Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been telling my followers to keep a close eye on SELLAS Life Sciences Group Inc (NASDAQ: SLS), and for good reason. A data readout is likely coming soon.
Nonetheless, the company issued a separate piece of news early today, exciting investors. SLS stock is trading on gains of more than 12% after the company announced that it has dosed its first patient in a key clinical trial. Here’s what’s happening:
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SLS Announces Dosing Of First Patient
In a press release issued early this morning, SELLAS Life Sciences said that it has dosed the first patient in its Phase 1/2 open-label study of GPS in combination with KEYTRUDA in patients with selected WT1-positive advanced cancers. These include both solid tumors and hematologic malignances.
In the release, the company also said that Richard Maziarz, MD, and Roisin O’Cearbhaill, MD, will serve as co-principal investigators for the study. In a statement, Angelos M. Stergio, MD, ScD h.c., President and CEO at SLS, had the following to offer:
This is an important milestone as this study allows us to potentially enhance our safety and activity profile of GPS in combination with anti-PD-1 therapies, particularly in combination with KEYTRUDA® in multiple malignances, following intriguing initial combination clinical data with OPDIVO®.
We are confident this study will build on our body of clinical evidence in support of the use of GPS in combination with PD-1 inhibitors to benefit cancer patients with limited treatment options. We believe that our innovative WT1 immunotherapeutic, GPS, in combination with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy agents, may provide therapeutic benefit for patients with WT1 expression. These beliefs are shared by the renowned U.S. oncologists who are undertaking this work. We look forward to studying this combination in patients with a wide range of cancers and expect to provide the first clinical data from this study in the first quarter of 2020.
This Starts The Slew Of Catalysts That Are Likely To Come
As mentioned in previous articles, I’m expecting to see quite a few positive catalysts out of SELLAS Life Sciences as we close out the 2019 and enter 2020.
Moving forward, I’m expecting for the next catalyst to be a data release from a Phase 2 clinical study known as VADIS. In the study, SLS is assessing the combination of Nelipepimut-S and GM-CFS as a potential option in breast cancer.
Due to early signs of efficacy and safety, I’m expecting for the data to be positive. Moreover, according to ClinicalTrials.gov, the company completed the trial on June 27, 2019 and provided a QC update on July 18, 2019. As such, I’m expecting that in the coming week or two, we’re going to see a press release providing top-line data.
This will be key. If all goes well, the company will likely quickly advance into pivotal Phase 3 studies, opening the door to a potential approval in a high value indication. In fact, experts expect that in a few years, the breast cancer market will grow to be worth more than $38 billion annually! An entrance into this market would be huge for SLS, not to mention the multiple catalystic events that are likely to happen from now to then.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line here is that while the shorts have held onto SLS incredibly tightly, the stock has real potential to make a comeback. It’s my view that today’s positive news was the first step in a recovery that could lead to a short squeeze. So, keep your eyes peeled for opportunity here!
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