Onconic Therapeutics to Present Nesuparib Data at AACR

On April 15, Onconic Therapeutics announced that it would release research results on its next-generation anticancer candidate, Nesuparib, at the AACR.

Onconic Therapeutics is scheduled to participate in AACR 2026, which will be held in San Diego, USA from April 17 to 22, and present research results on Nesuparib related to small cell lung cancer and pancreatic cancer in the form of a poster presentation.

Onconic Therapeutics Research Institute. Onconic Therapeutics

Nesuparib is a synthetic lethality anticancer agent with a dual mechanism that simultaneously inhibits both PARP and tankyrase. It is currently undergoing Phase 2 clinical development for four cancer types: pancreatic cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer, and gastric cancer.

Since the initial clinical results for Nesuparib were released at ASCO in 2021, Onconic Therapeutics has continued to disclose accumulated mechanistic and preclinical data through AACR from 2023 through last year. Notably, the data to be presented at this year’s AACR aligns with the ongoing Phase 2 clinical development stage.

Nesuparib has attracted attention due to its approach aimed at overcoming the limitations of existing PARP inhibitors. While traditional therapies that block DNA damage repair have shown a certain level of efficacy, their actual effectiveness in clinical settings has often been limited to patient groups with BRCA mutations.

Nesuparib distinguishes itself by combining tankyrase inhibition, which allows it to simultaneously regulate the Wnt and Hippo signaling pathways, thereby overcoming those limitations. Because it targets multiple tumor development and metastasis pathways at once, it is noteworthy whether this could lead to a treatment that does not rely on specific genetic mutations.

The data to be released at this AACR is expected to support this mechanistic approach. According to the published abstract, in small cell lung cancer cell experiments, Nesuparib demonstrated up to 133 times greater cancer cell growth inhibition compared to the existing PARP inhibitor olaparib, and about 25 times greater efficacy than irinotecan. In animal models, Nesuparib also achieved a tumor suppression rate of approximately 66.5%, confirming improved results compared to the control group.

Similar results were observed in pancreatic cancer. According to the abstract, Nesuparib demonstrated excellent antitumor effects even in models without BRCA mutations. When used in combination with gemcitabine and abraxane, the standard treatment for pancreatic cancer, Nesuparib reduced cancer cell viability by more than 70% and decreased tumor size by up to 79%.

Given that existing PARP inhibitor monotherapies have been used only in a limited manner for maintenance therapy in pancreatic cancer patients with rare BRCA mutations, these results suggest Nesuparib may broaden its range of applications. Currently, Nesuparib has completed Phase 1b clinical trials as a first-line treatment for metastatic pancreatic cancer regardless of BRCA mutation status and is now in Phase 2 trials. Thus, the pancreatic cancer presentation at this AACR is expected to demonstrate Nesuparib’s differentiation and increase expectations for clinical success.

A company representative stated, "Nesuparib has entered the Phase 2 clinical stage for four indications by expanding the current treatment approach, and has received FDA Orphan Drug Designation for three types of cancer, attracting significant attention in the global market. For this AACR, we are dispatching a large team of seven members to handle presentations on small cell lung cancer and pancreatic cancer data as well as various business meetings. We expect this will further enhance Nesuparib’s global value."

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