Compugen(US:CGEN)2021-02-25 22:50Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Revenue for Q4 and full year 2020 was $2 million, marking the first development milestone from the license agreement with AstraZeneca [86] - Research and development expenses for the full year 2020 were $22.8 million, a 15% increase from $19.8 million in 2019, with Q4 expenses at $8.1 million, an 88% increase from $4.3 million in the prior year [87] - Net loss for the full year 2020 was $29.7 million or $0.37 per share, compared to a net loss of $27.3 million or $0.43 per share in 2019 [88] - Cash and cash-related accounts as of December 31, 2020, were approximately $124 million, up from $44 million at the end of the previous year [90] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company is executing a comprehensive clinical development program for its anti-PVRIG and TIGIT assets, focusing on the DNAM axis signaling pathways [6][28] - The combination arm of the Phase 1 study of COM701 with nivolumab showed a disease control rate of approximately 67% [10][58] - In the COM701 monotherapy cohort expansion, 30% of patients had stable disease, with a disease control rate of 47% across the study [75] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company is expanding its collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) to include a Phase 1b cohort expansion study evaluating COM701 with nivolumab [12][31] - The upcoming studies will target various tumor types, including ovarian, breast, endometrial, and microsatellite stable colorectal cancer [15][31] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company aims to maintain its leadership position in the DNAM axis immunotherapy space by advancing its clinical programs and exploring combination therapies [28][29] - The strategy includes evaluating the dual blockade of PVRIG with PD1 or TIGIT and triple blockade with PD1 and TIGIT [25][81] - The company is also focusing on early-stage pipeline programs targeting the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment [45] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in the potential of PVRIG and TIGIT as new immunotherapy targets, highlighting the growing interest in these pathways within the biopharma industry [27][29] - The company remains optimistic about its clinical data and the potential for COM701 to provide meaningful clinical benefits in heavily pre-treated patient populations [78] Other Important Information - The company has received multiple patents to protect its pipeline candidates, including COM701 and COM902 [46] - The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has not significantly impacted the company's activities, with enrollment and data collection remaining on track [51] Q&A Session Summary Question: Differences in Efficacy Between Monotherapy and Combination Arms - Management noted that the monotherapy expansion cohort's primary objective was to establish safety and tolerability, while the combination arm showed preliminary antitumor activity [94][96] Question: Insights on Complete Response at Low Dosage - Management explained that the complete response observed at a low dosage may be due to the time required for COM701 to inhibit cancer cell activity, especially in previously treated patients [101][102] Question: Biomarker Strategy for Patient Selection - The company plans to evaluate pre- and post-treatment samples to correlate biomarkers with antitumor activity, focusing on the DNAM axis [103][111] Question: Kinetics of Complete Response Patients - Management confirmed that the patient with complete response had been on study treatment for nine months before the response was observed [118] Question: Enrollment Plans for Doublet Dose Expansion Cohorts - The company plans to enroll up to 20 patients in the dual combination expansion cohorts, which will include a more significant number of patients across various tumor types compared to the monotherapy expansion [122]