NUCLIDIUM today announced that the first patient has been successfully imaged in a phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the company’s radiotracer candidate as a safe and accurate diagnostic and disease-staging imaging agent in prostate cancer patients. 61Cu-NuriProTM (61Cu-NODAGA-PSMA I&T) is the diagnostic component of NUCLIDIUM’s NuriProTM program, binding specifically to Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA). PSMA has evolved as an established biomarker for the diagnosis, staging, and treatment of patients suffering from certain types of prostate cancer.1,2,3,4 61Cu-NuriPro is the first candidate from the company’s innovative copper-based radiopharmaceutical pipeline to enter the clinic. Its theranostic counterpart, 67Cu-NuriProTM (67Cu-NODAGA-PSMA I&T), for the treatment of patients with certain types of prostate cancer, is currently completing its preclinical program. A phase 1 clinical study is planned to start in 2025.
“Our NuriProTM diagnostic’s imaging profile can overcome both detection and production challenges for physicians and patients living with prostate cancer and we look forward to further exploring its potential.”
The investigator-initiated, non-randomized phase 1 trial is being conducted at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, California. It will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the NuriProTM diagnostic candidate for imaging prostate cancer, compared to an 18F-based, FDA-approved PSMA-targeting radiotracer. The 61Cu-based candidate can potentially provide key benefits compared to other established radiotracers. With a 3.3-hour half-life, compared to the 1-to-2-hour half-life of most molecular imaging agents, it allows for a far greater distribution range following production. The company’s candidate can be easily manufactured at room temperature, enabling on-demand preparation and a simplified and easy-to-apply workflow with reduced need for laboratory equipment. It further enables delayed imaging, allowing for the detection of even the smallest metastases. Upon successful completion of the trial, NUCLIDIUM will advance the NuriProTM program into a Phase 1/2 theranostic clinical trial, evaluating both the 61Cu-based imaging agent alongside the 67Cu-based therapeutic candidate.
61Cu-NuriPro can be easily manufactured at room temperature, enabling on-demand preparation and a simplified as well as easy-to-apply workflow with reduced need for laboratory equipment. The diagnostic tracers are manufactured by PharmaLogic Holdings in Los Angeles, CA, and delivered to Hoag in a ready-to-inject form. NUCLIDIUM and PharmaLogic entered into a collaboration agreement in 2023, under which NUCLIDIUM provides PharmaLogic with scientific know-how, proprietary technology, and raw material enabling PharmaLogic to safely and accurately produce high-quality 61Cu-radionuclides and radiopharmaceuticals.
Gary Ulaner, MD, PhD, Director of Molecular Imaging and Therapy at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian and Principal Investigator of the trial added: “Prostate cancer remains the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the second most common cause of cancer death in American men.5 Rapid and precise diagnosis is essential for effective treatment. Our study aims to assess the clinical safety of 61Cu-NuriProTM and compare its diagnostic performance with an FDA-approved PSMA-targeting radiotracer. The first patient has not experienced any adverse events so far and the scan with 61Cu-NuriProTM showed more osseous lesions than 18F-piflufolastat, at 1 hour post-injection. Also, the PET scans with 61Cu-NuriProTM identified more osseous lesions at 2 and 4 hours compared to 1 hour post-injection. These preliminary clinical findings are in accordance with the preclinical results and underline the potential, favorable imaging performance of 61Cu-NuriProTM.”
“With the initiation of this first trial, we have begun building the clinical data that aiming to demonstrate the differentiation of our radiopharmaceutical approach after our copper-based candidates have shown greater imaging capacity with less toxicity in pre-clinical studies. Copper’s unique properties allow us to establish the first true theranostic pipeline that can achieve more accurate staging of the individual patient and more precise treatment of their disease,” said Leila Jaafar, PhD, CEO and Co-Founder of NUCLIDIUM. “Our NuriProTM diagnostic’s imaging profile can overcome both detection and production challenges for physicians and patients living with prostate cancer and we look forward to further exploring its potential.”
