Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies) | 12 Months Ended |
Dec. 31, 2019 |
Accounting Policies [Abstract] | |
Reclassifications | Reclassifications Certain prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. |
Use of Estimates | Use of Estimates Our financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of our financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Reported amounts and note disclosures reflect the overall economic conditions that are most likely to occur and anticipated measures management intends to take. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. All revisions to accounting estimates are recognized in the period in which the estimates are revised and in any future periods affected. |
Segment Reporting | Segment Reporting Operating segments are identified as components of an enterprise about which separate discrete financial information is available for evaluation by the chief operating decision-maker in making decisions regarding resource allocation and assessing performance. We operate in a single industry segment which is the discovery and development of precision medicines for the treatment of cancer. Our chief operating decision-maker reviews the operating results on an aggregate basis and manages the operations as a single operating segment in the United States. |
Cash and Cash Equivalents | Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash and cash equivalents consist of checking, money market and highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to cash and that have an original maturity of three months or less. The carrying amounts approximate fair value due to the short maturities of these instruments. |
Short-Term Investments | Short-Term Investments Short-term investments are marketable securities with maturities greater than three months from date of purchase that are specifically identified to fund current operations. These investments are classified as current assets, even though the stated maturity date may be one year or more beyond the current balance sheet date, which reflects management’s intention to use the proceeds from sales of these securities to fund our operations, as necessary. The cost of short-term investments is adjusted for amortization of premiums or accretion of discounts to maturity, and such amortization or accretion is included in interest income. Dividend and interest income is recognized as interest income on the statements of operations and comprehensive loss when earned. Short-term investments are classified as available-for-sale securities and carried at fair value with unrealized gains and losses recorded in other comprehensive income (loss) and included as a separate component of stockholders' equity. Realized gains and losses from the sale of available-for-sale securities and declines in value judged to be other than temporary on short-term investments, if any, are determined on a specific identification basis and are reclassified out of comprehensive loss and included in interest income on the statements of operations and comprehensive loss. |
Fair Value Measurements | Fair Value Measurements Fair value is defined as the exit price, representing the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. As such, fair value is a market-based measurement that should be determined based on assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability. As a basis for considering such assumptions, the guidance establishes a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value as follows: • Level 1 - Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; • Level 2 - Inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are either directly or indirectly observable; • Level 3 - Unobservable inputs in which little or no market activity exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing. |
Concentration of Credit Risk | Concentration of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject us to significant concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. We maintain deposits in federally insured financial institutions in excess of federally insured limits. We have established guidelines to limit our exposure to credit risk by placing investments with high credit quality financial institutions, diversifying our investment portfolio and placing investments with maturities that maintain safety and liquidity. We periodically review and modify these guidelines to maximize trends in yields and interest rates without compromising safety and liquidity. |
Property and Equipment | Property and Equipment Property and equipment are stated at cost and depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Computer software and equipment are depreciated over their estimated useful lives of three years. Laboratory equipment is depreciated over its estimated useful life of five years. |
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets | Impairment of Long-Lived Assets We review our long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable. If such circumstances are determined to exist, an estimate of undiscounted future cash flows produced by the long-lived asset, including its eventual residual value, is compared to the carrying value to determine whether impairment exists. In the event that such cash flows are not expected to be sufficient to recover the carrying amount of the assets, the assets are written-down to their estimated fair values. For the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, there were no impairments of the value of long-lived assets. |
Leases | Leases We determine if an arrangement is a lease or contains lease components at inception. Short-term leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the balance sheet. For operating leases with an initial term greater than 12 months, we recognize operating lease right-of-use, or ROU, assets and operating lease liabilities based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term at commencement date. Operating lease ROU assets are comprised of the lease liability plus any lease payments made and excludes lease incentives. Lease terms may include options to extend or terminate when we are reasonably certain that the option will be exercised. For our operating leases, we generally cannot determine the interest rate implicit in the lease, in which case we use our incremental borrowing rate as the discount rate for the lease. We estimate our incremental borrowing rate for our operating leases based on what we would normally pay to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term for an amount equal to the lease payments. Operating lease expense is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. If a lease is modified, the modified contract is evaluated to determine whether it is or contains a lease. If a lease continues to exist, the lease modification is determined to be a separate contract when the modification grants the lessee an additional right of use that is not included in the original lease and the lease payments increase commensurate with the standalone price for the additional ROU. A lease modification that results in a separate contract will be accounted for in the same manner as a new lease. For a modification that is not a separate contract, we reassess the lease classification using the modified terms and conditions and the facts and circumstances as of the effective date of the modification and recognize the amount of the remeasurement of the lease liability for the modified lease as an adjustment to the corresponding ROU asset. |
Research and Development Expenses | Research and Development Expenses Research and development expenses consist of costs associated with our research and development activities including salaries, benefits, share-based compensation and other personnel costs, clinical trial costs, manufacturing costs for non-commercial products, fees paid to external service providers and consultants, facilities costs and supplies, equipment and materials used in clinical and preclinical studies and research and development. |
