January 15, 2021

AVEO Oncology Announces Results from Phase 1b Portion of DEDUCTIVE Study of Tivozanib (FOTIVDA®) in Combination with IMFINZI® (durvalumab) in Previously Untreated Metastatic Hepatocellular Carcinoma

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– Data Presented at the 2021 ASCO GI Cancers Symposium –

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Jan. 15, 2021– AVEO Oncology (Nasdaq: AVEO) today announced the presentation of results from the Phase 1b portion of the Phase 1b/2 DEDUCTIVE clinical trial of tivozanib (FOTIVDA®), AVEO’s vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) drug candidate, in combination with IMFINZI® (durvalumab), AstraZeneca’s (LSE/STO/Nasdaq: AZN) human monoclonal antibody directed against programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), in patients with advanced or metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The results are being presented today in a poster session at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology Gastrointestinal (ASCO GI) Cancers Symposium being held virtually.

A total of seven patients with advanced or metastatic HCC were enrolled in the Phase 1b portion of the study, which was designed to determine the recommended Phase 2 dose and assess preliminary safety and efficacy of the tivozanib/durvalumab combination. Patients received 1.0 mg of tivozanib for 21 days followed by 7 days off therapy combined with 1500 mg of durvalumab every 28 days. The combination was well tolerated, with no dose-limiting toxicities. The combination demonstrated a 29% partial response (PR) rate and 71% disease control rate (PR + stable disease). Completion of enrollment in the ongoing Phase 2 portion of the study, which is expected to enroll up to an additional 30 subjects, is anticipated later this year.

“With a five-year survival rate of less than 5%, advanced or metastatic HCC represents an area of high unmet need,” said Renuka Iyer, M.D., Professor of Oncology and Co-Director, Liver and Pancreas Tumor Center, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. “These data demonstrated the tolerability of the tivozanib and immunotherapy combination, and I look forward to its further evaluation in the Phase 2 portion of the study.”

“We believe that data observed in the Phase 1b portion of the DEDUCTIVE study continue to support tivozanib’s potential to serve as an attractive VEGFR TKI to use in the immunotherapy combination setting,” said Michael Bailey, president and chief executive officer of AVEO. “As we await a decision on our New Drug Application for single agent tivozanib in relapsed or refractory renal cell carcinoma (RCC), we remain focused on executing on our combination strategy, including in metastatic RCC and HCC.”

About Tivozanib (FOTIVDA®)

Tivozanib is an oral, once-daily, next-generation VEGFR TKI discovered by Kyowa Kirin Co. and approved as FOTIVDA® for the treatment of adult patients with advanced RCC in the European Union and other countries in the territory of the Company’s partner, EUSA Pharma (UK) Limited (EUSA territory). It is a potent, selective and long half-life inhibitor of all three VEGF receptors and is designed to optimize VEGF blockade while minimizing off-target toxicities, potentially resulting in improved efficacy and minimal dose modifications.1,2 Tivozanib is being studied in the TIVO-3 trial, which is supporting a regulatory submission of tivozanib in the U.S. seeking marketing approval as a treatment for adult patients with relapsed or refractory advanced RCC. Tivozanib has been shown to significantly reduce regulatory T-cell production in preclinical models3 and has demonstrated synergy in combination with nivolumab (anti PD-1) in a Phase 2 study in RCC.4 Tivozanib has been investigated in several tumor types, including renal cell, hepatocellular, colorectal, ovarian and breast cancers. Tivozanib is also being studied by partner Kyowa Kirin Co. in non-oncology indications.

About AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 

AVEO is an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company committed to delivering medicines that provide a better life for cancer patients. AVEO’s strategy is to focus its resources toward development and commercialization of its product candidates in North America, while leveraging partnerships to support development and commercialization in other geographies. AVEO’s lead candidate, tivozanib, is approved as FOTIVDA® in the European Union and other countries in the EUSA territory for the treatment of adult patients with advanced RCC. Tivozanib is being studied in the TIVO-3 trial, which is supporting a regulatory submission of tivozanib in the U.S. seeking marketing approval as a treatment for relapsed or refractory RCC. AVEO has previously reported promising early clinical data on ficlatuzumab (anti-HGF mAb) in head and neck cancer, acute myeloid leukemia and pancreatic cancer and is conducting a randomized Phase 2 confirmatory clinical trial of ficlatuzumab in head and neck cancer. AVEO’s earlier-stage pipeline includes several monoclonal antibodies in oncology development, including AV-203 (anti-ErbB3 mAb), AV-380 (anti-GDF15 mAb) and AV-353 (anti-Notch 3 mAb). AVEO is committed to creating an environment of diversity and inclusion as a foundation for innovation.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements of AVEO within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “design,” “expect,” “hope,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “seek,” “look forward,” “advance,” “goal,” “strategy,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements about: the potential for tivozanib as a treatment option for patients with advanced HCC or relapsed/refractory or advanced RCC; the potential efficacy, safety, and tolerability of tivozanib, both as a stand-alone drug candidate and in combination with other therapies in several indications; AVEO’s execution of its clinical and regulatory strategy for tivozanib; AVEO’s plans and strategies for current and future clinical trials of tivozanib, ficlatuzumab and AV-380 and for commercialization of tivozanib in the United States; the advancement of AVEO’s pipeline, including the advancement of ficlatuzumab in multiple clinical studies; the potential efficacy, safety and tolerability of ficlatuzumab, both as a stand-alone drug candidate and in combination with other therapies; the potential outcomes from studies of ficlatuzumab to provide AVEO with opportunities to pursue regulatory strategies; the potential clinical utility of ficlatuzumab in areas of unmet need; and AVEO’s strategy, prospects, plans and objectives for its product candidates and for the Company generally. AVEO has based its expectations and estimates on assumptions that may prove to be incorrect. As a result, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these expectations and estimates. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements that AVEO makes due to a number of important factors, including risks relating to: whether the results of TIVO-3 are sufficient to obtain marketing approval for tivozanib in the U.S., which turns on the ability of AVEO to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the FDA the safety and efficacy of tivozanib based upon the findings of TIVO-3, including its data with respect to progression-free survival, the rate of adverse events, overall survival and other information that the FDA may consider to be relevant to an approval determination; AVEO’s ability to successfully implement its strategic plans, including its ability to successfully launch and commercialize tivozanib if it may be approved for commercialization by the FDA and to obtain and maintain market and third party payor acceptance of tivozanib if it may be approved for commercialization by the FDA; AVEO’s ability to raise the substantial additional funds required to achieve its goals, including those goals pertaining to the launch and commercialization of tivozanib; AVEO’s ability, and the ability of its licensees, to demonstrate to the satisfaction of applicable regulatory agencies such as the FDA the safety, efficacy and clinically meaningful benefit of AVEO’s product candidates, and risks relating to the timing and costs of seeking and obtaining regulatory approvals; and AVEO’s ability to enter into and maintain its third party collaboration and license agreements, and its ability, and the ability of its strategic partners, to achieve development and commercialization objectives under these arrangements; AVEO’s and its collaborators’ ability to successfully enroll and complete clinical trials; AVEO’s ability to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements applicable to its product candidates; AVEO’s ability to obtain and maintain adequate protection for intellectual property rights relating to its product candidates; unplanned capital requirements; uncertainties related to AVEO’s ability to access future borrowings under the Hercules loan facility, which turns on the achievement of milestones related to the approval and commercialization of tivozanib in the U.S., which milestones may not be achieved; adverse general economic and industry conditions; the potential adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on AVEO’s business continuity, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and ability to successfully and timely enroll, complete and read-out data from its clinical trials; competitive factors; and those risks discussed in the sections titled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources” included in AVEO’s quarterly and annual reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in other filings that AVEO makes with the SEC. The forward-looking statements in this press release represent AVEO’s views as of the date of this press release, and subsequent events and developments may cause its views to change. While AVEO may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. You should, therefore, not rely on these forward-looking statements as representing AVEO’s views as of any date other than the date of this press release.

Any reference to AVEO’s website address in this press release is intended to be an inactive textual reference only and not an active hyperlink.

References

  1. Fotivda (Tivozanib) SmPC August 2017
  2. Motzer RJ, Nosov D, Eisen T, et al. J Clin Oncol 2013; 31(30): 3791-9
  3. Pawlowski N et al. AACR 2013. Poster 3971
  4. Barthelemy et al. ESMO 2018. Poster 878P

AVEO:
David Pitts, Argot Partners
(212) 600-1902
aveo@argotpartners.com

Source: AVEO Oncology