• Althea’s cannabis oil approved for reimbursement in Ireland
  • Imugene dosed first patient in onCARlytics Phase 1 trial on solid tumours

 

Althea’s cannabis oil approved for reimbursement

Cannabis company Althea Group (ASX:AGH) announced that Althea THC20:CBD1 cannabis oil (50 ml) has been approved for reimbursement in Ireland.

Althea THC20:CBD1 will be reimbursed for intractable nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy.

Controlling chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is critical to ensure adherence with chemotherapy, and to reduce morbidity and total healthcare costs.

The agreed reimbursement price for Althea THC20:CBD1 (50ml) is €330, or approximately $552.

Currently, Althea is the only supplier with multiple cannabis oils approved for reimbursement in Ireland – the Althea THC20:CBD1, and previously, Althea CBD12:THC10.

In addition, Althea announced that its subsidiary, MyAccess Clinics, a private medical clinic specialising in medicinal cannabis, will be available to consult with Irish patients starting in November.

Prescriptions from these consultations will be fulfilled electronically and medicines will be delivered by mail.

Althea confirmed that this Irish expansion will utilise existing funds, and does not require any additional capital expenditure.

“The addition of Althea THC20:CBD1 to the Primary Care Reimbursement Service in Ireland is another remarkable achievement for Althea, and solidifies our position as the global leader in the sale and distribution of medicinal cannabis extracts,” said Althea CEO, Joshua Fegan.

 

Imugene commences Phase 1 trial of onCARlytics

Meanwhile, immuno-oncology company Imugene (ASX:IMU) announced that its CD19 oncolytic virotherapy drug candidate onCARlytics, has commenced a Phase 1 clinical trial, with the first patient now dosed.

The Phase 1 trial, also known as OASIS trial, is being conducted in patients with solid tumours.

The onCARlytics drug will be administered intravenously or intratumorally to patients, in combination with blinatumomab in adults with advanced or metastatic solid tumours.

Imugene says when combined with the CD19-targeting bispecific monoclonal antibody blinatumomab (sold as Blincyto® Amgen), onCARlytics has the potential to target and eradicate solid tumours that otherwise cannot be treated with Blincyto® therapy alone.

The first patient with ovarian cancer has now been dosed at City of Hope’s NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in Duarte, California.

“This is a milestone we’ve been eagerly anticipating, given the encouraging signs we have seen from the pre-clinical work performed to date,” said Imugene CEO, Leslie Chong.

“We believe onCARlytics may provide a new solution for clinicians treating solid tumours that have previously been untreatable using CD19-targeting biological drugs, and we hope our technology can bring much needed relief to patients in want of new treatments.”

 

Also read: We need to talk about bloody cancer, and then kill it.

 

Althea and Imugene share prices today:

 

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