Loading...
Loading...
Celsion Corporation
announced today that Professor Riccardo Lencioni, MD, FSIR,
EBIR, Professor and Director of the Diagnostic Imaging and Intervention at the
Pisa University School of Medicine in Italy, former ECIO President, current
Chairman of the World Conference on Interventional Oncology (WCIO) and Lead
European Principal Investigator for Celsion's clinical studies of ThermoDox®
plus radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma
(HCC) or primary liver cancer will, in conjunction with his Honorary Lecture
presentation, review the final clinical trial results from the 701 patient
HEAT Study post hoc analysis and the rationale for the final study design of
the Phase III OPTIMA Study at the 5^th European Conference on Interventional
Oncology, which is being held April 23-26, 2014 in Berlin, Germany.
Professor Lencioni is a recognized leader in the use of radiofrequency
ablation for HCC which led to the recognition of image-guided ablation as the
standard of care for non-surgical patients with early stage HCC in
international guidelines. Most recently, Professor Lencioni has focused on
the investigation of the potential synergies between novel therapeutic options
and interventional techniques through his participation as a principal
investigator in two of the largest global, multi-center trials ever conducted
in the field of interventional oncology. His Honorary Presentation, entitled
"20 Years of Interventional Oncology and the Future Trends for 2020", will
focus on the lessons learned from past clinical studies and related advances
in interventional management.
"I am pleased to present the latest data emerging from the updated analysis
from Celsion's Phase III HEAT Study to the European and international
interventional oncology community which is suggesting a meaningful clinical
benefit in overall survival (OS) in patients who received an optimized RFA
procedure," said Professor Lencioni. "It is important to note that the
duration of heat from the RFA procedure appears to be a key factor in a
successful clinical outcome when combined with ThermoDox® as suggested by this
analysis. An optimized RFA procedure in combination with ThermoDox® can
potentially offer an important new treatment for this underserved patient
population."
Data from the latest HEAT Study analysis as of December 31, 2013 suggests that
ThermoDox® may significantly improve overall survival, compared to control, in
patients whose lesions undergo RFA treatment for 45 minutes or more. These
findings apply to patients with single HCC lesions and represent a subgroup of
285 patients (41% of the patients in the HEAT Study). Updated OS data as of
December 31, 2013 from this subgroup of patients is summarized below:
o In the patient subgroup treated in the ThermoDox® arm, whose RFA procedure
lasted longer than 45 minutes (285 patients or 63% of single lesion
patients) clinical results indicate a 55% improvement in overall survival,
a Hazard Ratio of 0.64 (95% CI 0.41 - 1.00) and a P-value = 0.0495. Median
overall survival for this subgroup has not yet been reached.
o In contrast, the patient subgroup treated with ThermoDox® whose RFA
procedure lasted less than 45 minutes in duration (167 patients or 37% of
single lesion patients) indicated a Hazard Ratio of 1.12 (95% CI 0.68 -
1.86) and a P-value = 0.66. Median overall survival for this subgroup has
not yet been reached.
o Multi-variate analysis appears to strongly support the significance of
optimized RFA as the leading factor in subjects with improved overall
survival.
"The combination of ThermoDox® and an optimized RFA treatment appears to have
a significant improvement in overall survival in HCC patients," stated Dr.
Nicholas Borys, Celsion's Chief Medical Officer. "Celsion has been consulting
with its key clinical investigators including Professor Lencioni and
regulatory and expert statistician consultants regarding the design and
clinical protocol for its pivotal Phase III OPTIMA Study."
In addition to the US, Celsion is planning to conduct the OPTIMA Study in up
to 100 centers in 14 countries in Asia, Europe and North America, and
anticipates patient enrollment in this multicenter global trial to begin in
mid-2014.
The Company also notes that, while the data and supporting analysis from the
HEAT Study warrant additional clinical development, they should be viewed with
caution since they are based on a retrospective analysis and the HEAT Study
has not reached its median point for overall survival analysis. Celsion will
continue to follow patients in the HEAT Study to the secondary endpoint,
overall survival, and will update the subgroup analysis based on RFA heating
duration.
Loading...
Loading...
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
Join Now: Free!
Already a member?Sign in