Intensity Therapeutics, Inc. and The Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research SAKK Receive European Medicines Agency Authorization to Initiate Phase 2 INVINCIBLE-4 (SAKK/66/22) Study for INT230-6 in the Treatment of Presurgical Triple-Negative Breast Cancer in France
INVINCIBLE-4 (SAKK/66/22) Study continues to recruit patients in eight sites in Switzerland
SHELTON, Conn. and BERN, Switzerland, May 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Intensity Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: INTS), ("Intensity" or "the Company") a late-stage clinical biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of proprietary, novel immune-based intratumoral cancer therapies designed to kill tumors and increase immune system recognition of cancers, and The Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research SAKK ("SAKK"), a decentralized academic research institute that has been conducting clinical trials of cancer treatments in all major Swiss hospitals since 1965, announced that the European Medicines Agency ("EMA") has authorized the initiation of the INVINCIBLE-4 (SAKK 66/22) ("INVINCIBLE-4 Study") (NCT06358573) in France in collaboration with Unicancer.
Logo (PRNewsfoto/Intensity Therapeutics Inc.)
The INVINCIBLE-4 Study is a randomized open-label, multicenter study to determine the clinical activity, safety, and tolerability of INT230-6 in patients with early-stage, operable triple-negative breast cancer ("TNBC") who undergo standard of care neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy ("SOC") treatment and SOC alone. The primary endpoint is pathological complete response ("pCR") in the primary tumor and affected lymph nodes. Patients will be randomized one-to-one to receive a regimen of either two doses of INT230-6 followed by SOC, which consists of pembrolizumab, anthracyclines, carboplatin, cyclophosphamide, and paclitaxel (i.e., the Keynote-522 regimen), or the SOC alone. The study is already recruiting patients in Switzerland and is expected to enroll 54 patients.
"We are encouraged to see high levels of tumor necrosis from the MRI scans and evidence of tumor inflammation after two INT230-6 injections and prior to initiation of the SOC in our first patients," said Ursina Zürrer, M.D. Chief Physician for Genetic Counseling, Department of Medical Oncology and Hematology Cantonal Hospital Winterthur, Switzerland, and the Coordinating Investigator for the INVINCIBLE-4 Study. "If the immunological cancer cell death and the ignition of an anti-cancer immune response without increased toxicity in patients receiving INT230-6 shows a meaningful increase in pCR, it would be a major advance for the neoadjuvant treatment of breast cancer and potentially other cancers."
"The acceptance of the INVINCIBLE-4 by the EMA and our expansion of the trial into France is expected to increase our enrollment rate starting in the second quarter of 2025. We should almost double the number of sites actively screening patients. We are excited to work with Unicancer, a group accredited by the French National Cancer Institute with centers of academic excellence and strong operational capability throughout France." Said Lewis H. Bender, President and CEO of Intensity Therapeutics."
About INT230-6 INT230-6, Intensity's lead proprietary investigational product candidate, is designed for direct intratumoral injection. INT230-6 was discovered using Intensity's proprietary DfuseRx℠ technology platform. The drug is comprised of two proven, potent anti-cancer agents, cisplatin and vinblastine sulfate, and a diffusion and cell penetration enhancer molecule (SHAO) that helps disperse potent cytotoxic drugs throughout tumors for diffusion into cancer cells. These agents remain in the tumor, resulting in a favorable safety profile. In addition to local disease control and direct tumor killing, INT230-6 causes a release of a bolus of neoantigens specific to the malignancy, leading to immune system engagement and systemic anti-tumor effects. Importantly, these effects are mediated without immunosuppression, which often occurs with systemic chemotherapy.
About Triple Negative Breast Cancer in the Presurgical Setting Women with aggressive forms of breast cancer, such as TNBC, are often counseled to undergo pre-surgical (neoadjuvant) systemic therapy in advance to reduce the risk of the disease returning. Having a pathological complete response, meaning the absence of live cancer at the time of surgery, has been shown to result in a lower risk of recurrence. Approximately 11-17% of breast cancers test negative for estrogen receptors (ER), progesterone receptors (PR), and overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) protein, qualifying them as triple negative. There are approximately 56,000 new cases of TNBC in the US and 420,000 Worldwide diagnosed each year, the majority of which are local to the breast. TNBC is considered to be more aggressive and has a poorer prognosis than other types of breast cancer, because there are fewer available targeted medicines. Most patients with local TNBC typically receive immune/chemotherapy before surgery. Since the publication of Keynote-522, the standard neoadjuvant treatment for TNBC includes systemic chemotherapy (anthracyclines, cyclophosphamide, paclitaxel, carboplatin) and the anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody pembrolizumab. pCR rates are 65%, with rates generally lower in the larger-sized tumors or with lymph node metastasis. The toxicity of the Keynote-522 regimen is high, with 80% of patients experiencing grade 3 or higher treatment-related AEs, including treatment-related adverse events that lead to death in 0.5% of patients.
About Intensity Therapeutics Intensity is a late-stage clinical biotechnology company whose novel engineered chemistry enables aqueous cytotoxic-containing drug formulations to mix and saturate a tumor's dense, high-fat, pressurized environment following direct intratumoral injection. As a result of the saturation, Intensity's clinical trials have demonstrated the ability of INT230-6 to kill tumors and elicit an adaptive immune response within days of injection, representing a new approach to cancer cell death that holds the potential to shift the treatment paradigm and turn many deadly cancers into chronic diseases even for malignancies that do not respond to conventional immunotherapy. Intensity has completed two clinical studies and enrolled over 200 patients using INT230-6: a Phase 1/2 dose escalation study in metastatic cancers including sarcomas (NCT03058289), and a Phase 2 randomized control clinical trial in locally advanced breast cancer (the "INVINCIBLE-2 Study") (NCT04781725) in women without undergoing chemotherapy prior to their surgery. The Company initiated a Phase 3 trial in soft tissue sarcoma (the "INVINCIBLE-3 Study") (NCT06263231), testing INT230-6 as second or third-line monotherapy compared to the standard of care ("SOC") with overall survival as an endpoint. Intensity also initiated a Phase 2 study in collaboration with The Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research, SAKK (the "INVINCIBLE-4 Study") (NCT06358573) as part of a Phase 2/3 program evaluating INT230-6 followed by the SOC immunochemotherapy and the SOC alone for patients with presurgical triple-negative breast cancer. Pathological complete response ("pCR") is the endpoint. For more information about Intensity, including publications, papers, and posters about its novel approach to cancer therapeutics, visit www.intensitytherapeutics.com
About SAKK The Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research (SAKK) is a decentralized academic research institute that has been conducting clinical trials of cancer treatments in all major Swiss hospitals since 1965. It federates a large network of research groups with a Competence Center in Bern in charge of coordinating the clinical operations. It also works with selected cooperative groups abroad, particularly on rare forms of cancer. SAKK's aim is to advance existing cancer treatments, investigate the efficacy and tolerability of new treatments (radiotherapy, medicines and surgery), and set new standards in treatment. 22 Swiss hospitals are full members of SAKK. Research activity is funded by federal subsidies provided by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) and financial support from other partner organizations such as the Swiss Cancer League and the Swiss Cancer Research Foundation. Further information can be found at https://www.sakk.ch/en.
About Unicancer The Unicancer French breast intergroup (UCBG) is the French referent cooperative group in Breast Cancer. The French National Cancer Institute (INCa) accredited the group in 2013, thus acknowledging its academic excellence and operational capability. Since its creation, the group has conducted more than 40 national and international multicenter clinical trials, as well as various translational research projects.
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