Noxopharm (ASX:NOX) talks clinical trials and applications for ‘NOX66’

Interviews

by Carolyn Herbert

Transcription of Finance News Network Interview with Noxopharm Limited (ASX:NOX) Managing Director and CEO, Dr Graham Kelly.

Carolyn Herbert: Hello. I'm Carolyn Herbert from the Finance News Network, and joining me from cancer drug development company, Noxopharm Limited (ASX:NOX) is Managing Director and CEO, Dr Graham Kelly. Graham welcome back.

Graham Kelly: Thanks Carolyn.

Carolyn Herbert: Now can you start by giving us a quick recap of your lead drug candidate and where you are at in terms of development?

Graham Kelly: Sure well, the candidate is called NOX66 and it’s intended to make existing therapies, that’s, chemotherapy and radiotherapy not just work better but to actually start working. Which at the moment they don't do for most people with most forms of cancer.

Carolyn Herbert: And talking a bit more about NOX66, you've just commenced human trials, can you tell us a bit more about that?

Graham Kelly: Yes well, we have quite an extensive clinical trial program now underway. And we've just announced the first trial which is in conjunction with a common chemotherapy drug called Carboplatin. So we [are] using it in patients who have got late stage cancers. And these are patients who you would not normally expect to show any response at all any more to a drug like Carboplatin. We're hoping that our drug NOX66 can now make them respond to that drug.

Carolyn Herbert: So can you update us on the clinical trials of NOX66 in conjunction with radiotherapy?

Graham Kelly: Yes well NOX66 is designed to make tumours respond better to both radiotherapy and chemotherapy. So the first study we have announced relates to chemotherapy. So the next two studies that we have in mind are going to be with radiotherapy. Ultimately there will be five clinical studies all together, all looking at either radiotherapy alone or chemotherapy alone or one study we are going to do with both chemo and radiotherapy.

Carolyn Herbert: So based on your different trials where do you think NOX66 will be used first?

Graham Kelly: It’s hard to know. I mean in terms of which clinical trial we've got running they will all be running in parallel. But where might this drug end up in the clinic on the market. We suspect it will probably be in conjunction with radiotherapy, but that's yet to be found.

Carolyn Herbert: And now to financials. How much are you spending on trials and when do you expect first revenues?

Graham Kelly: Well we raised $6 million last August. We have currently about $4.5 million left that will see us through to the end of the current phase one program. It's worth pointing out that some of the trials that we have running are what are called ‘investigator initiated’. Which means that all we are doing is paying for the cost of the drug. The other three studies we are paying for ourselves. But again, the money we have will see us through to end of that program.

Carolyn Herbert: So Graham what can shareholders expect in terms of news flow in the near term?

Graham Kelly: Well quite a lot. We have 5 clinical studies about to start as I said and 5 clinical studies will produce a lot of news flow. But beyond that we have some R&D projects which we will be talking about more and more. So I think over the course of the next year there will a significant amount of news flow coming.

Carolyn Herbert: And finally Graham where do you hope to see Noxopharm (ASX:NOX) 12 months from now?

Graham Kelly: Well I think by the end of this year we will have clear evidence we hope, that the drug is working and that will put us into a position where we can then jump into registration studies next year.

Carolyn Herbert: Dr Graham Kelly thanks for the update.

Carolyn Herbert: Thank you Carolyn.

Ends 

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