Hanmi Pharmaceutical Unveils Targeted Anticancer Drug for Cancer-Causing Gene Mutations: "Phase 1 Trials to Begin Next Year"

Hanmi Pharm announced on the 16th that it participated in the international academic conference '2023 AACR-NCI-EORTC' held in Boston, USA, from the 11th to the 15th (local time), where it presented one poster on the research results of 'HM99462,' an innovative anticancer drug under development.

At the international academic conference "2023 AACR-NCI-EORTC" held in Boston, USA, global pharmaceutical and bio industry stakeholders are reviewing the poster presentation of the research results on Hanmi Pharmaceutical's innovative anticancer new drug "HM99462."
[Photo by Hanmi Pharmaceutical]

HM99462, presented by Hanmi Pharm at this conference, is a novel SOS1 inhibitor that suppresses the binding between the SOS1 protein, which plays a role in the signal transduction cascade, and KRAS to prevent KRAS activation. Currently, inhibitors that block activation due to KRAS mutations have been approved only for lung cancer; however, various resistance mechanisms have emerged, and their effectiveness is limited for colorectal and pancreatic cancers, which frequently occur due to KRAS mutations, according to Hanmi Pharm.

HM99462 inhibited the protein binding between KRAS and SOS1 regardless of the KRAS mutation type, demonstrating anticancer activity in various KRAS mutant solid tumor cell lines, including KRAS G12C as well as G12D/V/S, G13D, and others. Additionally, it showed a synergistic effect through vertical inhibition combined with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation inhibitors, confirming the potential for treating EGFR-mutant lung cancer.

Based on these research results, Hanmi Pharm is currently preparing to submit an Investigational New Drug (IND) application. Clinical Phase 1 trials are planned to begin as early as next year.

Choi Jae-yul, a researcher at Hanmi Pharm’s R&D Center who conducted the poster presentation, stated, "HM99462 has high potential to be developed as an innovative drug by enhancing therapeutic effects against various cancers associated with KRAS activation through combination with existing drugs while suppressing resistance induction. We will focus our research capabilities to achieve meaningful outcomes in the anticancer field, which plays a crucial role in Hanmi’s drug development pipeline."

Meanwhile, the AACR-NCI-EORTC is a globally prestigious academic conference jointly hosted by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). Each year, the conference selects and presents the latest major research findings related to cancer treatment.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.