Why Is Cancer Player Candel Therapeutics Stock Trading Higher Today?

Candel Therapeutics Inc CADL released initial interim survival and immunological biomarker data from the ongoing phase 2 trial of CAN-2409 plus valacyclovir (prodrug) together with standard of care (SoC) chemoradiation followed by resection for borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). 

Data were presented at the 2023 Society for Immunotherapy Annual Meeting.

An estimated survival rate of 71.4% at both 24 and 36 months was observed in patients who received the CAN-2409 regimen together with SoC chemoradiation before surgery, versus only 16.7% survival at 24 and 36 months in patients with SoC chemoradiation before surgery.

5 out of 7 patients who received CAN-2409 were still alive at the time of data cut-off, with two patients surviving more than 45 months from enrollment. 

Only one patient randomized to control SoC chemotherapy remained alive at the data cut-off (alive at 43 months).

Median overall survival has not yet been reached in patients who received CAN-2409; median overall survival was 12.5 months in the control arm.

The disease course was altered after salvage chemotherapy with improved CA19-9 levels and ongoing survival in the CAN-2409 arm but not in the control arm.

Data showed consistent and robust activation of immune response after dosing with CAN-2409.

CAN-2409 was associated with a favorable tolerability profile.

Candel Therapeutics presented two posters at the 2023 Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer Annual Meeting focused on the enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform.

The first experimental agent from the enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform is Alpha-201-macro1, an investigational viral immunotherapy designed to activate innate immune surveillance against solid tumors.

Price Action: CADL shares are up 20.86% at $0.82 on the last check Monday.