Peregrine Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PPHM) has decided to form a strategic partnership with NCCN (National Comprehensive Cancer Network) to accelerate the R&D of bavituximab for the treatment of cancer. Peregrine is well-known for developing a broad range of therapeutics that can stimulate the immune system in the human body and help it fight cancer in the best possible way.
NCCN is a not-for-profit alliance formed by 26 leading cancer centers that are active in research, patient care and education. The primary objective of NCCN is to improve the effectiveness and quality of cancer treatments so that people suffering from this life-threatening disease can live healthy lives.
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As part of this collaboration, Peregrine will provide funds to carry out investigator-initiated correlative and clinical studies in bavituximab at NCCN member institutions and their community hospitals. Reports claim that total funds offered in this partnership will be around $2 million in the form of a research grant to ORP (Oncology Research Program).
Once the funds are allotted, it will be NCCN’s responsibility to monitor and oversight all the research studies and try to achieve desirable results as soon as possible.
Bavituximab is but an immunotherapy that’s specially designed to assist the immune system of the body by modulating and targeting phosphatidylserine molecule. The initial findings suggest that bavituximab can reverse the entire immunosuppressive environment that most of the tumor cells establish to spread and proliferate. Moreover, it also activates immune cells that fight cancer in an efficient manner.
Peregrine has already assembled an extensive set of translational and preclinical data that can help bavituximab to enhance the therapeutic activity of different cancer treatments. The range of such treatments varies from novel immuno-oncology agents like checkpoint inhibitors to traditional approaches like radiation and chemotherapy.
Peregrine is delighted to announce this collaboration and hopes that it will accelerate the clinical evaluation of bavituximab and internal IST (investigator-sponsored trial) program in the coming days.
