Melbourne, Australia, 4 November 2026 – Cartherics Pty Ltd (“Cartherics” or “Company”), a biotechnology company developing off-the-shelf immune cell therapies is pleased to announce that it will present an update on CTH-401 for the treatment of ovarian cancer at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 2026 Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona. The Company is focused on high-impact women’s diseases such as ovarian cancer and endometriosis, and CTH-401 is its lead product candidate.
Ovarian cancer causes more than 200,000 deaths worldwide each year. Most patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage, and fewer than 30% survive five years. New treatments are urgently needed.
Deputy Chief Scientific Officer, Dr Keefe Chan will present the findings in an oral presentation and a poster:
- Oral presentation: Oral Abstract Session 2, Friday 6 November, 3:58–4:13pm (US Mountain Time)
- Poster: # 161
Presentation title: CTH-401: Allogeneic iPSC-derived CAR-NK cells for the treatment of ovarian cancer
CTH-401 is an off-the-shelf immune cell therapy made from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). It is engineered to target TAG-72, a protein found on ovarian and other adenocarcinomas but with negligible expression on normal adult tissues. The cells also carry two gene deletions, DGKα and DGKζ, which remove an internal “brake” that normally dampens natural killer (NK) cell function following their activation.
Cartherics is manufacturing CTH-401 in its own clinical manufacturing facility. The product is made in advance from a master cell bank. Unlike autologous cell therapies, it is designed to be manufactured at scale and made available off the shelf, rather than custom-made for each patient.
Key findings to be presented include:
- Consistent manufacturing: CTH-401 is produced with high consistency from a fully characterised, GMP-compliant master cell bank.
- Targeted tumour killing: In laboratory studies, CTH-401 killed TAG-72-positive cancer cells, and the gene deletions significantly improved the cells’ resistance to tumour immunosuppression.
- Anti-tumour activity: CTH-401 produced significant tumour control in a preclinical ovarian cancer model.
- Safety: GLP toxicology studies showed an acceptable safety profile at dose equivalents well above the intended clinical range.
With IND-enabling studies complete, CTH-401 is positioned for a first-in-human trial in ovarian cancer, planned for early 2027, subject to regulatory approval.
TAG-72 is also expressed in colorectal, gastric and other adenocarcinomas, giving CTH-401 the potential to expand into further solid tumours. Cartherics’ iPSC platform is also designed to support additional products, including programs in endometriosis.
Cartherics brings discovery, process development and clinical manufacturing together in its own facility in Melbourne, giving it direct control over quality, cost and timelines as CTH-401 moves into the clinic.
“It’s a privilege to present our work on CTH-401 at the SITC 2026 Annual Meeting. These data reflect years of work by an outstanding team, from gene editing iPSCs through to establishing a scalable manufacturing process of an off-the-shelf iPSC-derived natural killer cell product. We look forward to bringing CTH-401 to patients in need of new treatments,” said Dr Keefe Chan, Deputy Chief Scientific Officer, Cartherics.
Read the abstract published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer here: https://jitc.bmj.com/content/14/Suppl_2/A183
About Cartherics
Cartherics Pty Ltd is a privately held biotechnology company based in Melbourne, Australia developing off-the-shelf immune cell therapies focusing on high-impact women’s diseases, with lead programs in ovarian cancer and endometriosis. The Company’s allogeneic (“off-the-shelf”) cell platform is based upon induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generated from donated cord blood that can be differentiated into NK cells, T cells and other cells of the immune system. The iPSCs are genetically engineered at specific “safe harbour” genomic sites to provide enhanced function for the derived NK and other immune cells. The Company’s lead product, CTH-401, is a CAR-iNK cell product. It carries a CAR directed against TAG-72, a well-validated tumour target, along with the deletion of two genes associated with immunosuppression. The company has a strong pipeline of additional novel CAR-immune cell products tailored to disrupt a variety of cancers including; ovarian, triple negative breast cancer and other solid tumours; and is also targeting severe endometriosis with specific NK cell products.
Watch our latest company video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxQEyx6i7hk
Media contact
Christine Filippis
Teraze Communications
Phone: +61 419 119 866
Email: christine@teraze.com.au