Shares in Faron Pharmaceuticals Limited (AIM:FARN) jumped 19% on Wednesday after the company reported improved results from its mid-stage cancer trial, with a growing number of patients achieving full remission from high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (HR-MDS).
The latest data from Faron’s ongoing BEXMAB study showed that 43% of newly diagnosed HR-MDS patients receiving a combination of its experimental drug, bexmarilimab, and the chemotherapy azacitidine had achieved complete remission.
That marks a notable increase from the 28% remission rate seen in earlier trial results.
Complete remission, which refers to the restoration of normal blood and bone marrow function, is the gold standard in evaluating treatment success in this aggressive form of blood cancer.
For context, standard azacitidine therapy alone has historically achieved remission rates of just 16–17%.
The findings are part of an updated readout prepared for an upcoming end-of-phase II meeting with the US Food and Drug Administration, a key step towards advancing the drug into a pivotal registrational trial.
The new results suggest that many patients previously categorised as partial responders are now progressing to full remission, with Faron also reaffirming its earlier figure of a 50% composite complete remission (cCR) rate.
This broader measure includes both complete and near-complete responses.
“This deepening of responses is very encouraging,” said Petri Bono, Faron’s chief medical officer. “It gives us two compelling and clinically meaningful data sets for our discussions with the FDA.”
Faron now aims to move towards a registrational trial that could support accelerated approval for bexmarilimab in HR-MDS.
The shares rose 37p to 232p.