- Synta Pharma presented at Rodman and Renshaw's conference on 9/13/11 - click here for full directory of biotech webcasts and links to my notes.
- Find additional company and pipeline (especially ganetespib) details on SNTA research page.
- My full notes from the webcast are below:
- Analyst host: "synta is probably the leading player in the hsp90 space"
- about 120 employees
- slides deck: nothing new
- one could argue that TKI field is getting saturated...dozens of VEGF, FLT3, PI3K inhibitors...is there some other way besides binding the ATP binding pocket of kinases? One possibility - HSP90 inhibition
- radiation therapy is given to more patients than all chemo combined. ganetespib enhances this treatment...huge opportunity
- first generation HSP90 inhibitors: liver toxicity because not tight enough binders to target
- stated that PFE HSP90 molecule was terminated. NVS had similar ocular toxicity but did not state terminated
- We have a paper hopefully coming out soon re ocular toxicity
- In eye, there is one layer of cells with the body of rods and cones, lots of hsp90 expression, this is the only layer see apoptosis. These problems associated with increased water solubility, which is also associated with distribution to eye
- Slide: showed patient that responded to crizotonib (Xalkori) for 12 months then progressed, then went on ganetespib. After 3 doses, very sizable tumor shrinkage. This example is very important - our drug is effective in ALK+ pts via a different mechanism from crizotinib
- We hope combo can lead to very long response duration/survial in ALK pts (compare to cocktail for HIV)
- Data presented at ASCO: in ALK+ patients, 4/8 had durable responses all > 8 months
- Also saw tumor shrinkage in 8/13 KRAS pts
- reminder - these studies involved highly refractory patients who had received up to 8-10 lines of prior therapy
- we'll be announcing some trials in a biomarker subpopulation [ALK, clearly, though not identified by name] and some other tumors quite shortly. For AML a very sizable phase 2b cooperative group came to us, radiotherapy, prostate, breast...a number of these ongoing
- phase 2b/3 trial design - we know drug is active and opportunity is huge, want to absolutely be sure know how it is working and derisk to get to a clean NDA in right pts
- cash sufficent to end of 2012
- hopeful to close one or more deal by ye2011, which would substantially extend cash runway
- interim phase 2b data in March or April 2012
- no q&a on webcast
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