Ascot, UK – 31 October 2018. Actimed Therapeutics a clinical stage company focused on bringing innovation to the treatment of cachexia, announces completion of an oversubscribed and extended seed A fundraising round of £1.25m from corporate and individual investors, including its founders.  The funds will be used to further develop the Company’s lead drug candidate MT-102 for cancer cachexia.

Key activities that the seed round will fund include: conducting CMC activities, strengthening the IP position, as well as preparation for further clinical trials with the company’s lead product MT-102 (S-pindolol), which will be critical in it gaining approval for the treatment of cancer cachexia.

MT-102 (S-pindolol) targets multiple pathways that drive cachexia and has generated promising proof of concept Phase II clinical data in cachexia patients (ACT-ONE: J. Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle 2016; 7: 355-365) with the potential to address a major unmet medical need.

The ACT-ONE Phase IIa trial met its primary endpoint with a statistically significant difference of absolute weight change over 16 weeks between high dose MT-102 (S-pindolol) and placebo (ITT median weight gain 2.74kg versus a loss of 1.09kg respectively; p<0.0001, n=87 patients). Increases in lean body mass and hand-grip strength (a measure of muscle function) were also statistically significant in favour of drug. Positive non-significant trends for secondary endpoints of fat mass, other functional tests and median survival were also reported. In terms of safety outcomes, MT-102 was well-tolerated, but showing some dyspnoea in the high dose treatment of lung cancer.

Cachexia is a wasting disease that accompanies cancer and other serious chronic illnesses and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Despite its prevalence and devastating clinical effects, there is no approved drug for the treatment or prevention of cancer-related cachexia.

It has been estimated that cachexia affects 50–80% of cancer patients and accounts for up to 20% of cancer deaths. Treating cancer cachexia successfully may increase both the length and quality of life for cancer patients.

Glyn Parkin, CEO of Actimed Therapeutics, said:

“We are excited to have completed this oversubscribed funding round, enabling us to pursue the further development of our lead candidate, MT-102 (S-pindolol), in cachexia. Our hope is that MT-102 will eventually provide a treatment option for the many cancer patients with cachexia globally, extending and improving their quality of life. We are glad to have found investors who share this vision and understand the potential of our products to address this major unmet medical need".