Havah Therapeutics, Inc.

Chaired by founder Stephen Birrell, MD PhD, group includes experts in breast cancer biology, endocrine signaling and biomarker-driven risk reduction strategies BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Havah Therapeutics, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative, proprietary hormonal implant therapies for prevention and treatment of breast cancers, announced the formation of their Clinical Advisory Board Chaired by Havah Therapeutics founder Stephen Birrell, MD, PhD. “The scientific and clinical guidance of this esteemed group will be invaluable as we advance our androgen targeted therapy into late-stage clinical studies for Ductal Carcinoma In-Situ (DCIS) and investigator-sponsored combination studies in more advanced disease,” said, Matthew Brewer, CEO of Havah Therapeutics. Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH, Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) Investigator and internationally recognized expert in pre-invasive disease and DCIS, added: “I am thrilled to be involved with Havah Therapeutics at this critical stage of their development. Insights gained from their ongoing Phase 2 study ( RECAST DCIS ), coupled with my experience as the principal investigator of the COMET Study , will potentially enable the company’s androgen receptor targeting therapy to provide a much needed treatment alternative to invasive surgery and radiation treatment.” The members of Havah Therapeutics’ Clinical Advisory Board include: Stephen Birrell, MD, PhD (Chair), is founder of Havah Therapeutics and Chief Medical Officer of Wellend Health, an Australia-wide clinic that specializes in breast hormone-health, women at high-risk breast cancer and clinical trials. He is a Clinical Affiliate academic at the University of Adelaide Dame Roma Mitchell Cancer Research Laboratories. Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH is the Mary and Deryl Hart Distinguished Professor of Surgical Oncology and Radiology, Vice Chair of Research and Disease Group Leader for the Breast Cancer Program at Duke University Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her research focus includes breast cancer prevention, identifying less invasive treatments for early-stage breast cancers including DCIS and addressing and mitigating health care disparities in breast cancer. Seema A. Khan, MD is Professor of Surgery in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, and the Bluhm Family Professor of Cancer Research. She is the Co-Leader of the Cancer Prevention Research Program at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her research focuses on applying biomarker knowledge to improve breast cancer risk stratification and develop preventive interventions for high-risk women. Her research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, The Breast Cancer Research Foundation, the Avon Foundation, and the Susan G. Komen Foundation Professor Wayne Tilley, PhD is the Inaugural Director of the Dame Roma Mitchell Cancer Research Laboratories, University of Adelaide. He completed a Fellowship at UT Southwestern in Dallas Texas in the late 1980s where he was one of the first to clone the human androgen receptor (AR) with Professor Jean Wilson, MD. A current major research focus of Professor Tilley’s lab is the development of new treatments for breast cancer that stimulate the tumor suppressive activity of the AR in the breast (Nature Medicine 2021; Lancet Oncology 2024) to counter the proliferative effects of estrogen. Additional background information on the CAB members can be found on the company’s website: About RECAST DCIS Havah Therapeutics is currently participating in the Re-Evaluating Conditions for Active Surveillance Suitability as Treatment: Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (RECAST DCIS), a Phase 2 platform study aimed at preventing the progression of DCIS to breast cancer. Havah Therapeutics’ HAVAH T+Ai™, a proprietary combination of testosterone (T) and anastrozole (Ai) that targets the androgen and estrogen receptor pathways, is being evaluated alongside two other endocrine therapy arms. About Havah Therapeutics Havah Therapeutics is developing a novel therapeutic implant for treating hormonally sensitive cancers and other breast conditions. This groundbreaking method relies on stimulating (agonizing) the androgen receptor in breast tissue, utilizing natural hormonal mechanisms to treat patients safely and with greatly reduced side effects. The product is a combination of two registered agents (testosterone and anastrozole, a low dose aromatase inhibitor) that when dosed, provides three months of continuous medication enabling a superior product pro compliance, safety and efficacy. For more information, visit . Contacts Media Contacts: Matthew Brewer mb@havahtx.com Danielle Clark-Brown dcb@havahtx.com

