Merus Stock Rises After Early Clinical Data Presentation at the AACR-NCI-EORTC Virtual International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics
Oct 7, 2021 By MarketDepth
Merus N.V. (NASDAQ: MRUS) shares spiked about 30% on Thursday after the Company announced clinical data on MCLA-158, including clinical responses observed in advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and preclinical data on zenocutuzumab (Zeno) at the AACR-NCI-EORTC Virtual International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics.
Dr. Andrew Joe, Chief Medical Officer at Merus, said, “We are encouraged by the early evidence of clinical activity of MCLA-158 in patients with advanced, previously treated HNSCC, further validating the potential of our Biclonics® platform. With Zeno, our preclinical research continues to reinforce the mechanisms by which Zeno is capable of potently inhibiting the growth of NRG1 fusion cancers.”
The reported data are from the ongoing phase 1 dose expansion cohort that is investigating the safety, tolerability, and anti-tumor activity of MCLA-158 monotherapy in advanced HNSCC.
Observations in the presentation include enrollment of 10 patients with advanced HNSCC, as of the safety and efficacy data cutoff date of August 9, 2021, with median age of 65 (range 50-77) years, and who were treated with a median of 2 lines of prior therapy. In addition, Three of seven patients achieved partial responses, with one achieving complete response after the data cutoff date. Tumor reduction was observed in all seven patients.
