The Race Oncology Ltd (ASX: RAC) share price is falling today after the pharmaceutical company announced a contract award for a leukemia trial.
Race Oncology has signed up a leading Israeli company to supply drugs and provide other clinical services for its phase 2 relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) trial.
AML is a type of blood cancer that starts in the bone marrow, and usually moves into the blood stream. While treatment options are limited, if not addressed, AML can be life-threatening.
At the time of writing, Race Oncology shares are swapping hands for $3.73, down 1.06%.
What has Race Oncology announced?
The Race Oncology share price is losing ground today despite the company's latest upbeat announcement.
In today's release, Race advised it has entered into a contract with Israel's leading pharmaceutical distributor, Trialog Clinical Trials. The agreement will see Trialog deliver trial drugs, including Bisantrene, and provide other clinical services. Bisantrene is a small-molecule anti-cancer drug being developed by Race for the treatment of AML.
Race Oncology is scheduled to run its phase 2 AML trial at the Chaim Sheba Medical Centre in Israel. The study will use Bisantrene in a novel three-drug combination to show its superior efficacy in AML cells. The trial involves 29 participants, with the first patient due to receive treatment in the third quarter of the calendar year.
The company said the supply agreement will cost a maximum of about US$800,000. This is expected to cover the patient enrolment period from 2021 to 2023.
Furthermore, the phase 2 AML trial will run alongside an Australian phase 2 trial in patients with extramedullary AML. The latter is planned to begin in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Extramedullary AML is considered a rare and serious illness with about a 25% survival rate over a 5-year term. The disease occurs when the leukaemia spreads from the bone marrow and forms solid tumours in tissues such as the skin, breast, kidney, brain, or other organs.
About the Race Oncology share price
Race Oncology shares have gained more than 1,000% in the past 12 months and are up by more than 110% year to date.
Based on today's price, Race Oncology has a market capitalisation of about $542 million, with 143 million shares on issue.
