Tracon Pharmaceuticals announces publication of Phae 2 data for TRC102

TRACON Pharmaceuticals announced the publication of Phase 2 clinical data of its DNA damage repair inhibitor drug candidate, TRC102, in patients with glioblastoma in Clinical Cancer Research. The article, entitled, “Evaluating the Base Excision Repair Inhibitor TRC102 and Temozolomide for patients with Recurrent Glioblastoma in the Phase 2 Adult Brain Tumor Consortium Trial BERT,” highlights the activity of TRC102 given in combination with Temodar chemotherapy in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. TRC102 was evaluated in a Phase 2 trial in combination with Temodar in 19 patients with progressive or recurrent glioblastoma following surgical resection, Temodar and external beam radiotherapy. Extended survival was observed in two patients, both of whom demonstrated significantly enriched signatures of DNA damage response, chromosomal instability, and cellular proliferation by RNA sequencing prior to initiating treatment with Temodar and TRC102. The study was completed by the Adult Brain Tumor Consortium and led by Manmeet Alhuwalia, MD while he was Chair of Neuro-Oncology at Cleveland Clinic prior to his appointment as Chief of Medical Oncology, Chief Scientific Officer, and Deputy Director of the Miami Cancer Institute. The authors concluded the study findings confirm the safety and feasibility of TRC102 given with Temodar for recurrent glioblastoma patients and warrant further evaluation of combination therapy in biomarker-enriched trials enrolling glioblastoma patients with baseline hyperactivated DDR pathways. “We believe that the data generated to date provides a strong rationale for studying TRC102 in combination with Temodar and radiotherapy in newly diagnosed patients with malignant glioma,” said James Freddo, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of TRACON. “The Clinical Cancer Research publication supports prior data published in Cancer Cell that patients whose cancers demonstrate activation of DDR pathways may be particularly sensitive to the pharmacologic effects of TRC102.” Based on a 100% response rate in a Phase 1 clinical trial combining TRC102 with pemetrexed, cisplatin and radiation therapy in 15 patients with stage III non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer, TRC102 is currently being studied in a randomized Phase 2 clinical trial in combination with chemotherapy and radiation therapy for stage III non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. This trial is sponsored by the National Cancer Institute through a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. Determination of the primary endpoint of progression free survival is expected in 2025. TRACON and the NCI have a longstanding history of partnership to develop TRC102, whereby the NCI has funded six Phase 1 or Phase 2 trials through the CRADA.