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Verastem Presents Data at the 2014 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium
"The clinical relevance of cancer stem cells (CSCs) has perhaps been
best documented in breast cancer,” said
A summary of the data presented at the conference is below:
Title: VS-6063 (defactinib) and VS-4718 Reduce Cancer Stem Cells
in Models of Breast Cancer: Implications for Clinical Trials in the
Neoadjuvant Setting
Abstract #: 1696
Session/Poster: Poster
Session 6; Poster #P6-11-06
Date and Time:
Summary: In breast cancer, CSCs
can be identified by Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH) or
CD44-high/CD24-low expression. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been shown
to lead to an increase in CSCs in locally advanced breast cancer. In
addition, the presence of CSCs in residual axillary disease is
associated with a significantly worse prognosis following neoadjuvant
chemotherapy and surgery. Currently, there are no approved therapies
that effectively target and kill CSCs. VS-6063 and VS-4718 are orally
bioavailable small molecules that kill cancer stem cells through the
inhibition of FAK, and both compounds have demonstrated preferential
targeting of CSCs in preclinical models. In this study, the effects of
VS-6063 and VS-4718 were evaluated in multiple breast cancer models.
The research results demonstrated that CSCs are readily detectable in primary breast cancers at surgery, and VS-6063 and VS-4718 diminish the CSC subpopulation in vitro, ex vivo and in xenograft models, as measured by a number of functional and biomarker assays. This critical subpopulation of CSCs is also detectable in residual tumor following neoadjuvant therapy. These results provide scientific rationale for the clinical development of VS-6063 in combination with chemotherapy for the neoadjuvant treatment of TNBC and support the clinical investigation of CSC-targeted agents such as VS-6063 or VS-4718 in the neoadjuvant setting to potentially delay time to relapse and improve patient outcomes.
A copy of the poster presentation is available at http://bit.ly/R3M6wc.
About VS-6063
VS-6063 (defactinib) is an orally available compound designed to target
cancer stem cells through the potent inhibition of focal adhesion kinase
(FAK). Cancer stem cells are an underlying cause of tumor resistance to
chemotherapy, recurrence and ultimate disease progression. Research by
About VS-4718
VS-4718 is an orally available compound designed to target cancer stem cells through the potent inhibition of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). VS-4718 is currently being studied in a Phase 1 dose escalation study in patients with advanced cancers.
About
Forward-looking statements:
This press release includes forward-looking statements about the
Company’s strategy, future plans and prospects, including statements
regarding the development and activity of the Company’s product
candidates, including VS-6063, or defactinib, and VS-4718, and the
Company’s FAK and PI3K/mTOR programs generally, the timeline for
clinical development and regulatory approval of the Company’s product
candidates, including the clinical development of VS-6063 for the
neoadjuvant treatment of TNBC, and the structure of the Company’s
planned or pending clinical trials. The words “anticipate,” “appear,”
“believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,”
“project,” “target,” “potential,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should,”
“continue,” and similar expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements
contain these identifying words. Each forward-looking statement is
subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statement.
Applicable risks and uncertainties include the risks that the
preclinical testing of the Company’s product candidates and preliminary
or interim data from clinical trials may not be predictive of the
results or success of ongoing or later clinical trials, that data may
not be available when we expect it to be, that the Company will be
unable to successfully complete the clinical development of its product
candidates, including VS-6063 and VS-4718, that the development of the
Company’s product candidates will take longer or cost more than planned,
and that the Company’s product candidates will not receive regulatory
approval or become commercially successful products. Other risks and
uncertainties include those identified under the heading “Risk Factors”
in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
Source:
Verastem, Inc.
Brian Sullivan, 781-292-4214
bsullivan@verastem.com