TIDMSCLP
RNS Number : 5212V
Scancell Holdings Plc
31 January 2017
31 January 2017
Scancell Holdings Plc
("Scancell" or the "Company")
Interim Results for the 6 months ended 31 October 2016
Strong progress continues across all clinical programmes;
planning to start US SCIB1 Phase 2 combination study in H2 2017
Scancell Holdings plc, ('Scancell' or the 'Company') the
developer of novel immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer,
announces its interim results for the 6 months ended 31 October
2016.
Highlights:
-- Planning to commence SCIB1 Phase 2 checkpoint inhibitor combination study in H2 2017
-- Continued strong survival data for patients with Stage III/IV
malignant melanoma on SCIB1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial
- 19 of 20 patients with resected disease remain alive, survival well beyond established norms
- Of the 16 resected patients who received a 2-4mg of SCIB1 only
five patients have had recurrence of their disease of whom only one
has died; two patients have now survived for 5 years since starting
treatment
- Immune analysis indicates patients may benefit from up to 2
years' continuous treatment to delay or prevent recurrence
-- Plans for SCIB2 ImmunoBody(R) Phase 1/2 clinical trial in
non-small cell lung cancer in combination with a checkpoint
inhibitor are progressing
-- Continued good progress in development of Modi-1, our lead
product from the Moditope(R) platform
- Identified and validated multiple targets
- Final phases of selecting best adjuvant to combine with Modi-1
- First-in-man clinical studies for breast cancer, ovarian
cancer and osteosarcoma anticipated to commence in 2018
- Early feedback from the European Patent Office suggests that
broad patent claims for the Moditope(R) platform may be
allowable
-- Scancell's licence to Ichor's proprietary TriGrid(R)
electroporation delivery system extended until July 2018
-- Opening of new offices in San Diego to support the Company's
US growth plans, and in Oxford for its UK corporate and development
activities
-- Loss for the 6-month period of GBP1.72 million (2015: loss: GBP1.17 million)
-- Group cash balance at 31 October 2016 was GBP4.5 million (30 April 2016: GBP6.5 million)
Post Period Highlights:
-- Final Clinical Study Report on the SCIB1 Phase 1/2 clinical
trial in patients with Stage III/IV malignant melanoma completed in
December 2016 which includes safety, immunology and clinical data
from patients with Stage III/IV melanoma up to 29 October 2015
-- FDA pre-IND meeting scheduled 14 February 2017 for US Phase 2
SCIB1 combination study with a checkpoint inhibitor
-- Collaboration with patient advocacy group, the Addario
Foundation, to advance SCIB2 non-small cell lung cancer clinical
studies
Dr Richard Goodfellow, CEO of Scancell, said: "We are proud of
our achievements over the last few years. Scancell now has
established two cancer vaccine platforms from which we have
developed three products for use in five cancer indications. In
December we completed the Clinical Study Report for our lead
product, SCIB1, which will be used to support the US IND submission
for a checkpoint inhibitor trial, expected to begin later this
year; another major milestone for the Company. We are delighted to
be working with the Addario Foundation and this should help to
progress our SCIB2 trial in non-small cell lung cancer. Progress
continues for our Modi-1 vaccine, with first-in-man studies in
breast cancer, ovarian cancer and osteosarcoma due to begin next
year. 2017 is set to be an important and busy year for Scancell and
the Board remains confident that these planned studies will add
significant value to the Company."
A full copy of the announcement can be found on the Scancell
website: www.scancell.co.uk
For Further Information:
Dr John Chiplin, Executive
Chairman +1 858 900 2646
Dr Richard Goodfellow, Scancell Holdings +44 (0) 20 3727
CEO Plc 1000
Freddy Crossley (Corporate +44 (0) 20 7886
Finance) 2500
Tom Salvesen (Corporate Panmure Gordon +44 (0) 20 7886
Broking) & Co 2500
+44 (0) 20 3727
Mo Noonan/Simon Conway FTI Consulting 1000
About Scancell
Scancell is developing novel immunotherapies for the treatment
of cancer based on its ImmunoBody(R) and Moditope(R) technology
platforms.
Scancell's first ImmunoBody(R), SCIB1 is being developed for the
treatment of melanoma. Data from the Phase 1/2 clinical trial
demonstrate that SCIB1, when used as monotherapy, has a marked
effect on tumour load, produces a melanoma-specific immune response
and highly encouraging survival trend without serious side effects.
