ADC Therapeutics and Freenome Enter Biomarker Development Collaboration

LAUSANNE, Switzerland and SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Aug. 26, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DC Therapeutics, an oncology drug discovery and development company that specializes in the development of antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), and Freenome, a biotechnology company that has pioneered the most comprehensive multiomics platform for early cancer detection through a routine blood draw, today announced that they have entered a biomarker development collaboration in which ADC Therapeutics will use Freenome’s platform to identify patients who are most likely to respond to treatment with ADCT-402 (loncastuximab tesirine). ADC Therapeutics is currently evaluating ADCT-402 in a pivotal Phase II clinical trial in patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

Freenome’s platform will characterize tumor heterogeneity and systemic immune response to identify signatures from blood of DLBCL patients participating in ADC Therapeutics’ pivotal Phase II clinical trial. The multiomics approach will allow ADC Therapeutics to consider a broad range of DNA, RNA and protein markers in developing a biomarker signature.

“Our partnership with ADC Therapeutics validates our unique multiomics platform and its potential to help biopharmaceutical companies develop innovative cancer therapies for patients in need,” said Gabe Otte, Chief Executive Officer of Freenome. “Our platform can help biopharma partners refine biomarker development and potentially de-risk and accelerate drug development by characterizing patients likely to respond to therapy. In addition, given that ADCT-402 is targeting a hematological malignancy, this partnership highlights the potential of our platform to provide tumor and immune signatures for hematological cancers in addition to solid tumors. Combined with the ongoing development of our early cancer screening test, we are moving closer to our goal of helping physicians and patients navigate precision health by identifying cancer at its earliest stages when treatments can be most effective.”

“We are excited to leverage Freenome’s unique platform to potentially enhance our identification and understanding of the patients who are most likely to benefit from treatment with ADCT-402, which has been demonstrating significant single-agent clinical activity in a broad population of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in our pivotal Phase II clinical trial,” said Patrick van Berkel, Senior Vice President of Research and Development at ADC Therapeutics. “This partnership adds to our ongoing biomarker research efforts, which we believe will be advantageous as we continue to advance the clinical development of ADCT-402.”

Financial terms of the collaboration were not disclosed.

About Freenome’s Multiomics Platform

Freenome’s multiomics platform detects key biological signals from a routine blood draw. The platform integrates assays for cell-free DNA, methylation, and proteins with advanced computational biology and machine learning techniques to identify additive signatures that improve the accuracy for early cancer detection given the molecular subtypes of cancer are heterogeneous in nature. This strategy incorporates a multidimensional view of both tumor- and immune-derived signatures that enables the early detection of cancer, instead of relying only on tumor-derived markers, which may miss the early signs of cancer. Freenome’s first cancer test is for the screening of colorectal cancer, the second deadliest form of cancer in the U.S. When identified early, colorectal cancer has a 90 percent five-year relative survival rate compared to 14 percent when detected at a more advanced stage according to data from the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program.

About Freenome

Freenome is a biotechnology company that has pioneered the most comprehensive multiomics platform for early cancer detection. By combining a deep expertise in molecular biology with advanced computational biology and machine learning techniques to recognize disease-associated patterns among billions of circulating, cell-free biomarkers, Freenome is developing simple and accurate blood tests for early cancer detection and integrating the actionable insights into health systems to operationalize a machine learning feedback loop between care and science. Examples of Freenome’s novel research include advancing the fields understanding of using machine learning for early stage colorectal cancer detection featured at Digestive Disease Week and using cfDNA fragment coverage to predict gene expression featured at American Association for Cancer Research’s Annual Meeting. Freenome is headquartered in South San Francisco, California. For more information about Freenome, visit www.freenome.com and view open positions at freenome.com/careers.

About ADCT-402

ADCT-402 (loncastuximab tesirine) is an antibody drug conjugate (ADC) comprised of a humanized monoclonal antibody that binds to human CD19, conjugated through a linker to a pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD) dimer toxin. Once bound to a CD19-expressing cell, ADCT-402 is internalized into the cell where enzymes release the PBD-based warhead. CD19 is a clinically validated target for the treatment of B-cell malignancies. The PBD-based warhead has the ability to form highly cytotoxic DNA interstrand cross-links, blocking cell division and resulting in cell death. ADCT-402 is being evaluated in a pivotal Phase II clinical trial in patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) (NCT03589469), a Phase Ib clinical trial in combination with ibrutinib in patients with R/R DLBCL or mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) (NCT03684694) and a Phase Ib clinical trial in combination with durvalumab in patients with R/R DLBCL, MCL or follicular lymphoma (NCT03685344). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted orphan drug designation to ADCT-402 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory DLBCL and MCL.

About ADC Therapeutics

ADC Therapeutics SA is an oncology drug discovery and development company that specializes in the development of highly targeted antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) armed with highly potent pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD)-based warheads. Strategic target selection suitable for PBD-based ADCs and substantial investment in early clinical development have enabled ADC Therapeutics to build a deep clinical and research pipeline of therapies for the treatment of hematological and solid tumor cancers with significant unmet need. The Company has multiple PBD-based ADCs in ongoing clinical trials, ranging from first in human to pivotal Phase II clinical trials, in the USA and Europe, and numerous preclinical ADCs in development. ADCT-402, the Company’s lead product candidate, has demonstrated significant single-agent clinical activity across a broad population of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, including difficult-to-treat patients. ADCT-301, the Company’s second lead product candidate, has demonstrated clinical activity in heavily pretreated patients with Hodgkin lymphoma and, based on its mechanism of action, also has potential for the treatment of solid tumors. ADC Therapeutics is based in Lausanne (Biopôle), Switzerland and has operations in London, the San Francisco Bay Area and New Jersey. For more information, visit www.adctherapeutics.com.