.
Jiang H, Hegde S, Knolhoff BL, et al. Targeting focal adhesion kinase renders pancreatic cancers responsive to checkpoint immunotherapy. Nat Med. 2016;22(8):851-860.
Von Hoff DD, Ervin T , et al. Increased survival in pancreatic cancer with nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine. N Engl J Med. 2013 Oct 31;369(18):1691-703
Dose escalation assessed 100 mg, 200 mg, 400 mg once daily
Excellent once a day, dose proportional pharmacokinetics
Safe and well tolerated
Narmafotinib combined with gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel
(Abraxane®) demonstrates promising activity, with investigator
assessed response rate of 43%
Based on this promising Phase 1b data, 400 mg of narmafotinib
has been selected for RP2D and the trial will proceed through
Simon’s Two Stage design and enroll up to 50 patients as part of
the Phase 2 expansion cohort
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