Cantex Pharmaceuticals Announces Poster Presentation at ASCO 2015 Indicating Potential Efficacy of CX-01

WESTON, Fla., June 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Cantex Pharmaceuticals, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing medications that block critical mechanisms by which cancer spreads and resists treatment, today announced Tibor Kovacsovics, M.D., Medical Director for the Inpatient Service of the Division of Hematology and Hematologic Malignancies and Director of Hematologic Malignancy Clinical Research at Huntsman Cancer Institute presented a poster related to Cantex's lead compound, CX-01, at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The poster, presented on May 31 and titled O-Desulfated Heparin and Chemotherapy for the Treatment of AML, reported results of a study that combined CX-01 with chemotherapy for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

The study enrolled twelve adults with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia. CX-01 was administered as a seven-day continuous infusion concomitantly with standard induction chemotherapy with the "7 + 3" regimen of cytarabine and idarubicin. Eleven of the 12 patients (92%), including all 11 patients with de novo AML, had a complete response with a single induction cycle. Hematologic recovery was fast, with a median of 23 days for an ANC >500 and of 22 days for a platelet count >50,000. With a median follow-up of 14.2 months, median event-free survival was 11.6+ months and median overall survival was 13.6+ months. The investigators concluded, "Although the number of patients in this trial is small, these results are very encouraging and warrant further testing of CX-01."

Stephen Marcus, M.D., president of Cantex Pharmaceuticals, commented, "We are pleased to share these favorable results, which suggest that CX-01 may enhance both the effectiveness and safety of the current initial treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. Based on this research, clearly defined mechanisms of action, and our prior clinical and preclinical studies of CX-01, Cantex intends to initiate randomized clinical trials of CX-01 in acute myeloid leukemia and small cell and non-small cell lung cancer."

Dr. Marcus concluded, "These data add to the body of clinical and pre-clinical studies that have indicated the potential of CX-01 to significantly increase the responsiveness of cancer cells to treatment, while, at the same time, accelerating platelet and white blood cell recovery when administered in conjunction with chemotherapy."

The poster was presented during the "Leukemia, Myelodysplasia, and Transplantation" session on Sunday, May 31, 8:00 AM, CT to 11:30 AM, CT; Poster Board #42; Abstract #7053. Full abstracts of corporate and collaborator presentations can be accessed on the ASCO website at abstracts.asco.org.

About CX-01 and Chemokines
CX-01, Cantex's lead compound, is currently in clinical development for acute myeloid leukemia and recurrent pediatric solid tumors.  The drug is designed to block the activity of chemokines that support the growth and spread of cancer and its resistance to treatment and that contribute to the delay of bone marrow recovery after chemotherapy. Chemokines have emerged as major cancer targets because of the central role they play in facilitating cancer cell growth and metastasis and in the resistance of cancer cells to the cell-killing effects of chemotherapy and radiation. Among these chemokines are CXCR4 and CXCL12, which are critical to the migration and attachment of cancer cells to the protective bone marrow environment as well as to metastatic sites, and CXCL4, which slows bone marrow recovery after chemotherapy.

About Cantex Pharmaceuticals
Cantex Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing medications that block critical mechanisms by which cancer spreads and resists treatment.  The Company's lead product candidate, CX-01, is in clinical development for acute myeloid leukemia and recurrent pediatric solid tumors. CX-01 is a rationally designed complex carbohydrate that blocks the activity of several chemokines that support the growth and spread of cancer and its resistance to treatment and that contribute to the delay of bone marrow recovery after chemotherapy. For more information, please visit www.cantex.com.

SOURCE Cantex Pharmaceuticals

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