Active Biotech enters into clinical trial collaboration agreement for a clinical study with tasquinimod in myelofibrosis

Lund, July 31 2023 – Active Biotech (NASDAQ STOCKHOLM: ACTI) today announced it has entered into a clinical trial collaboration agreement with Stichting Haemato-Oncologie Volwassenen Netherland (HOVON) and Stichting Oncode Institute (Oncode) for the upcoming clinical proof-of-concept trial of tasquinimod in myelofibrosis. HOVON will be the legal sponsor of the trial, Oncode the main financier and Active Biotech will provide tasquinimod study drug to the study. Active Biotech has a global patent license agreement with Oncode for tasquinimod in myelofibrosis since February 2022.

The planned study will investigate tasquinimod given as monotherapy to patients with myelofibrosis who have previously been treated with a JAK inhibitor or who are ineligible for JAK inhibitor treatment. The trial will be conducted at sites in the Netherlands and in Germany.

The study is supported by strong preclinical data showing that tasquinimod ameliorates myelofibrosis in an experimental mouse model (Leimkuhler et al., Cell Stem Cell. 2021 Apr 1;28(4):637-652). The data presented in the publication further demonstrate that treatment with tasquinimod results in normalization of the spleen size and blood counts and reduction of fibrosis in the bone marrow.