The FOCUS trial is intended to evaluate the efficacy of HEPZATO treatment for patients with mOM with the primary endpoint of ORR as assessed by an IRC per RECIST v1.1. Per protocol, patients were to be treated every 6 weeks to 8 weeks until the earlier of 6 cycles or progression. Tumor responses were to be assessed every 12 weeks (+/- 2 weeks) until progression.
The single arm trial was powered to demonstrate a superior ORR versus checkpoint inhibitors, one of the few mOM treatment categories with a significant amount of peer reviewed publications. The checkpoint inhibitor ORR was calculated based on a meta-analysis covering 16 different publications and 476 patients. Based on those assumptions a 21.0% ORR was required to demonstrate superiority over the checkpoint inhibitors at a 95% confidence interval.
The single arm trial was initially designed and conducted as a randomized controlled study with a BAC comparator arm before being amended to a single arm trial. While the modified trial was not powered to test superiority versus BAC, comparative analyses against the BAC arm were included in the revised statistical analysis plan
Conference Call Information
Dr. Jonathan Zager MD FACS, lead investigator of the FOCUS study, senior member and Director of Regional Therapies at Moffitt Cancer Center will join the Delcath management team during today’s conference call.
Date: March 31, 2021
Time: 8:00 AM Eastern Time
Toll Free: 877-407-8035
International: 201-689-8035
The call will also be available over the Internet and accessible at:
https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/2475/40544 About HEPZATOTM KIT and CHEMOSAT®
The HEPZATOTM KIT (melphalan hydrochloride for injection/hepatic delivery system), or HEPZAT O TM , is a drug/device combination product HEPZATO is designed to administer high-dose chemotherapy to the liver while controlling systemic exposure and associated side effects. In Europe, our commercial product is a stand-alone medical device and is approved for sale under the trade name CHEMOSAT® Hepatic Delivery System for Melphalan, or CHEMOSAT, where it has been used at major medical centers to treat a wide range of cancers of the liver. In the United States, HEPZATO is considered a combination drug and device product regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration, or the FDA. Primary jurisdiction for regulation of HEPZATO has been assigned to the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. The FDA has granted Delcath six orphan drug designations (five for melphalan in ocular melanoma, cutaneous melanoma, cholangiocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and neuroendocrine tumor indications and one for doxorubicin in the hepatocellular carcinoma indication). HEPZATO has not been approved for sale in the United States.
In Europe, CHEMOSAT is regulated as a Class IIb medical device and received its CE Mark in 2012. We are commercializing CHEMOSAT in select markets in the United Kingdom and the European Union, or EU, where we believe the prospect of securing reimbursement coverage for the use of CHEMOSAT is strongest.
About Metastatic Ocular Melanoma
Approximately 5,000-6,200 cases of ocular melanoma are diagnosed in the United States and Europe annually, and approximately 50% of these patients will develop metastatic disease. Of metastatic cases of ocular melanoma, approximately 90% of patients develop liver involvement. According to Lane et al., JAMA Ophthalmol. 2018 Sep 1;136(9):981-98, once ocular melanoma has spread to the liver, median overall survival for these patients is generally 3.9 months (untreated) to 6.3 months (treated). There is no one standard of care for patients with ocular melanoma liver metastases. Based on 2018 research, an estimated 2,500-3,100 patients with ocular melanoma liver metastases in the United States, the United Kingdom and the EU may be eligible for treatment with HEPZATO annually.
About Delcath Systems, Inc.
Delcath Systems, Inc. is an interventional oncology company focused on the treatment of primary and metastatic liver cancers. Our investigational product – HEPZATO KIT (melphalan hydrochloride for injection/hepatic delivery system) – is designed to administer high-dose chemotherapy to the liver while minimizing systemic exposure and associated side effects. In addition to the FOCUS Trial which is investigating the treatment of mOM, we have initiated a global Phase 3 clinical trial for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) called the ALIGN Trial. We have paused our work on the ALIGN Trial while we reevaluate the trial design. HEPZATO KIT has not been approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for sale in the U.S. In Europe, our system is marketed under the trade name Delcath CHEMOSAT® Hepatic Delivery System for Melphalan (CHEMOSAT) and has been CE Marked and used at major medical centers to treat a wide range of cancers of the liver. CHEMOSAT is being marketed under an exclusive licensing agreement with medac GmbH, a privately held multi-national pharmaceutical company headquartered in Germany that specializes in the treatment and diagnosis of oncological, urological and autoimmune diseases.