LINK Medical Research appointed by Ectin Research AB as CRO for its landmark Phase I/II Study of a new treatment for metastatic bladder cancer

June 24th

LINK Medical and Ectin Research AB have signed an agreement appointing LINK Medical Research AB to run the Phase I/II clinical study of the treatment of metastatic bladder cancer patients with the drug candidate MFA-370. Ectin Research aims to submit its clinical trial application (CTA) to the Swedish Medical Products Agency, in collaboration with LINK Medical, followed by additional regulatory applications in two other countries.

Bladder cancer is one of the most aggressive cancers; 50-70% of tumours recur and 10-20% become metastatic. Current treatments of metastatic bladder cancer require frequent, long hospital visits, have limited efficacy and frequent severe side effects significantly reducing patients’ quality of life. With a cost in the US in 2020 of 173 BUSD, bladder cancer cases are also the most expensive to treat.

Ectin Research’s innovative cancer treatment MFA-370 can be taken orally and is associated with few and tolerable potential side effects. LINK Medical Research has now been selected by Ectin Research as contract research organisation (CRO) for its Phase I/II metastatic bladder cancer study. The first part, the Phase I study, is a safety/tolerability study, encompassing MFA-370 treatment of approximately 10 patients in sites in Sweden, followed by a Phase II study investigating clinical efficacy in 30 patients in Sweden and two other countries in Europe.

“We are very excited to bring our team of experts to partner and collaborate with the great team at Ectin on this very important study which can have a big impact on patients with advanced or metastatic urothelial cancers.” Says Ola Gudmundsen, CEO LINK Medical.

MFA-370 combines two tolerable, well-established drugs into a novel cancer therapy. Both substances have previously been widely studied and have independently shown anti-cancer effects in experimental models of different cancer types. Ectin Research has obtained results showing that the two substances enhance each other’s anti-cancer effect by lowering cancer cell proliferation as well as inducing cell death in bladder cancer cells and a number of different cell models of breast, colon and prostate cancer cells. MFA-370 will first be used to treat metastatic bladder cancer patients to demonstrate clinical efficacy but later could potentially also be used to treat, for example, breast, colon and prostate cancer.

Ectin Research CEO Anna Sjöblom-Hallén: “We’re delighted to be partnering with LINK Medical Research, a highly experienced full-service CRO who we are confident will be an excellent collaborator for us as, together, we start our journey towards developing an ultimately safer and more effective treatment for this terrible condition.”

About LINK Medical
LINK Medical is a full-service contract research organization (CRO) providing product development services for the pharmaceutical and medical device industries across Northern Europe. We offer a well-integrated local presence in the Nordics, UK, and Germany. Reaching from early phase development to post-marketing, we provide expert guidance across every aspect of a project – all from ONE source. As a strategic partner, we provide expert competence and technology to enable evidence-based decision-making that support the delivery of superior clinical outcomes.

For further information please contact:
Ola Gudmundsen, CEO LINK Medical
Email: Ola.Gudmundsen[@]LINKMedical.eu

For Editorial inquiries contact:
Claudia Wennberg Marketing and Brand Manager
Claudia.wennberg[@]linkmedical.eu

About Ectin Research AB
Ectin Research AB pharmaceutical company is developing a novel treatment that eliminates cancer tumours. Its drug candidate MFA-370 will first be trialled for the treatment of metastatic bladder cancer. MFA-370 consists of two existing drugs that have already undergone large-scale clinical trials and are currently widely used in other indications. In preclinical studies MFA-370 has achieved successful results for the treatment of metastatic bladder cancer, and has also shown promising potential in other cancers such as breast, colorectal and prostate cancer cells.

Anna Sjöblom-Hallén, CEO
Mob: +46 734 30 93 30
Email: anna.sjoblom-hallen@ectinresearch.com