Blood cancer therapy SGR-2921 discontinued after patient deaths
Drug was being tested for acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive form of cancer
Biotech company Schrödinger said it’s discontinuing the development of SGR-2921, an experimental therapy for certain types of blood cancer, following the deaths of two patients in an early clinical trial.
“Patient safety is our first priority and, in light of two treatment-related deaths in the Phase 1 dose-escalation study, we have made the decision to discontinue further development of SGR-2921. While disappointing given the early clinical activity observed, we believe this is the right decision for patients,” Margaret Dugan, MD, chief medical officer at Schrödinger, said in a company press release. “We are very grateful to the investigators, patients and families who have participated in this clinical study.”
What is SGR-2921?
Schrödinger had been running a Phase 1 clinical trial (NCT05961839) testing SGR-2921 in people with an aggressive form of blood cancer called acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The trial enrolled patients with AML whose cancer hadn’t responded or that had come back following prior lines of treatment. It also was open to patients with myelodysplastic syndrome, a blood cell condition that can develop into AML.
“We had hoped to advance [SGR-2921] for acute myeloid leukemia as relapse rates are high, the disease progresses rapidly, and there are limited therapies available,” Dugan said.
The trial sought to test up to nine different doses of SGR-2921, with the main goal being to evaluate the therapy’s safety profile.
SGR-2921 is an oral therapy that’s designed to block CDC7, a protein involved in cell division. Inhibiting the protein was intended to halt cancer cell growth and the therapy showed strong anticancer activity in preclinical models.
According to Schrödinger, data from the Phase 1 study showed “early evidence of monotherapy activity.” In other words, SGR-2921 appeared that it might help limit cancer cell growth. However, there were also “two emergent events where SGR-2921 was considered to have contributed to two deaths in patients with AML.”
Based on the toxicity implied by these treatment-related deaths, the overall safety profile of SGR-2921 suggests it would be difficult to develop SGR-2921 as a combination therapy for use with standard-of-care agents, according to Schrödinger.
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