Clinical Trial Costs and Accruals | Clinical Trial Costs and Accruals A significant portion of our clinical trial costs relate to contracts with contract research organizations, or CROs. The financial terms of our CRO contracts may result in payment flows that do not match the periods over which materials or services are provided to us under such contracts. Our objective is to reflect the appropriate clinical trial expenses in our financial statements by matching those expenses with the period in which services and efforts are expended. As part of the process of preparing our financial statements, we rely on cost information provided by our CROs, concerning monthly expenses as well as reimbursement for pass through costs. We are also required to estimate certain of our expenses resulting from our obligations under our CRO contracts. Accordingly, our clinical trial accrual is dependent upon the timely and accurate reporting of CROs and other third-party vendors. If the contracted amounts are modified, for instance, as a result of changes in the clinical trial protocol or scope of work to be performed, we modify our accruals accordingly on a prospective basis. Revisions in the scope of a contract are charged to expense in the period in which the facts that give rise to the revision become reasonably certain. Historically, we have had no material changes in clinical trial expense that had a material impact on our results of operations or financial position. |
Patent Costs | Patent Costs We expense all costs as incurred in connection with patent applications, including direct application fees, and the legal and consulting expenses related to making such applications, and such costs are included in general and administrative expenses on the statements of operations and comprehensive loss. |
Share-Based Payments | Share-Based Payments Our share-based awards are measured at fair value on the date of grant based upon the estimated fair value of common stock. The fair value of awards expected to vest are recognized and amortized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period of the award less actual forfeitures. The fair value of each stock option is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, or Black-Scholes model, that requires the use of subjective assumptions including volatility, expected term, risk-free rate and the fair value of the underlying common stock. Subsequent to the adoption of Accounting Standards Update, or ASU, fair value and expensed based on the intrinsic value method which was measured as the difference between the exercise price paid for the restricted stock award and the fair value of the shares as the right of the repurchase lapses each vesting period. |
Income Taxes | Income Taxes Income taxes are accounted for using the asset and liability method. Under the asset and liability method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates applicable to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. A valuation allowance against deferred tax assets is recorded if, based upon the weight of all available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. For uncertain tax positions that meet “a more likely than not” threshold, we recognize the benefit of uncertain tax positions in the financial statements. |
Comprehensive Loss | Comprehensive Loss Comprehensive loss is defined as the change in equity during the period from transactions and other events and non-owner sources. For the periods presented, accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) consists of unrealized gains and losses on marketable securities and foreign currency. |
Net Loss per Share | Net Loss per Share Net loss per common share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period, without consideration for common stock equivalents. Diluted net loss per share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common shares and common stock equivalents outstanding for the period determined using the treasury-stock method. For purposes of this calculation, outstanding stock options, unvested restricted stock awards, an outstanding warrant and employee stock purchase plan rights are excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per common share for the periods presented as their effect would be anti-dilutive. For all periods presented, there is no difference in the number of shares used to calculate basic and diluted shares outstanding due to the anti-dilutive effect of the securities. The following table summarizes the number of p otentially dilutive securities that were excluded from our calculation of diluted net loss per share, in thousands: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Stock options 4,080 3,186 2,233 Warrant 34 34 34 Employee stock purchase plan rights 6 5 — Unvested restricted stock awards — — 793 Total 4,120 3,225 3,060 |
Recent Accounting Pronouncements | In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), which amended prior accounting standards for leases. ASU 2016-02 requires lessees to recognize ROU assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and requires expanded disclosures about leasing arrangements. We adopted the new lease standard on January 1, 2019, using the alternative modified transition method provided by ASU 2018-11 and did not retrospectively apply to prior periods. We elected the “package of practical expedients” permitted under the transition which allows us not to reassess our historical assessment of whether existing contracts are or contain a lease and the classification of existing lease arrangements, and to calculate the present value of the fixed payments without performing an allocation of lease and non-lease components. As a result of the adoption of the new standard, we recognized operating lease ROU assets and operating lease liabilities of $0.6 million on our balance sheet as of January 1, 2019. ROU assets are recorded in other long-term assets on our balance sheets. Current lease liabilities are recorded in accounts payable and accrued expenses on our balance sheets. The adoption of the new lease standard did not have an impact on our accumulated deficit, and did not have a material impact on our results of operations and cash flows. See the “Operating Leases” section of Note 9, Commitments and Contingencies, for further details. In June 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-07, Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting (Topic 718), which expands the scope of Topic 718 to include share-based payment transactions for acquiring goods and services from nonemployees. The new guidance is intended to simplify aspects of share-based compensation issued to nonemployees by aligning the accounting for share-based payment awards issued to employees and nonemployees as it relates to measurement date and impact of performance conditions. This standard was effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, and interim periods within those annual periods. We adopted ASU 2018-07 on January 1, 2019. The adoption of ASU 2018-07 did not have a material impact on our financial statements. In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. The new guidance is intended to simplify aspects of the accounting for income taxes, including the elimination of certain exceptions to the guidance in ASC 740 related to the approach for intraperiod tax allocation, among other changes. This standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020 and interim periods within those annual years. Early adoption is permitted. We elected to early adopt ASU 2019-12 effective January 1, 2019. The adoption of ASU 2019-12 did not have a material impact on our financial statements. In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses: Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments, which changes the impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. For trade receivables and other instruments, entities will be required to use a new forward-looking expected loss model that generally will result in the earlier recognition of allowances for losses. For available-for-sale debt securities with unrealized losses that are attributable to credit, the losses will be recognized in earnings as allowances |