PharmaJet® announced that its partner, Scancell, has received positive data from the first stage in its Phase 2 clinical study for treatment of patients with unresectable advanced melanoma. The vaccine is delivered by needle-free injection with the PharmaJet Stratis® System, which patients prefer over needle and syringe delivery. Historically, the prognosis of patients with unresectable stage III and IV melanoma, when surgery is not an option, has been poor: Median overall survival is only 6.2 months1.

Scancell?s immunotherapy platform aims to improve on this prognosis using the body?s immune system to identify, attack and destroy tumors. The first stage in the Phase 2 study trial investigated whether the combination of SCIB1 treatment and checkpoint inhibitors (nivolumab and ipilimumab) resulted in an improvement in patient objective response rate (ORR) to treatment. Initial data from 11 patients showed an 82% ORR, which is better than the 70% ORR that the trial was configured to show and significantly better than previous studies that indicated a maximum 50% response rate.

The treatment was delivered needle-free using PharmaJet?s precision delivery system. Recruitment is underway for the second stage of the trial, with expected results during the first half of 2024. Based upon the first 11 patients, there is a greater than 90% probability that the second stage will also be successful.