Shares in Poolbeg Pharma PLC (AIM:POLB) rose 3% to 7.8p on Tuesday, taking their gain for the year to date to around 100%, after the drug developer secured a key European patent.
The European Patent Office has agreed to grant a patent covering POLB 001, Poolbeg's experimental treatment for preventing cytokine release syndrome (CRS), a dangerous immune reaction triggered by some cancer immunotherapies.
Cavendish, which rates the shares a buy with a 19p target, called it the most commercially significant milestone yet in Poolbeg's CRS patent family.
The grant extends protection across European Patent Office member states, one of the most valuable pharmaceutical regions, and follows recent awards in Australia and Canada.
The claims cover the use of p38 MAPK inhibitors, including POLB 001, to prevent CRS.
Cavendish said the broadening patent estate strengthens Poolbeg's hand in any partnering talks, with robust protection across major markets a prerequisite for pharmaceutical engagement.
That matters as larger drugmakers hunt for differentiated assets to offset looming patent expiries, the broker added.
The timing is notable, with Poolbeg's TOPICAL trial moving towards interim data this summer.
That study is testing POLB 001 as a preventative therapy in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma patients treated with teclistamab, a bispecific antibody.
Site activation is complete and recruitment is underway, leaving the readout as a key near-term catalyst, according to Cavendish.
The broker sees a sizeable and growing market, as wider use of bispecific antibodies and CAR-T therapies pushes up the incidence of CRS.
Cavendish views POLB 001's mechanism as well aligned to that need, with payers and clinicians increasingly alert to the cost of CRS-related complications.
