Ann: Trading Halt, page-277

Trading Halt – could be good, very good.

First

I’m all for MSB’s Covid-ARDS trial running its full course, not in the least because it’s FREE. The full unadulterated data set is essential to put to bed all lingering doubt about the effectiveness of stem cell therapy as a legitimate medical treatment and to recognise and establish MSB as a true global leader in this field.

As mentioned previously, there has been a period of almost 2 weeks from the announcement of the successful 12 patient early trial conducted by Mount Sinai until the announcement of the first patients being dosed in the official 300 patient trial. Mount Sinai with its affiliated hospitals in NY (which number quite a few) were well aware of the upcoming trial; they were keen to participate and would have been on the front foot to commence dosing a large patient cohort (expect 30%) the very moment the flag dropped.

The treatment involves patients receiving an initial cell dose followed by a final cell dose 4 days after and it’s not clear if the ‘First Patients Dosed’ announcement refers to the application of the first patient dose or to the final dose. It could well be that the first 7 day secondary outcome measure for this large cohort has already occurred, rather than Tuesday as I initially estimated. Irrespective, I wouldn’t expect there to be any trial announcement results until the full 300 patient enrolment has been completed and fully dosed, but even a cursory observation by a novice of the initially dosed patient groups right now might be telling. i.e. the number of trial patients remaining on ventilators opposed to those that aren’t.

Second

Some more speculation on my part for I DON’T KNOW

The professor would have had many discussions and considered many propositions which no doubt came to a head this past weekend. I recall he always maintained that he would take the company as far as he could in development so as to extract the most value. I think the partnering deals or whatever on offer simply weren’t good enough and he is emboldened with the early trial indications and the finish line in sight to give them the bird and go with a capital equity raise to retain captaincy and finish the race himself. MSB will then be in a much stronger position to extract maximum value from its treatments or cement a better future partnership deal.

I mentioned this as having all the hallmarks of the 1983 America Cup Challenge; Mesoblast has now turned the final buoy, it has the medical equivalent of the winged keel and its spinnaker is filling.

I DON’T KNOW, is that the Men at Work song I can hear.