Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) recently hosted a webinar for investors, highlighting recent developments in the use of two of its compounds for the treatment of aggressive brain cancers.
Image source: Getty Images
New brain cancer therapy in development
Interestingly, the biotech company did not release anything specific to the ASX for those who didn't catch the webinar, but for the brokers that did, they came away with a positive impression.
UBS followed up the webinar with a note to its clients on Telix, pointing out that glioblastoma – the cancer in question – affected about 12,000 people per year.
They also noted that the current standards of care "do not provide meaningful long-term survival benefit''.
UBS added:
The event highlighted 2 clinical assets with potential to transform the field – TLX-Tx and Pixclara (TLX101-Px). We believe the Street has not assigned much credit to both programs, and we expect Pixclara approval on Sept 11th to drive some upside while clinical data from TLX101-Tx could drive long-term upside. TLX101-Tx was a key highlight of the presentation, including the ongoing Phase 3 IPAX BrIGHT trial, evaluating combo with lomustine in difficult-to-treat, recurrent glioblastoma.
UBS said Telix management stressed the significant unmet need in the treatment of such cancers.
They also added:
Notably, management noted that the trials' design got FDA buy-in following discussions, where dose optimization was recommended as a first step.
Second broker also impressed
RBC Capital Markets also sat in on the webinar and came out with a positive note to its clients.
They said:
MRI is the gold standard for imaging of glioblastomas, however there are some limitations with MRI. In Europe, MRI is also supplemented with use of molecular imaging which is very valuable and can help distinguish disease progression from treatment related changes. Use of molecular imaging also helps the patient to visualise where the treatment can go and makes a big difference in the doctor's opinion. In our view, this feedback supports the use of TLX101-Px if it is approved in the US.
They also noted there hadn't been a significant step forward in glioblastoma treatment since 2008.
They added:
The last treatment advancement was in 2005 with temozolomide being added to chemotherapy which added 2.5 months to median survival. Therefore TLX's potential glioblastoma therapeutic treatments are welcome advances. A case study was shown with one IPAX-Bright patient showing a near complete response and is alive 23 months since starting treatment with TLX101-Tx. The trial design for IPAX-BRIGHT involved a high level of consultation with the FDA.
How much are Telix shares worth?
RBC has a $18 price target on Telix shares, while UBS is much more bullish at $31.
Telix shares were trading at $17.25 on Wednesday, up 44.4% since the start of January but down 28.3% over a year.
Telix is valued at $5.63 billion.
