Hookipa Working With Merck in Advanced Head and Neck Cancers

By Michael Dabaie

Hookipa Pharma Inc. said it is in a clinical collaboration and supply agreement with Merck & Co. to evaluate HB-200 and Keytruda for patients with advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Shares of Hookipa rose 5.6% to $6.57 in premarket trading.

Hookipa said the collaboration was initiated based on promising data from the continuing HB-200 Phase 1/2 clinical trial in advanced human papillomavirus 16-positive cancers.

With an HB-200 program data read-out anticipated by the fourth quarter of 2021, Hookipa said it anticipates initiating a Phase 2 trial with HB-200 in combination with Keytruda in 2022. The company said it is planning additional Phase 2 expansion cohorts to start in the first quarter of 2022.

Write to Michael Dabaie at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

09-15-21 0802ET