40-site U.S. trial enrolling more than 300 patients could significantly change the way DCIS is treated and reduce possibly unnecessary surgery SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative (QLHC) announces the enrollment launch for the Re-Evaluating Conditions for Active Surveillance Suitability as Treatment: Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (RECAST DCIS), a Phase 2 platform study aimed at preventing the progression of DCIS to breast cancer. The study is evaluating three investigational endocrine therapy arms: (Z)-endoxifen, a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) in development by Atossa Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ATOS); HAVAH T+Ai™, a proprietary combination of testosterone (T) and anastrozole (Ai) that targets the androgen and estrogen receptor pathways in development by Havah Therapeutics; and ORSERDU® (elacestrant), the only FDA approved oral selective estrogen receptor degrader (oSERD) in development by Stemline Therapeutics Inc. (Stemline), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Menarini Group. "DCIS indicates the very earliest, noninvasive stage of the disease, that's why it is important for us to seek out alternative therapies for DCIS patients and find ways to reduce toxicity and unnecessary surgeries. We are excited to partner with three innovative companies to explore new treatments for this large and often over-treated patient population," said Laura Esserman, MD, a lead investigator for the study and founder of QLHC. Surgery is the current standard treatment for DCIS even though many patients never progress to breast cancer, which means that patients are often over-treated with invasive procedures. This new trial, sponsored and operated by QLHC, offers DCIS patients up to six months of endocrine therapy with the intent to forego surgery and instead be monitored via long-term active surveillance, if appropriate. A key element in reducing overtreatment of DCIS is identifying biomarkers that reflect the risk of progression so that those with low-risk lesions are spared surgery. RECAST DCIS features the assessment of imaging and molecular-based biomarkers in addition to evaluating new investigational agents in this setting. The study is open to enrollment with each investigational agent arm expected to enroll up to 110 patients. The three collaborators for this trial, Atossa Therapeutics, Havah Therapeutics, and Stemline, all aim to find alternative solutions for DCIS patients and are providing different agents for assessment. Atossa's (Z)-endoxifen has the potential to mitigate breast cancer risk (by reducing the density of breast tissue); to reduce cancer cell activity before surgery; and to reduce the risk of recurrent or new breast cancer after the initial treatment. According to published studies, (Z)-endoxifen is a competitive inhibitor of ERα and represses ERα transcriptional activity (Z)-endoxifen is 100-fold more potent in anti-estrogen activity compared to other SERMs. (Z)-endoxifen also binds to and disrupts protein kinase C beta one function (PKCb1, a known oncogenic protein). The National Cancer Institute (NCI) and others have studied (Z)-endoxifen and have demonstrated promising results in the treatment of breast cancer as well as for the treatment of other solid tumors. Treatment with (Z)-endoxifen may avoid off target effects of tamoxifen and remaining metabolites potentially increasing adherence by improving the safety profile. Havah Therapeutics' HAVAH T+Ai™ combines T, the natural ligand for the androgen receptior and Ai, an inhibitor of T conversion to estradiol, to modulate the growth of abnormal breast tissues. HAVAH T+Ai™ is a proprietary combination subcutaneously delivered system to overcome hormonal symptoms by balancing hormonal irregularities in the breast, developed from more than 10 years of clinical research into hormonal regulation in women. Havah has extensive clinical experience using HAVAH T+Ai™ to address pre- and postmenopausal prevention of breast disease, and the company generated data from more than 1,000 Australian women with breast disease through an ongoing open label cohort study (more than 6,200 implants), with critical safety pharmacokinetic and early efficacy data already demonstrated. Stemline's Elacestrant (ORSERDU), was approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration in January 2023 for the treatment of postmenopausal women or adult men with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, HER2-negative, ESR-1 mutated advanced or metastatic breast cancer, following at least one line of endocrine therapy. For more information including full prescribing information and important safety information, please visit . About Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative is a 501c(3) charitable organization established in 2005 as a collaboration between medical researchers at University of California, San Francisco and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. Our mission is to integrate high-impact research with clinical processes and systems technology, resulting in improved data management and information systems, greater access to clinical trial matching and sponsorship, and greater benefit to providers, patients and researchers. Our goal is to improve and save lives. For more information, visit . About Atossa Atossa Therapeutics is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative medicines in areas of significant unmet medical need in oncology. Atossa's current focus is on breast cancer. More information is available at atossatherapeutics.com. About Havah Therapeutics Havah Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing innovative, proprietary hormonal therapies that aim to improve quality of life for women. Havah brings together a world-class team passionate about helping women live lives free from the suffering caused by breast pain, debilitating menopausal symptoms and breast cancer. More information is available at . About The Menarini Group The Menarini Group is a leading international pharmaceutical and diagnostics company, with a turnover of over $4.4 billion and over 17,000 employees. Menarini is focused on therapeutic areas with high unmet needs with products for cardiology, oncology, pneumology, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, diabetology, inflammation, and analgesia. With 18 production sites and 9 Research and Development centers, Menarini's products are available in 140 countries worldwide. For further information, please visit . About Stemline Therapeutics Inc. Stemline Therapeutics, Inc. ("Stemline") a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Menarini Group, is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel oncology therapeutics. Stemline commercializes ORSERDU® (elacestrant) in the United States, an oral endocrine therapy indicated for the treatment of postmenopausal women or adult men with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative, ESR1-mutated advanced or metastatic breast cancer with disease progression following at least one line of endocrine therapy. Stemline also commercializes ELZONRIS® (tagraxofusp-erzs), a novel targeted treatment directed to CD123 for patients with blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN), an aggressive hematologic cancer, in the United States and Europe, which is the only approved treatment for BPDCN in the US and EU to date. Stemline also commercializes NEXPOVIO® in Europe, an XPO1 inhibitor for multiple myeloma. Stemline also has an extensive clinical pipeline of small molecules and biologics in various stages of development for a host of solid and hematologic cancers. SOURCE Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative

The clock is ticking for penny stock biotech Clarus Therapeutics. With $19.2 million left in the bank and $40.5 million of senior notes payable, the company is pulling out all the stops to stay afloat — axing 40% of its workforce and closing down R&D programs while it explores strategic alternatives. Clarus also decided to combine the positions of chief financial officer and chief administrative officer. As a result, CFO Richard Peterson will leave the company while CAO Steven Bourne picks up his job. The biotech markets an oral testosterone replacement drug named Jatenzo, and it’s been working on other androgen replacement and metabolic therapies. The reorg will keep the lights on until September 2022, the company noted — but it may have to stop marketing Jatenzo and file for bankruptcy unless it can restructure its indebtedness and find new capital. Like many of the biotechs in distress these days, Robert Dudley, Clarus president and CEO, blames the moves — which come even as Jatenzo sales have grown — on the difficult financing environment. “These changes will include staff reductions at all levels, including field sales personnel, coupled with significant reductions in promotional and other operational spend, including in our planned research and development activities,” he said in a statement. “Despite these difficult choices, we believe it is the responsible course of action.” The company has terminated its deal with HavaH Therapeutics to develop CLAR-121, a formulation of testosterone plus anastrozole to treat inflammatory breast disease and certain forms of breast cancer. Clarus expects severance and related expenses for the layoffs to add up to $1.1 million.