MabVax Therapeutics, Inc. HuMab 5B1 Antibody Is Highlighted At Upcoming World Molecular Imaging Congress In Five Separate Presentations

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 31, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: MBVX) aclinical stage oncology drug development company announces that the Company’s lead antibody, HuMab 5B1, will be garnering major attention as the subject of five separate presentations during the upcoming World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC) being held in HawaiiSeptember 2-5, 2015. Researchers from the Department of Radiology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) will present results on the use of MabVax’s lead antibody as a PET imaging agent and as a radioimmunotherapy agent targeting pancreatic cancer.

Presenters at the WMIC include Jacob Houghton, Ph.D. of MSK, who will present results from two preclinical in vivo studies using the HuMab 5B1 antibody as an ImmunoPET imaging agent in the context of circulating antigen as well as new pretargeted methods for the immunoPET imaging of CA19.9 in murine models of pancreatic cancer. Dalya Abdel-Atti will present the results of using HuMab5B1 in ImmunoPET imaging with newly developed murine organoid models of pancreatic cancer. A third presenter, Jan-Philip Meyer, Ph.D., will present results of using HuMab 5B1 as a pre-targeting agent followed by administration of the short-lived (¹⁸F)-NOTA-labeled tetrazine radioligand for PET imaging and in vivo coupling, examining the efficiency of HuMab5B1 in imaging and the reduction in exposure to the radiolabel. All four presentations illustrate the potential utility of the antibody as a next generation imaging agent for pancreatic cancer. Lastly, Ryan Lanning, M.D. Ph.D., will present the results of using HuMab 5B1 as a radioimmunotherapy agent for treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Because five-year survival rates in pancreatic cancer are only 5% and more than half of all patients initially diagnosed already have metastatic disease, the difficulties in identifying distant metastases that often go undetected as well as developing advanced therapeutics to treat this difficult cancer are significant unmet medical needs. These researchers at MSK are on the cutting edge of this technology and may well help develop a new generation of diagnostic and therapeutic agents using HuMab 5B1. Continuing studies of HuMab 5B1 could further demonstrate the utility of a broad technology platform useful both as a imaging and therapeutic agent.

About HuMab 5B1
The fully human antibody HuMab 5B1 was recovered from patients undergoing cancer vaccine treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The HuMab 5B1 has demonstrated high specificity, affinity, and lack of cross-reactivity with similar antigens. The antibody has also shown potent cancer cell killing capacity and efficacy in animal models of pancreatic, colon, and small cell lung cancers. Ongoing toxicology results continue to demonstrate an acceptable profile in acute and repeat dose studies in animals. MabVax plans to initiate two complementary Phase I clinical trials in the first quarter of 2016. One clinical trial is aimed at determining the safety and potential utility of HuMab 5B1 as a therapeutic agent in subjects with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The second clinical trial is aimed at demonstrating the utility of ⁸⁹Zr-HuMab 5B1, the Company’s radio-labeled HuMab 5B1 antibody, as a next-generation PET imaging agent for the diagnosis, staging, and management of pancreatic cancer.

About MabVax
MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. is a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on the development of vaccine and antibody based therapies to address unmet medical needs in the treatment of cancer. MabVax has discovered a pipeline of human monoclonal antibody products based on the protective immune responses generated by patients who have been immunized against targeted cancers with the Company’s proprietary vaccines. MabVax has the exclusive license to the therapeutic vaccines from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. MabVax has two cancer vaccines targeting recurrent sarcoma and ovarian cancer in proof of concept Phase II multi-center clinical trials, and a vaccine targeting neuroblastoma ready for Phase II clinical development.

Additional information about the Company is available at www.mabvax.com.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” regarding matters that are not historical facts, including statements relating to upcoming presentations expected to be made by researchers at MSKCC related to the use of HuMab 5B1. We have no assurance that all of the product development opportunities related to current research studies of HuMab 5B1 will be fully developed by the Company. Because such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Words such as “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “will,” “potential,” “hope” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations of the Company and involve assumptions that may never materialize or may prove to be incorrect. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of various risks and uncertainties. Detailed information regarding factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by statements in this press release relating to the Company may be found in the Company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the factors described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2013 and in the Proxy Statement dated July 25, 2014, as amended and supplemented from time to time and in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for June 30, 2014. The parties do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this press release.

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