Why Is Neuro-Oncology-Focused MediciNova Stock Trading Higher Today?

MediciNova Inc's MNOV collaborators presented new data and results of a Phase 2 clinical trial of MN-166 (ibudilast) in glioblastoma (GBM) patients at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuro-Oncology. 

The primary endpoints of this Phase 2 clinical trial were the safety and tolerability of MN-166 (ibudilast) and temozolomide (TMZ) combination treatment and efficacy of the combination treatment defined as progression-free survival rate at six months using the RANO criteria. 

MN-166 (ibudilast) and TMZ combination treatment was safe and well-tolerated, and no unexpected adverse effects were reported.

The highlights of the presentation are as follows:

• All of the subjects received TMZ and MN-166 (ibudilast) treatment. Progression-free survival at six months was 44% for new GBM and 31% for recurrent GBM.
• Immunohistochemistry evaluation was performed for the patients whose pre-treatment tumor tissue samples were available from resected tumors at the initial surgery or biopsy to evaluate MIF (macrophage migration inhibitory factor), pERK, Ki67, CD3, CD11b, and CD74.
• CD3 expression was a good predictor for tumor progression at five months in recurrent glioblastoma subjects treated with MN-166 (ibudilast) and TMZ, as subjects with progression had higher CD3 tumor infiltration than subjects with no progression (p<0.05)

The presentation also included data from preclinical studies that evaluated the combination of MN-166 (ibudilast) and anti-PD1 or anti-PD-L1 therapy in GBM models.

• Median survival was 17 days for the vehicle and 28 days for the anti-PD1 inhibitor treatment alone. The addition of MN-166 (ibudilast) to the anti-PD1 inhibitor treatment significantly extended survival to a median of 66 days (p<0.001) for the combination therapy.
• Median survival was 18 days for the vehicle and 26 days for the anti-PD-L1 inhibitor treatment alone. The addition of MN-166 (ibudilast) to the anti-PD-L1 inhibitor treatment significantly extended survival to a median of 34 days (p<0.05) for the combination therapy.

Price Action: MNOV shares are up 14.3% at $2.04 on the last check Monday.

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