BriaCell Therapeutics Corp., a biotechnology company dedicated to the development of targeted and effective immunotherapy for the treatment of cancer, announced they have been awarded a grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to advance its Bria-OTS immunotherapy for cancer.
The grant is a two-year $1.07 million award that will be used to help fund the development of Bria-OTS, an off-the-shelf cell-based immunotherapy that uses genetically modified cells to attack cancer at its source. BriaCell believes this technology could be a major step forward in cancer treatment, as it will allow for a much shorter dosing cycle compared to current therapies. This could lead to much higher treatment efficacy and improved patient outcomes.
The NCI grant, part of its small business innovation research (SBIR) program, will fund pre-clinical trials of Bria-OTS in animal models to assess its safety and efficacy. This work is expected to be completed within 24 months. Once completed, the results will be used to help determine whether the therapy is ready for Phase 1 human trials.
Dr. Bill Williams, CEO of BriaCell, commented on the grant saying: “Awarding of this NCI grant to BriaCell supports our efforts to advance Bria-OTS to the clinic and it will provide funding to help us move forward efficiently with our research and development efforts.”
He added: “We are very pleased to have received this grant, which recognizes the potential of Bria-OTS to benefit cancer patients. We are confident this funding will help advance Bria-OTS and our overall mission of providing ground-breaking immunotherapies to cancer patients worldwide.”
This award from the NCI is just the latest boost for BriaCell, which was founded in 2005 with the mission of providing targeted and effective immunotherapies for cancer. The company has raised more than $19 million in financing and has preliminary approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin a Phase 1 clinical trial of its lead clinical candidate, Bria-OTS, in late 2020.
As cancer continues to ravage around the world, it is encouraging to see companies like BriaCell working on innovative therapies to better treat the ugly disease. With such promising technology and research on the horizon, there is hope that personalised and effective immunotherapies will soon become a reality for cancer patients worldwide.
