Avax Technologies, Inc. is a

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

-based

biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used ...

company whose most advanced product candidate is MVax for melanoma. MVax is a cancer vaccine that received a Special Protocol Assessment agreement with the

FDA The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...

in October 2006, and subsequently began a Phase III registration clinical trial in November 2007. In previous studies, MVax demonstrated a 5-year overall survival rate (OS)of 44% and response rate of 35% (13% CR, 22% PR).

AC Vaccine

Method

A tumor sample is removed from a patient, then treated with the

hapten In immunology, haptens are small molecules that elicit an immune response only when attached to a large carrier such as a protein; the carrier may be one that also does not elicit an immune response by itself (in general, only large molecules, i ...

2,4-Dinitrophenol 2,4-Dinitrophenol (2,4-DNP or simply DNP) is an organic compound with the formula HOC6H3(NO2)2. It is a yellow, crystalline solid that has a sweet, musty odor. It sublimates, is volatile with steam, and is soluble in most organic solvents as well ...

. When reinjected back into the patient, the hapten will cause an enhanced immune response against the cancer cells.

Product Candidates

MVax

Started May 2007. Currently in a Phase III trial for Stage IV Melanoma. MVax’s Phase II response rate of 35% (CR + PR) in combination with low-dose IL-2 compares favorably to the Phase II results of other melanoma cancer vaccines such as Vical’s Allovectin-7 (11% CR + PR) and BioVex’s OncoVex (28% CR + PR), both of which are given as stand alone therapy. Due to the

Financial crisis of 2007–2010 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fi ...

and recent cancer vaccine failures in other companies like Favrille and Cell Genesys, Avax has had trouble attracting investors. In an effort to conserve cash, enrollment for the Phase III trial was suspended on March 26, 2009, but the trial itself is still ongoing. However on December 16, 2009, the company obtained bridge financing in the amount of $1,400,000. This will be used to conduct an interim analysis of the Phase III data for MVax. CEO John Prendergast notes: "Recent and anticipated news by companies involved with cancer vaccines and immunotherapies has resulted in renewed interest in the sector by institutional investors, larger pharma, biotechnology companies and the medical and scientific communities at large.".

LVax

Started February 2006. Currently in a Phase I/II trial for NSCLC. No new patient enrollment until more funding is obtained.

OVax

Started April 2008, a Phase I/II trial for

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

. Encouraging results reported Feb 2016.Advanced Ovarian Cancer Treatment Showing Promise in Clinical Trial. Feb 2016
/ref> Median survival was 22.7 months with no treatment-related serious adverse events.

Genopoietic SA

Based in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

, France, has a GMP facility that manufactures the vaccines for Avax. The facility is certified by the French government for commercial and clinical vaccine production for the European markets.

Notes

External links

{{authority control Companies traded over-the-counter in the United States Biotechnology companies of the United States Companies based in Philadelphia Pharmaceutical companies of the United States Companies with year of establishment missing Health care companies based in Pennsylvania