Phio Pharmaceuticals Announces Positive Safety Monitoring Committee Recommendation to Advance INTASYL PH-762 Skin Cancer Study to Fourth Dose Escalation Cohort

Core Viewpoint - Phio Pharmaceuticals has received a positive recommendation from the Safety Monitoring Committee to advance its Phase 1b clinical trial of PH-762, a siRNA compound targeting skin cancer, to the fourth dose escalation cohort, indicating a supportive safety profile in the previous cohort [1][2]. Group 1: Clinical Trial Details - The Phase 1b clinical trial is a multi-center, dose-escalating study aimed at evaluating the safety and tolerability of intratumoral PH-762 in patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma, or Merkel cell carcinoma [2][6]. - In the third cohort, three patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma were enrolled, and the injections were well tolerated with no serious adverse events or dose-limiting toxicities reported [2][4]. - Previous cohorts included seven patients, with the second cohort showing two patients achieving a complete response (100% tumor clearance) and one patient showing a partial response (90% clearance) [4]. Group 2: Company Insights - Phio Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutics using its proprietary INTASYL® siRNA gene silencing technology to combat cancer [1][6]. - The lead product candidate, PH-762, is designed to silence the PD-1 gene, which is implicated in various forms of skin cancer, and is being evaluated as a potential non-surgical treatment option [6][5]. - The company expresses optimism that PH-762 may provide a viable alternative to existing therapies for skin cancer [5].