Cellectar Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLRB), an oncology-focused clinical stage biotechnology company, today announces the enrollment of the first patient into Cohort 3 of the company’s Phase I clinical study of CLR 131 in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.
Cohort 3 of the Phase 1 study of CLR 131 will consist of at least three patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma that have been treated previously with at least one proteasome inhibitor and one immunomodulatory agent. Patients in this cohort will receive 25mCi/m2 of CLR 131 as a single dose infusion, which represents a 33 percent increase in the dose from the previous cohort.
“We are highly encouraged with CLR 131’s safety profile, overall clinical activity and PFS observed from a single dose infusion, particularly in such a heavily pretreated patient population. The PFS demonstrated in Cohort 2 already compares favorably to other treatments that require multiple doses, either daily or weekly,” said Jim Caruso, president and CEO of Cellectar Biosciences. “We plan to accelerate Cohort 3 enrollment as well as initiate a Phase II study in the first half of 2017 to further define the clinical benefits of this novel compound in selected hematologic malignancies with limited treatment options.”
In this multi-center, open label Phase I dose escalation study, CLR 131 is administered as a single dose, 30-minute infusion. The primary study objective is to characterize the safety and tolerability of CLR 131 in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. Secondary study objectives include establishment of a recommended Phase II dose, both with and without dexamethasone, as well as an assessment of therapeutic activity, including progression-free survival (PFS) and efficacy endpoints.
About CLR 131
CLR 131 is an investigational compound under development for a range of hematologic malignancies. It is currently being evaluated in a Phase I clinical trial in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. The company plans to initiate a Phase II clinical study to assess efficacy in a range of B-cell malignancies in the first half of 2017. Based upon pre-clinical and interim Phase I study data, treatment with CLR 131 provides patients with a novel approach to treating hematological diseases and may provide patients with an improvement in progression-free survival and overall quality of life. CLR 131 utilizes the company’s patented PDC tumor targeting delivery platform to deliver a cytotoxic radioisotope, iodine-131 directly to tumor cells. The FDA has granted Cellectar an orphan drug designation for CLR 131.
