press release Celyad Oncology Announces First Patient Dosed in KEYNOTE-B79 Phase 1b Trial
December 16, 2021 By
KEYNOTE-B79 Phase 1b trial will evaluate CYAD-101 and KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) in patients with microsatellite stable (MSS) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC)
ASCO-GI conference abstract accepted that highlights KEYNOTE-B79 clinical trial design
MONT-SAINT-GUIBERT, Belgium, December 15, 2021 – Celyad Oncology SA (Euronext & Nasdaq: CYAD) (“the Company”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR T) therapies for cancer, today announced the first patient was dosed in the KEYNOTE-B79 Phase 1b trial (NCT04991948).
The KEYNOTE-B79 trial is part of a collaboration with MSD, a tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA, through a subsidiary. The trial will evaluate the Company’s lead developmental candidate, its TCR Inhibitory Molecule (TIM)-based allogeneic NKG2D CAR T cell investigational therapy CYAD-101, with MSD’s anti-PD-1 therapy, KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab), in patients with refractory metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) with microsatellite stable (MSS)/mismatch-repair proficient disease.
“Dosing the first patient in this Phase 1b trial represents an important step toward understanding any potential role of CYAD-101 for mCRC patients with an MSS background,” said Dr. Charles Morris, Chief Medical Officer of Celyad Oncology. “We are evaluating CYAD-101 in combination with KEYTRUDA in hope of identifying a new option to target patients’ tumors. Preclinical data and translational data from our prior phase 1 study of CYAD-101 suggest that there may be an additive benefit with pembrolizumab as an anti-PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor when combined with CYAD-101 in colorectal cancer and we look forward to studying that in the clinic. We are grateful to MSD for collaborating with us on this trial and expect to share preliminary data next year.”
The Company also reported the KEYNOTE-B79 study will be the subject of a presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium being held in person in San Francisco, California and virtually from January 20-22, 2022.
ASCO GI 2022 Presentation Details:
The following abstract will be available on the ASCO GI website on January 18, 2022 at 5 p.m. EST. Following the presentation at the meeting, the poster will be available in the Scientific Publications section of Celyad Oncology’s website.
Abstract Number: TPS227
Abstract Title: KEYNOTE-B79 phase 1b trial to evaluate the allogeneic CAR T-cells CYAD-101 and pembrolizumab in refractory metastatic colorectal cancer patients.
Session Information: Trials in Progress Poster Session C: Cancers of the Colon, Rectum, and Anus
KEYTRUDA® is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA.