Phio Pharmaceuticals Announces First US Patient Enrolled in Phase 1B Clinical Trial with Intratumoral PH-762 anti-PD-1 Therapy for Treatment of Skin Carcinomas

MARLBOROUGH, Mass., Nov. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO), a clinical stage biotechnology company whose proprietary INTASYL RNAi platform technology is designed to make immune cells more effective in killing tumor cells, today announced that the first patient has been dosed in the Phase 1b clinical trial of PH-762, an INTASYL compound that reduces the expression of PD-1, a protein that inhibits T cells’ ability to kill cancer cells. This clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of neoadjuvant use of intratumorally injected PH-762, assess the tumor response, and determine the dose or dose range for continued study of PH-762 in patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma, or Merkel cell carcinoma.

“The initiation of enrollment in this trial represents a milestone as we develop PH-762 for the treatment of squamous cell and other skin cancers,” said Phio’s President and CEO Robert Bitterman. “We are optimistic that this novel, alternative immuno-oncology therapy may offer patients and their care providers, enhanced therapeutic outcomes while minimizing invasive intervention.”  

The Phase 1b trial is a non-comparative study of neoadjuvant monotherapy using PH-762 in adult patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma, or Merkel cell carcinoma. The study treatment consists of four intratumoral injections of PH-762 at weekly intervals within a single tumor lesion. Excision of the tumor occurs approximately two weeks following the fourth intratumoral dose of PH-762. Escalating doses of PH-762 are to be tested in separate cohorts. The clinical study is expected to enroll up to 30 patients and will be conducted across 4 to 6 centers in the United States. More information about this clinical trial is available at clinicaltrials.gov (identifier: NCT06014086).

About Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.

Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO) is a clinical stage biotechnology company whose proprietary INTASYL RNAi technology is designed to make immune cells more effective in killing tumor cells. INTASYL is the only self-delivering RNAi technology focused on immuno-oncology therapeutics. INTASYL drugs precisely target specific proteins that reduce the body's ability to fight cancer, without the need for specialized formulations or drug delivery systems.