Zentalis Pharmaceuticals Announces First Patient Dosed in DENALI Part 2 Clinical Trial of Azenosertib in Patients with Cyclin E1+ PROC

Core Insights - Zentalis Pharmaceuticals has initiated dosing for the first patient in Part 2 of the Phase 2 DENALI clinical trial for azenosertib, targeting Cyclin E1+ platinum-resistant ovarian cancer [1][3] - The company anticipates topline data from DENALI Part 2 by the end of 2026, which could support accelerated approval from the FDA [2][3] - Azenosertib is a novel WEE1 inhibitor being evaluated as a monotherapy and in combination therapies across multiple tumor types [5][6] Clinical Trial Details - The DENALI trial is designed in two parts, with seamless enrollment; Part 2a aims to confirm the primary dose of azenosertib with approximately 30 patients at two dose levels: 400mg QD 5:2 and 300mg QD 5:2 [7] - Part 2b will enroll around 70 additional patients based on the results from Part 2a, pending FDA feedback [7] Clinical Data and Biomarkers - Previous data from Part 1b of the DENALI study indicated an objective response rate (ORR) of 34.9% among 43 response-evaluable patients, with a median duration of response (mDOR) of 6.3 months [3][4] - Cyclin E1 protein overexpression has been identified as a predictive biomarker for patient selection, with an estimated 50% of PROC patients overexpressing this protein [4] Company Overview - Zentalis Pharmaceuticals is focused on developing azenosertib as a potentially first-in-class and best-in-class treatment for Cyclin E1+ PROC, with ongoing research into additional applications [6] - The company has demonstrated that azenosertib is well tolerated and shows anti-tumor activity across various tumor types [6]