In patients with resected disease there is increasing evidence to
suggest that SCIB1 may delay or prevent disease recurrence.
Scancell's ImmunoBody(R) vaccines target dendritic cells and
stimulate both parts of the cellular immune system: the helper cell
system where inflammation is stimulated at the tumour site and the
cytotoxic T-lymphocyte or CTL response where immune system cells
are primed to recognise and kill specific cells.
Pre-clinical data on a combination of SCIB1 or SCIB2 and
checkpoint inhibition (blockade of the PD-1 or CTLA-4 immune
checkpoint pathways) have shown enhanced tumour destruction and
significantly longer survival times than when either treatment was
used alone. Experimental data suggests that the high avidity T
cells induced by ImmunoBody(R) vaccines increase expression of
PDL-1 on the tumour cell surface, thereby making the tumours more
sensitive to checkpoint inhibitor drugs. Re-challenging animals
with tumour cells after SCIB1 treatment resulted in 100% survival
suggesting that ImmunoBody(R) induces a powerful memory response.
Such an effect has not been observed with checkpoint
inhibitors.
Scancell has also identified and patented a series of modified
epitopes that stimulate the production of killer CD4+ T cells that
destroy tumours without toxicity. The Directors believe that the
Moditope(R) platform could play a major role in the development of
safe and effective cancer immunotherapies in the future.
CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT
I am pleased to report the Company's interim results for the
6-month period ended 31 October 2016. During the period the Company
has continued to make excellent progress on both the ImmunoBody(R)
and Moditope(R) cancer vaccine platforms. The recently completed
Clinical Study Report (CSR) on the SCIB1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial
will be used to support the US Investigational New Drug (IND)
submission for the SCIB1 plus checkpoint inhibitor trial which we
are planning to start in the second half of 2017. We have partnered
with one of the largest and most highly regarded patient advocacy
groups in the US, The Addario Foundation, to accelerate the
development of SCIB2 for the treatment of non-small cell lung
cancer (NSCLC) and we have made good progress with the Moditope(R)
patent application at the European Patent Office with the examiner
indicating that most of the claims will be allowable.
Financial
Profit and Loss Account
The Group made an overall operating loss for the 6-month period
to 31 October 2016 of GBP2.11 million (2015: loss of GBP1.37
million). During the period, development expenditure has increased
over the comparative 6-month period as costs of the manufacture of
new SCIB1 vaccine have been incurred and additional development
work has been carried out on Moditope(R) and SCIB2. The increase in
administrative expenditure reflects increased business development
activity in the UK and the USA, together with the costs of the
Oxford and La Jolla offices.
Overall the loss for the 6-month period was GBP1.72 million
(2015: loss GBP1.17 million).
Balance Sheet
The cash at bank at 31 October 2016 was GBP4,464,928 (30 April
2016: GBP6,527,435) and net assets amounted to GBP8,292,755 (30
April 2016: GBP9,992,281).
ImmunoBody(R) platform
Scancell's ImmunoBody(R) immunotherapy platform uses the body's
immune system to identify, attack and destroy tumours. This is
achieved by enhancing the uptake and presentation of cancer
antigens to harness high avidity T cell responses. Each ImmunoBodyÒ
vaccine can be designed to target a particular cancer in a highly
specific manner, offering the potential for enhanced efficacy and
safety compared with more conventional approaches.
SCIB1 melanoma vaccine
The CSR on the SCIB1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial in patients with
Stage III/IV malignant melanoma was completed in December 2016. The
CSR includes safety, immunology and clinical data from all patients
with Stage III/IV melanoma up to 29 October 2015, the date of the
last patient's final dose in the main part of the study.
Currently 19 of the 20 patients with resected tumours at study
entry remain alive. Of the 16 resected patients who received 2/4mg
doses of SCIB1, only five patients have had a recurrence of their
melanoma and only one of these patients has died. Two patients in
this group have now reached their 5-year post-treatment survival
time point.
Of the four resected patients who received 8mg doses of SCIB1
(recruited after lower dose cohorts), all patients remain alive.
Two of these patients experienced recurrence of their melanoma in
Q4 2016 following early termination of their treatment in June 2016
pending manufacture of new SCIB1 supplies. One patient had received
only one further dose of SCIB1 and the other had received two doses
after the end of the main study period. Immune analysis from the
patients recruited earlier suggests that patients may benefit from
up to two years' continuous treatment to effectively delay or
prevent recurrence.
