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DOYLESTOWN, PA: Preventing cancer from recurring after
surgery and chemotherapy is one of the keys to successful
long-term patient care and survival. But while surgery and
other treatments for late-stage cancer greatly reduce tumors,
they're not typically effective in eliminating the very small
numbers of cancer cells that remain undestroyed and undetected
in the body following early treatment.
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(L to R) Scientist Sid Murthy, president and CSO
Ramila Philip and scientist Jennifer Zerfass examine
mass spectrometry data used for validation of the company's
vaccine. Immunotope is
conducting a Phase I therapeutic vaccine clinical trial
for treatment of women with advanced-stage ovarian
and breast cancer at the Duke University Cancer Center.
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To fill this gap in therapy options, Immunotope is
developing a novel cancer vaccine that could stop cancer cells left in
the body after conventional treatment from later reproducing and spreading.
Immunotope's lead product, the OCPM immunotherapeutic vaccine, is being
tested in a Phase I clinical trial in ovarian and breast cancer patients
in a study being conducted at the Duke University Comprehensive Cancer
Center.
"The vaccine works by activating immune cells in the body to attack
cancer in multiple ways, all of which are vital to cancer cell growth,
survival or metastasis," says Ramila Philip, president and chief
scientific officer of Immunotope. "Doctors won't have to see a tumor
in order to treat it. Our vaccine will be administered right after surgery
and chemotherapy to prevent cancer from developing somewhere in the body
at a later time."
Bridging the Capital Gap
Immunotope has been able to conduct the Phase I clinical
trial in breast and ovarian cancer at Duke University thanks to an
investment from Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP). After reviewing
Immunotope's request for funding for the clinical trial, BFTP decided
to invest $350,000.
"For a startup like Immunotope, clinical trials raise the value
of the company. However, in order to do a clinical trial, you need to
raise money—it's a Catch-22," Philip says. "Ben Franklin
gave us the funds to get a clinical evaluation started, which has made
Immunotope a much more attractive company for investors."
The Road to Commercialization
Immunotope is located in Pennsylvania
Biotechnology Center, a $15 million facility in Doylestown, PA. The
center opened in 2006 and soon received designation as the focal point
for the state's 19th Keystone Innovation Zone. BFTP is a major supporter
of the center, along with the Hepatitis B Foundation and Delaware Valley
College.
Immunotope was formed in 2003 with the early intellectual property that
Philip generated and purchased from her previous employer, Argonex, Inc.,
where she was vice president of research and development. She joined
forces with her co-founders Lorraine Keller, Ph.D. and Mohan Philip Ph.D.,
MBA to start the new company. "Since then, Immunotope has filed
over five patent applications and continues to generate a strong IP portfolio," Philip
says.
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“Ben Franklin gave
us the funds to get a clinical evaluation done, which
has made Immunotope a much more attractive company
for investors.”
—RAMILA
PHILIP, PRESIDENT &
CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER, IMMUNOTOPE
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Dr. Timothy Block, professor at Drexel University, president of the
Hepatitis B Institute and head of the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center,
provided the fledgling company with a laboratory in 2004, prior to Immunotope's
becoming a tenant at the new center.
"In return, I became one of the faculty members of the Institute
for Virus and Hepatitis Research and an adjunct professor at Drexel," says
Philip, "and started collaborating with their faculties."
An Open Market
for a Novel Product
Immunotope has few competitors in the immunotherapy market
space because most companies package existing antigens rather than discover
new ones. "These companies need novel and clinically relevant antigens
like the ones we have, so our so-called competitors are actually our
customers," Philip says.
Immunotope currently has 10 employees, and once they receive their second
round of financing, they plan to hire regulatory, clinical and research
staff to increase their R&D and clinical activities, as well as a
business staff to expand their partnership and licensing. In March, Immunotope
announced that Edward L. Erickson has joined the company as Interim Chief
Executive Officer, and Mr. Erickson and Elizabeth Tallett have been elected
to Immunotope's Board of Directors.
Phase II and Phase III trials may come sooner than is typical, says
Philip. "Because cancer patients have nothing else to take, this
vaccine may be applicable for a fast-track approval process. We have
a couple of cancer therapeutics in the pipeline, and we are also working
on infectious diseases such as HPV and HIV, because our technology is
very relevant to therapeutic vaccines for chronic viral diseases as well."
Early cancer detection is also a key to successful long-term
care. "We are developing diagnostic tools that will go hand-in-hand
with our therapeutic agents so that in the future, when a patient gets
a cancer diagnosis, we will have a therapy to start treating them right
away," says Philip. "Early cancer detection is great, but you
also need a therapeutic agent that can stop the development of cancer.
And because you can't do surgery at the early stages of cancer, the best
thing is a vaccine." |
