Compugen Ltd. (NASDAQ:CGEN) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Mark Breidenbach: Okay. That’s super helpful. And then just with respect to the biomarker data that you’re planning to present later this year, is that going to be kind of actively integrated into patient selection strategies for the two proof-of-concept trials, or are those protocols kind of fixed right now with regards to what kind of patients and selection criteria that you’re going to use?

Anat Cohen-Dayag: At this point in time, the protocol is — our intentions and plans are fixed moving forward. But also the studies that we’re doing are designed in order to allow us to continue to collect data and to better inform the data that we have in order to see if we can employ such a biomarker. As I related to it in the prepared remarks, it is not a given. It is not an easy path to identify biomarker in the terms of cancer immunotherapy. And I do think that we are well positioned to do this work, computationally, experimentally with the translational cutting-edge technologies that we’re using and with being the first in the PVRIG space. But having said that, we’re designing carefully the studies and the work that we do in order to identify. So at this point in time the studies are fixed, but we’re one company and we can be opportunistic and we’ll make sure that we act on what we have.

Mark Breidenbach: Okay. Thank you so much for taking the questions.

Operator: The next question is from Asthika Goonewardene of Truist Securities. Please go ahead.

Asthika Goonewardene: Hi, guys. Good morning and thank you for taking my questions. Just wondering, so the data for COM701 and — would the data in COM701 and CRC and ovarian cancer be at a medical conference? And then what do you think the data will look like? Will you aim to have first scan for majority of patients? I guess sort of related to that, you gave some thought on what the bar is for ORR. But what kind of duration of response you think might be meaningful in the CRC and PROC population? And then I have a quick follow-up after that.

Anat Cohen-Dayag: Okay. So I’ll take the first one, and then Henry will relate to the duration of response in both indications. But in the platinum-resistant ovarian cancer related to two type of guidance. One guidance relates to the study that is still ongoing. And under the expansion cohorts being done with nivolumab plus TD. And that follow-up data that we may disclose later in the medical conference. That’s one. The second type of guidance related to the new study that is being taken in a staged approach, 20 patients and then additional patients increases and we will consider adding a doublet after we have enrolled 20 patients. In this case, the initial findings and — not necessarily in a medical conference. It depends on the rate of enrolment, et cetera. But definitely, the full data disclosure will be in a medical conference.

Henry Adewoye: Yes. So thank you, Asthika, for the question. So with respect to the duration of response in patients who have colorectal cancer, microsatellite stable, and also ovarian cancer platinum-resistant, maybe historical context will provide some information here as I provide the response. So as you remember, patients who have platinum-resistant ovarian cancer having median PFS of approximately three to four months. So that means within about a three to four month period of time, in all the patients enrolled, most of them would have progressed. Now for colorectal cancer, the median PFS is approximately two months also with all the data that’s seen, including data from using a PD-L1 inhibitor as in IMblaze 370, where the median progression-free survival of the — are beyond two months also.