The CSR will support the Company's IND Application for SCIB1
which is anticipated to be filed with the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) as soon as possible after the pre-IND meeting
scheduled for 14 February 2017.
Scancell is planning to initiate a Phase 2 checkpoint inhibitor
combination study with SCIB1 in melanoma in 2017, led by Principal
Investigator Dr Keith Flaherty, Director of the Termeer Center for
Targeted Therapy at Massachusetts General Hospital and Associate
Professor at Harvard Medical School.
The clinical study will assess the impact of adding SCIB1 to
checkpoint inhibitors in patients with late stage melanoma. The aim
will be to improve the objective response rates of anti-PD-1
("checkpoint inhibitor") monotherapy without adding additional
toxicity. The study, which will enrol approximately 80 Stage III/IV
metastatic melanoma patients is planned to start in the second part
of 2017, with completion approximately 18 months later.
Extension to Ichor commercial option
Earlier in the year, the Company announced that it has been
granted a further extension to its option to licence the commercial
use of Ichor Medical Systems' ("Ichor's") proprietary TriGrid(R)
electroporation delivery system with SCIB1, Scancell's
ImmunoBody(R) vaccine for the treatment of melanoma.
Under the terms of the agreed extension, Scancell's licence
option, which had been due to expire on 13 July 2016, has been
extended until 13 July 2018.
SCIB2 vaccine
Our second ImmunoBody(R) vaccine, SCIB2 has been designed to be
effective in over 90% of patients that overexpress the cancer
antigen NY-ESO-1, including those with lung and other epithelial
cancers.
The data we have generated to date with the SCIB2 ImmunoBody(R)
suggest that it should be well tolerated and be an ideal complement
to existing and emerging portfolios of checkpoint inhibitor
therapies in the treatment of NSCLC. To this end, the Company has
announced plans to develop its SCIB2 ImmunoBody(R) for the
treatment of NSCLC in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor.
Scancell's Board approved the decision based on the outstanding
results from the SCIB1 melanoma clinical trial which extended
several years beyond the original completion date due to the
unexpectedly long survival times. Planning for Phase 1/2 clinical
trials in NSCLC is currently underway. The successful exploitation
of novel therapeutic mechanisms, such as that underlying our
ImmunoBody(R) platform, will be critical to further improving the
poor mortality rates of patients with lung cancer.
The new collaboration with the Addario Foundation in the US
reflects the increasing interest in the role of cancer vaccines in
general and is a resounding endorsement for the potential clinical
utility of SCIB2 in particular in this difficult to treat group of
patients.
Moditope(R) platform
Scancell's Moditope(R) immunotherapy platform is based on
exploiting the normal immune response to stressed cells, which is
largely mediated by CD4+ T cells, and harnessing this mechanism to
eradicate tumours. Scancell's first target for Moditope(R) was
vimentin - a major cytoskeletal protein found in mesenchymal cells.
Many epithelial tumours switch from expression of cytokeratin to
vimentin during metastasis in a process known as epithelial
mesenchymal transition; this change in phenotype enables the cell
to become mobile and metastasize to new locations in the body.
However, the Company has now identified and validated multiple
targets from the Moditope(R) platform, including enolase, which,
together with vimentin, will form the basis for Modi-1, Scancell's
first product derived from the Moditope(R) platform.
The value of the Moditope(R) platform has recently received a
significant boost following notification from the European Patent
Office that the examiner had indicated that most of the claims will
be allowable. We therefore anticipate that the patent application
will be approved with broad claims later this year.
Modi-1
The pre-clinical development of Modi-1, the lead candidate from
our Moditope(R) platform technology is continuing to progress.
Pre-clinical data suggests that Modi-1 should be effective in up to
95% of patients with triple negative breast and ovarian cancers and
up to 100% of patients with osteosarcoma. The Company is in the
final phases of selecting the best adjuvant to combine with Modi-1
before commencing manufacture of the vaccine for first-in-man
trials which are scheduled to start in 2018.
Outlook
We are very proud of our achievements over the last few years.
We now have two established cancer vaccine platforms from which we
have developed three products for use in five cancer indications.
Scancell's most developed cancer vaccine is its melanoma vaccine,
SCIB1, for which the CSR has now been completed and we are planning
to start the Phase 2 study of SCIB1, in combination with a
checkpoint inhibitor in the US in the second half of 2017.
