ValiRx PLC's (LON:VAL) two lead cancer compounds are at stages in their development that they “offer potential investors an investable proposition and an attractive offering to joint venture partners", according to the company’s chairman, Oliver de Giorgio-Miller.
This follows a period of “substantial” progress for VAL201 and VAL401 with the former having demonstrated high safety and tolerability during a phase I/II clinical trial in men with prostate cancer. ValiRx has been given the green light to expand the scope of the study.
READ: ValiRx receives US patent protection for exciting lead cancer drug
A phase II lung cancer assessment of VAL401 revealed it offered palliative-stage patients an improvement in symptoms alongside improved survival prospects.
In the results statement for 2017, the firm also trumpeted the optimised, commercially viable, second-generation development of the VAL101 molecule.
This is derived from ValiRx's GeneICE platform to shut down rebellious genes causing cancer. Preparation is underway for the compound's entry into the clinic.
Finally, VAL301 is in late pre-clinical phase initially for the treatment of the gynaecological condition, endometriosis.
As is to be expected from a company currently in the R&D phase, and therefore burning cash, ValiRx was loss-making. The total comprehensive loss for 2017 was just over £3mln, which was down from £4.75mln the year earlier. It ended last year with just over £700,000 in the bank.