Cancer treatment company BioSight, which recently received a $13 million investment from Mori Arkin and US investment fund Primera Capital, reports positive interim results of an initial efficacy trial for its Leukemia treatment product.
The company's product, Astarabine, had been tested on 15 Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) patients unfit for chemotherapy, due to its toxicity. While it is impossible to discuss the significance of the results, since the trial was conducted with no control group (as customary with trials on cancer at this stage), results indicate a good response to treatment in the examined group, with minimum side effects. In three out of 15 patients, for whom no treatment could earlier be provided, a full remission was noted for 4-10 months, to date; in two further patients a partial remission was reported for 3-7 months.
The company clarifies that good results were also reported for older patients over 80. BioSight's Astarabine is composed of a high dosage of cytarabine, considered to be the most effective treatment for these kinds of leukemia, but is too toxic for high-dosage delivery to older patients.
Less side effects
When provided as an Astarabine component, cytarabine generates fewer side effects, which provides a response for this patient group.
BioSight was founded in 2000 by Dr. Stella Gengrinovich and is managed by CEO Dr. Ruth Ben-Yakar.
Other BioSight products are undergoing pre-clinical development. The company has raised an overall of $19 million from Arkin, Primera, Dubi Zahavi, Erez Sandt, Michael Ilan, Raya Strauss, Costal Holdings, Trendlines and others.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 7, 2016
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