The Company is also planning a clinical study on its lung cancer
vaccine, SCIB2. We believe that the importance and role of SCIB2 in
the treatment of lung cancer will be considerably enhanced by the
collaboration with the Addario Foundation, one of the leading lung
cancer advocacy groups in the US.
A first-in-man clinical study to assess the Company's innovative
Modi-1 cancer vaccine in breast cancer, ovarian cancer and
osteosarcoma, is expected to commence in 2018.
The increasing attractiveness of Scancell's products and
technologies to pharmaceutical companies has to a large extent
occurred as a result of the renewed interest in cancer vaccines as
ideal partners for the checkpoint inhibitors, which although a
major advance, only work in a minority of patients. Scancell is now
in the enviable position of having not one, but two disruptive
technologies in immuno-oncology and the Company is currently
engaged in active discussions with several companies on both
platforms. Closing a significant commercial arrangement with one or
more of these companies would go a long way to underpin the value
of these assets.
The Board believes that further clinical studies could add
significant value to the Company and is continuing to explore with
its advisors a number of funding options to ensure that Scancell
has the resources to progress these programmes further.
John Chiplin
Chairman
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 596/2014 (MAR).
Scancell Holdings plc
Consolidated Profit or Loss and Other Comprehensive Income
Statement
for the 6-month period to 31 October 2016
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
Year
6 months 6 months to
31/10/2016 31/10/2015 30/04/2016
GBP GBP GBP
Continuing operations
Development expenses (1,315,190) (938,211) (2,009,046)
Administrative expenses (795,607) (429,563) (1,034,117)
OPERATING LOSS (2,110,797) (1,367,774) (3,043,163)
Interest receivable
and similar income 56,138 12,011 13,552
LOSS BEFORE TAXATION (2,054,659) (1,355,763) (3,029,611)
Tax on loss on ordinary
activities 334,095 180,800 446,338
LOSS FOR THE PERIOD (1,720,564) (1,174,963) (2,583,273)
------------ ------------ ------------
Attributable to:
Equity holders of the parent
company (1,720,564) (1,174,963) (2,583,273)
------------ ------------ ------------
EARNINGS PER ORDINARY SHARE
(PENCE) Note 2
Basic (0.66) (0.52) (1.14)
Diluted (0.66) (0.52) (1.14)
------------ ------------ ------------
Scancell Holdings plc
Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
for the 6-month period to 31 October 2016
Share Share
Share premium option Retained Total
capital account reserve earnings Equity
GBP GBP GBP GBP GBP
Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited
At 1 May 2016 261,558 21,785,295 649,652 (12,704,224) 9,992,281
(Loss) for the
period (1,720,564) (1,720,564)
Share option costs 21,038 21,038
---------- ----------- ---------- ------------- ------------
At 31 October
2016 261,558 21,785,295 670,690 (14,424,788) 8,292,755
---------- ----------- ---------- ------------- ------------
At 1 May 2015 224,951 16,036,276 613,726 (10,120,951) 6,754,002
(Loss) for the
period (1,174,963) (1,174,963)
Share option costs 27,902 27,902
---------- ----------- ---------- ------------- ------------
At 31 October
2015 224,951 16,036,276 641,628 (11,295,914) 5,606,941
---------- ----------- ---------- ------------- ------------
Audited Audited Audited Audited Audited
At 1 May 2015 224,951 16,036,276 613,726 (10,120,951) 6,754,002
Share issue 36,607 6,186,653 6,223,260
Expenses of issue (437,634) (437,634)
(Loss) for the
year (2,583,273) (2,583,273)
Share option costs 35,926 35,926
At 30 April 2016 261,558 21,785,295 649,652 (12,704,224) 9,992,281
---------- ----------- ---------- ------------- ------------
Scancell Holdings plc
Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
as at 31 October 2016
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
31/10/2016 31/10/2015 30/04/2016
GBP GBP GBP
ASSETS
Non-current assets
Plant and equipment 107,473 73,250 64,611
Goodwill 3,415,120 3,415,120 3,415,120
------------- ------------- -------------
3,522,593 3,488,370 3,479,731
------------- ------------- -------------
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 111,057 103,615 120,765
Income tax assets 774,096 590,339 440,001
Cash and cash equivalents 4,464,928 1,813,718 6,527,435
5,350,081 2,507,672 7,088,201
------------- ------------- -------------
TOTAL ASSETS 8,872,674 5,996,042 10,567,932
------------- ------------- -------------
LIABILITIES
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables (579,919) (389,101) (575,651)
TOTAL LIABILITIES (579,919) (389,101) (575,651)
