NEW YORK – Achilles Therapeutics on Thursday said it is shuttering its engineered autologous T-cell therapy programs and exploring other cost-cutting measures.
The London-based firm also said it is working with financial adviser BofA Securities to explore value-maximizing strategies. As part of the changes, Achilles will likely reduce its workforce, though it didn't disclose how many employees could potentially be laid off. The firm said it is implementing an employee consultation process and will retain employees involved in "supporting value-realization" strategies.
The cost-cutting measures will immediately impact the Phase I/IIb CHIRON and THETIS clinical trials of its engineered cell therapies, which Achilles has decided to shutter due to lackluster results. The drugmaker did not share patients' outcomes in these trials but said it will in an upcoming forum.
The two clinical trials were designed to evaluate Achilles' autologous tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL)-based therapies, dubbed cNeT, which target patient-specific clonal neoantigens. Achilles was evaluating the approach for patients with advanced melanoma in the CHIRON trial and for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer in the THETIS trial.
"Our data continue to illustrate the importance of clonal neoantigens as targets and show some clinical activity, however, our studies in lung cancer and melanoma have not met our goals for commercial viability," Achilles CEO Iraj Ali said in a statement. "We are actively exploring new opportunities to leverage our substantial assets and cutting-edge technology platforms. Our goal remains to drive the development of effective treatments for patients and create long-term value for our shareholders."
Now that Achilles is abandoning the cNeT programs, the firm said it will explore opportunities with third parties developing other ways to target clonal neoantigens. These could include neoantigen vaccines, antibody-drug conjugates, and T-cell receptor (TCR) T-cell therapies.
Achilles may also consider potential acquisitions, mergers, reverse mergers, business combinations, asset sales, licensing agreements, or other strategic options, although the firm said it doesn't plan to discuss or disclose any of these strategies until its board of directors approves them or if disclosure is legally required.
As of June 30, Achilles had $95.1 million in cash and cash equivalents. The firm maintains its exclusive commercial rights to use data from the UK's Tracking Cancer Evolution through Therapy (TRACERx) study to develop neoantigen-targeting cell therapies.