Published Results Confirm and Extend Response Results from Phase 3 FLASH Study
PRINCETON, N.J., May 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Soligenix, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNGX) (Soligenix or the Company), a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing products to treat rare diseases where there is an unmet medical need, announced today that the results of its compatibility study evaluating HyBryte™ (synthetic hypericin) for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) have been published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology & Venereology (JEADV) Clinical Practice. The publication highlights the positive clinical results from study, HPN-CTCL-02, evaluating HyBryte™ in the treatment of CTCL.
The open-label study enrolled 9 patients to receive 8 weeks of HyBryte™ treatment of their cancerous lesions, with an assessment of treatment response conducted at week 10 using the modified Composite Assessment of Index Lesion Severity (mCAILS) score. The treatment response results of 22% following 8 weeks of twice weekly HyBryte™ therapy reinforces and confirms the results of the Phase 3 FLASH (Fluorescent Light Activated Synthetic Hypericin) trial published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Dermatology, despite the fact that patients in Study HPN-CTCL-02 were specifically selected to have more extensive disease consistent with its potential commercial use. Additionally, in this study all patients had improvements in their cumulative mCAILS score (average improvement of 36.4%, range 8 to 100%). Results in individual lesions showed that 7 of the 27 index lesions (25.9%) had at least a 50% improvement in their mCAILS score and 4 of the 27 index lesions (14.8%) were completely resolved after as little as 8 weeks of treatment. Other key evaluations included measurements of systemic exposure and electrocardiograms, which yielded extremely low and limited levels of systemic hypericin (plateau concentration of approximately 0.00013 μg/mL) detected in the blood and no observable impact to normal sinus rhythm, reinforcing the safety of HyBryte™.
"Being able to share the important results of this clinical trial with the world through publication in JEADV is a privilege and highlights the clinical significance of our work with HyBryte™," stated Brian Poligone, MD, PhD, Director of the Rochester Skin Lymphoma Medical Group, Fairport, NY, and Principal Investigator for the compatibility study and Leading Enrolling Investigator in the FLASH study. "I have seen firsthand the promise this therapy can offer patients and was happy to build upon our knowledge working with HyBryte™ in a clinical setting reflective of real-world use. The ease at which photodynamic therapy with HyBryte™ is conducted and the outstanding safety profile we continue to see as demonstrated by the systemic exposure and cardiac results reviewed in this paper makes me very excited for its potential future clinical use. I look forward to participating in the confirmatory Phase 3 FLASH2 study later this year."
About JEADV
The Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (JEADV) is a peer reviewed journal that publishes articles of general and practical interest in the field of dermatology and venereology including clinical and basic science topics, as well as research with practical implications. It does so through editorials, review and practice articles, original papers of general interest, short reports, letters to the editor, features and EADV announcements. JEADV has an extensive international readership with over 2 million downloads every year.
About HyBryte™
HyBryte™ (research name SGX301) is a novel, first-in-class, photodynamic therapy utilizing safe, visible light for activation. The active ingredient in HyBryte™ is synthetic hypericin, a potent photosensitizer that is topically applied to skin lesions that is taken up by the malignant T-cells, and then activated by safe, visible light approximately 24 hours later. The use of visible light in the red-yellow spectrum has the advantage of penetrating more deeply into the skin (much more so than ultraviolet light) and therefore potentially treating deeper skin disease and thicker plaques and lesions. This treatment approach avoids the risk of secondary malignancies (including melanoma) inherent with the frequently employed DNA-damaging drugs and other phototherapy that are dependent on ultraviolet exposure. Combined with photoactivation, hypericin has demonstrated significant anti-proliferative effects on activated normal human lymphoid cells and inhibited growth of malignant T-cells isolated from CTCL patients. In a published Phase 2 clinical study in CTCL, patients experienced a statistically significant (p=0.04) improvement with topical hypericin treatment whereas the placebo was ineffective. HyBryte™ has received orphan drug and fast track designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as well as orphan designation from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The published Phase 3 FLASH trial enrolled a total of 169 patients (166 evaluable) with Stage IA, IB or IIA CTCL. The trial consisted of three treatment cycles. Treatments were administered twice weekly for the first 6 weeks and treatment response was determined at the end of the 8th week of each cycle. In the first double-blind treatment cycle (Cycle 1), 116 patients received HyBryte™ treatment (0.25% synthetic hypericin) and 50 received placebo treatment of their index lesions. A total of 16% of the patients receiving HyBryte™ achieved at least a 50% reduction in their lesions (graded using a standard measurement of dermatologic lesions, the CAILS score) compared to only 4% of patients in the placebo group at 8 weeks (p=0.04) during the first treatment cycle (primary endpoint). HyBryte™ treatment in this cycle was safe and well tolerated.
In the second open-label treatment cycle (Cycle 2), all patients received HyBryte™ treatment of their index lesions. Evaluation of 155 patients in this cycle (110 receiving 12 weeks of HyBryte™ treatment and 45 receiving 6 weeks of placebo treatment followed by 6 weeks of HyBryte™ treatment), demonstrated that the response rate among the 12-week treatment group was 40% (p