Eckert & Ziegler Partners with University Health Network and CanProbe to Advance PENTIXAFOR Imaging Diagnostic Tool for Wider Application

The collaboration includes robust clinical exploration of the tracer in various applications and is set to include lymphoma, gynecological malignancies and lung cancer, as well as inflammatory conditions, all with the intent to further investigate the diagnostic potential of PENTIXAFOR and is set to include clinical trials with up to 300 doses administered. 

Developed by PentixaPharm, PENTIXAFOR is an innovative imaging agent targeting the chemokine-4 receptor (CXCR4) for the diagnosis of cancer patients with various haemato-oncological and solid tumour indications. The Ga-68-based PET radiodiagnostic is expected to significantly improve the treatment of patients suffering from these diseases.

Eckert & Ziegler (ISIN DE0005659700, TecDAX) and its subsidiary, PentixaPharm GmbH, are working with CanProbe and UHN to provide PENTIXAFOR to patients in Toronto. The intent is to provide further support toward the approval of PENTIXAFOR as a diagnostic agent for a portfolio of different indications. In the spring of 2021, Eckert & Ziegler already received permission from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to launch directly into a Phase III clinical trial, enabling the company to save a number of time-consuming evaluation steps. Clinical trials are scheduled to begin next year and include about 500 patients worldwide.

"Given the great potential of PENTIXAFOR, a number of physicians worldwide have decided to test the radiodiagnostic on their own initiative. The data collected in this way will support our approval of PENTIXAFOR, commented Dr. Hakim Bouterfa, co-founder and CEO of PentixaPharm GmbH.

"The great interest in PENTIXAFOR from nuclear physicians, oncologists and haematologists confirms our strategy to push the clinical development of the Ga-68 based radiodiagnostic," explains Dr. Andreas Eckert, founder and CEO of Eckert & Ziegler AG.

"We are pleased to be working with PENTIXAFOR, as it is an imaging agent that potentially provides much clearer diagnostic images than can be achieved with conventional methods. We are hopeful that this will enable more targeted therapy options for patients,” comments Dr. Bruno Paquin, President of CanProbe. “We are delighted to see this partnership emerging between PentixaPharm, CanProbe, and UHN”, adds Luke Brzozowski, Senior Director, Techna and Diagnostics Innovation, University Health Network. “We are looking forward to seeing the results of the investigator-initiated studies at UHN with the tracer produced by CanProbe.”

About CanProbe
CanProbe is a joint venture between the Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization (CPDC) and University Health Network (UHN) to create a Canadian Centre of Excellence for the development, translation, utilization and commercialization of radiopharmaceuticals. CanProbe leverages the strengths of its partners and their affiliates. www.canprobe.ca

About UHN
University Health Network consists of Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospitals, the Prin​cess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education at UHN. The scope of research and complexity of cases at University Health Network has made it a national and international source for discovery, education, and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada, with major research in arthritis, cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, infectious diseases, genomic medicine, and rehabilitation medicine. University Health Network is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. www.uhn.ca