------------- ------------- -------------
NET CURRENT ASSETS 4,770,162 2,118,571 6,512,550
NET ASSETS 8,292,755 5,606,941 9,992,281
------------- ------------- -------------
TOTAL EQUITY
Called up share capital 261,558 224,951 261,558
Share premium account 21,785,295 16,036,276 21,785,295
Share option reserve 670,690 641,628 649,652
Retained earnings (14,424,788) (11,295,914) (12,704,224)
8,292,755 5,606,941 9,992,281
------------- ------------- -------------
Scancell Holdings plc
Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
for the 6-month period to
31 October 2016
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
Year
6 months 6 months to
31/10/2016 31/10/2015 30/04/2016
GBP GBP GBP
Cash flows from operating activities
Operating (loss) for the period (2,110,797) (1,367,775) (3,043,163)
Depreciation 11,991 13,254 21,893
Share based payment expense 21,038 27,902 35,926
------------ ------------ ------------
Operating (loss) for the period
before changes
in working capital (2,077,768) (1,326,619) (2,985,344)
(Increase)/decrease in trade
and other receivables 9,708 33,170 16,020
(Decrease)/increase in trade
and other payables 4,268 (214,810) (28,261)
------------ ------------ ------------
Cash generated from operations (2,063,792) (1,508,259) (2,997,585)
Income taxes received - 250,965 666,841
Net cash from operating activities (2,063,792) (1,257,294) (2,330,744)
------------ ------------ ------------
Cash flows from investing activities
Asset acquisition (54,853) - -
Grant monies - 9,776 9,776
Other income 50,041 -
Finance income 6,097 2,235 3,776
Net cash used by investing
activities 1,285 12,011 13,552
------------ ------------ ------------
Financing activities
Proceeds from issue of share
capital - - 6,223,260
Expenses of share issue - - (437,634)
------------ ------------ ------------
- - 5,785,626
------------ ------------ ------------
Net increase/(decrease) in
cash and cash equivalents (2,062,507) (1,245,283) 3,468,434
Cash and cash equivalents at
beginning of the year 6,527,435 3,059,001 3,059,001
Cash and cash equivalents at
end of the period 4,464,928 1,813,718 6,527,435
------------ ------------ ------------
Scancell Holdings plc
Notes to the Interim Financial Statements
for the period to 31 October 2016
1 Basis of preparation
This interim statement for the 6-month period to 31 October 2016
is unaudited and was approved by the Directors on 30 January 2017.
The financial information contained in the interim report has been
prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the
annual report and accounts for the year ended 30 April 2016.
The financial information contained in the interim report does
not constitute statutory accounts as defined in section 434 of the
Companies Act 2006. The financial information for the full
preceding year is based on the statutory accounts for the year
ended 30 April 2016, upon which the auditors, Champion Accountants
LLP, issued an unqualified audit opinion which did not contain any
statement under section 498(2) or 498(3) of the Companies Act 2006.
The audited statutory accounts for the year ended 30 April 2016
have been lodged with the Registrar of Companies.
As permitted, this interim report has been prepared in
accordance with AIM Rule 18 and not in accordance with IAS 34
"Interim Financial Reporting" therefore it is not fully in
compliance with IFRS as adopted by the European Union.
2 Earnings per share
Basic earnings per share, from continuing operations, is
calculated by dividing the earnings attributable to ordinary
shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares
outstanding during the year.
The calculations of earnings per share are based on the
following losses and numbers of shares.
6 months 6 months Year
to to ended
31/10/2016 31/10/2015 30/04/2016
Loss after taxation (1,720,564) (1,174,963) (2,583,273)
Weighted average number of
shares 261,558,099 224,950,683 227,558,335
Basic earnings per share (0.66)p (0.52)p (1.14)p
At 31 October 2016 the Company had 261,558,099 Ordinary Shares
of 0.1p in issue.
3 Taxation
Taxation for the 6 months ended 31 October 2016 is based on the
effective rates of taxation which are estimated to apply for the
year ended 30 April 2017.
4 Interim results
These results were approved by the Board of Directors on 30
January 2017. Copies of the interim report are available to the
public from the Group's registered office and the Group's website,
www.scancell.co.uk.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
IR WGUQWGUPMGRU
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 31, 2017 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)