Novocure Deal Maybe

You might think, this company unknown to most - and the likelihood of a long awaited Kaiza deal, is off the mark.

Information here -  suggests the NASDAQ listed, and Swiss based Novocure would strongly seek out Kazia - at least initially for shared use of paxalisib in GBM. - such that a deal could be entered into between the companies..... for use of paxalisib and Novocure's Tumor Treating Feilds electrical pulse technology for glioblastoma.

Novocure  is a A$10b company, with gross revenues of about A$200m per quarter.....$70m per qtr on research. They are currently treating 3,500 patients, but growth is flat and had a recent broker downgrade. The company very apparently need more - an extension in overall survival for patients in GBM, who pay a whopping $A25,000 per month...would be a very obvious strategy for Novocure. Well they are saying that anyway -   their technology  - (with a brain PI3k drug is supported by in house research)

So far only approved for GBM and mesothelioma. (See at very bottom). TTFeilds and a PI3K CNS drug -seems a pretty obvious step for the Novocure.

Unlike almost all the research that may be specific to paxalisib - which comes from hospital studies, this time any potential interest in the use of say a PI3K drug is coming from a successful pharmaceutical company. $70m a quarter on research (of which PI3K in combination is high priority) - compare that 70m with the whole current worth of KZA.

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I say an actual Novocure poster presented here - showing synergy between PI3K inhibition and these TTFeilds presented here. But I did not save it from this conference - now the poster is not available.  Novocure want a GBM PI3K drug - and I think they want it now.
Novocure Announces 11 Presentations on Tumor Treating Fields in Multiple Solid Tumor Types at the American Society for Radiation Oncology 2022 Annual Meeting



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So there you go - thus the tread header. The researchers listed here are all employed by Novocure.
PI3K Inhibition Sensitized Cancerous Cells to Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields)

Author links open overlay panelA.Klein-GoldbergT.VoloshinE.Zemer-TovR.PazL.KorenK.Wainer-KatsirA.VolodinB.KoltunB.BrantY.BarsheshetT.KanA.HaberM.GiladiU.WeinbergY.Palti
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrobp.2022.07.1291Get rights and content

Purpose/Objective(s)

Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) are alternating electric fields, approved for treatment of patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM), recurrent GBM, or unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma. Additional clinical trials are underway in other tumor types, including ovarian cancer, non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). While TTFields therapy has been demonstrated to extend life, tumor progression eventually occurs in most patients. The current research aimed to identify molecular mechanisms involved in reduced cancer cellular sensitivity to TTFields, and targeting these potential pathways in order to re-sensitize the cells to TTFields.
Materials/Methods

Ovarian A2780, GBM U-87 MG, and NSCLC H1299 cells with reduced sensitivity to TTFields were generated by continuous long-term application of TTFields (7 or 13 days, depending on the cell line). Changes in signaling pathways in these cells were examined by Luminex multiplex assay, and specific pathway markers were validated by Western blot of the cell lysates as well as by immunohistochemistry in tumor sections from N1S1 HCC tumor-bearing rats treated with sham or TTFields. Next, TTFields were applied in conjunction with relevant inhibitors, followed by cell count measurements and western blot examinations. Finally, the concomitant application of TTFields with a relevant inhibitor was evaluated in mice orthotopically implanted with MOSE-L firefly luciferase (FFL) ovarian cancer cells. Tumor volume was measured at study end using the In Vivo Imaging System (IVIS) to detect the luciferin signal.
Results

Sensitivity of cancer cells to TTFields was decreased following continuous long-term application of TTFields. PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway was activated in these cells, with significant increases in phosphorylation levels of AKT and RPS6. This elevation was also observed in tumor sections from rats treated with TTFields. Treatment with PI3K inhibitors re-sensitized the cells to TTFields and downregulated the phosphorylation of AKT. In vivo, concomitant application of TTFields with the PI3K inhibitor alpelisib resulted in enhanced efficacy.
Conclusion

The current study demonstrated that the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway is involved in reduced cancer cell sensitivity to long-term application of TTFields. Furthermore, re-sensitization to TTFields could be achieved with PI3K inhibitors, providing a rationale for further examining the potential benefit of TTFields concomitant with PI3K inhibitors.


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NOVOCURE
The science of Tumor Treating Fields has the potential to extend beyond glioblastoma and mesothelioma. Tumor Treating Fields have shown a consistent anti-mitotic effect in our preclinical and clinical research spanning more than two decades.

We believe we have gained a deep understanding of the underlying mechanism of action and the multiple pathways through which Tumor Treating Fields exert their effects within dividing cancer cells. Our research shows that Tumor Treating Fields can have an anti-mitotic effect in more than 15 different solid tumor types in culture and in several in vivo tumor models, including some of the most aggressive forms of cancer. We are committed to advancing the science of Tumor Treating Fields across a broad spectrum of solid tumors and bringing our therapy to cancer patients who may benefit.