Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals and Neutron Therapeutics Form Exclusive, Strategic Partnership with Leo Cancer Care to Expand Development of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy for Treating Cancer
— Leo Cancer Care’s upright patient positioning system to be integrated into Neutron Therapeutics’ nuBeam® therapy platform —
— Companies will announce partnership at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) —
NEW YORK & SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals, a Deerfield Management-founded biotechnology company developing medicines to unlock the potential of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), and Neutron Therapeutics, a leading developer of accelerator-based neutron systems for targeted radiation therapy of solid tumors, today announced an exclusive, strategic partnership with Leo Cancer Care, a company developing upright patient positioning systems for radiation therapy. The goal of the partnership between the three companies is to expand BNCT as a potential treatment for different types of cancer.
Leo Cancer Care’s upright patient positioning system will be integrated into Neutron’s nuBeam® therapy platform, which is a compact, in-hospital neutron source designed to replace legacy nuclear reactors for BNCT. The companies will speak about their initiative today at 3:45 p.m. PT at booth #4207 at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), which is being held in San Diego.
“The incorporation of Leo’s upright patient positioning system with Neutron Therapeutics’ nuBeam® neutron accelerator has the potential to increase the versatility and impact of BNCT for patients, physicians, treatment centers and the overall healthcare system,” said Dave Greenwald, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Aviko and vice president of business development at Deerfield. “This strategic partnership is an important moment for our three companies as we work together to build a complete suite of both therapies and technologies that have the potential to provide boron neutron capture therapy to patients in need.”
The BNCT treatment under development by Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals and Neutron Therapeutics involves an investigational non-toxic boron medicine that is designed to accumulate in cancer cells. The boron medicine remains inert until it is irradiated by low-energy neutrons at the site of the tumor, releasing alpha particles that destroy cancerous cells. Positioning the patient in relation to the neutron beam is important to support patient safety and the clinical activity of BNCT. Traditionally, patients have been supine when receiving BNCT and other forms of radiation therapy. Leo Cancer Care has developed an upright patient positioning system that is designed to allow for greater efficiency and precision when delivering neutrons to the tumor compared to supine positioning systems.
“With our upright patient positioning system, all areas of the body can be positioned close to the neutron source to receive a precise delivery of neutrons at the site of the tumor,” said Stephen Towe, chief executive officer of Leo Cancer Care. “We believe that upright radiotherapy results in a better experience for patients compared to supine radiotherapy. We are excited to collaborate with Aviko and Neutron as we advance BNCT to potentially treat a variety of solid tumors.”
Disclaimer
The products being developed by Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals, Neutron Therapeutics and Leo Cancer Care are in development and are limited to investigational use. These products have not received marketing authorization from the FDA and are not commercially available.
About Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT)
Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a precision medicine approach that is being advanced to treat cancer by destroying cancerous cells while minimizing the impact to surrounding healthy tissues. BNCT uses a non-toxic boron medicine that is administered to the patient. The medicine is designed to accumulate in cancer cells while being quickly cleared from normal tissues in the body. The boron medicine remains inert until it is irradiated at the site of the tumor with low-energy neutrons, releasing alpha particles that can destroy cancerous cells. BNCT may also have applications in treating other diseases. Currently there are 21 BNCT clinics worldwide, primarily in Asia and Europe.
About Leo Cancer Care
Leo Cancer Care is dedicated to being the more human way to deliver radiation therapy. Their family of world class radiation therapy solutions is designed to provide a streamlined and efficient treatment, whilst making the patient feel in control and hopeful. Leo Cancer Care has been built on research from across the globe showing the clinical benefits of upright patient positioning. Combining this with a shift from machine rotation to patient rotation, Leo Cancer Care is set to make radiation therapy more accessible than ever before.
About Neutron Therapeutics
Neutron Therapeutics is a leading developer of accelerator-based boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) systems for use in targeted radiation therapy of solid tumors. Neutron Therapeutics’ flagship product, the nuBeam® therapy platform, is a compact, in-hospital neutron source designed to replace legacy nuclear reactors for BNCT. The nuBeam® system offers a higher neutron flux than competing systems and is the only BNCT system to adhere to all International Atomic Energy Agency standards. www.neutrontherapeutics.com
About Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals
Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals is a privately held biotechnology company developing medicines to unlock the potential of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) to treat a wide variety of cancers. Aviko’s innovative compounds are designed to improve the efficacy of BNCT by targeting and delivering boron to cancer cells with precision. Together with their partners, Aviko is advancing BNCT as a convenient treatment modality for patients. Founded by Deerfield Management, Aviko is based at Cure., a healthcare innovation campus in New York City. Follow Aviko on LinkedIn and Twitter.