Sana loses its taste for oncology
Sana Biotechnology has become the latest group to turn away from cancer and towards autoimmune diseases, following similar moves from the likes of Adicet and Shattuck. Sana, which last year deprioritised its in vivo Car-T contender SG299, is now scrapping its allogeneic CD19 Car-T SC291 in oncology, citing competition and regulatory uncertainty. The group will continue testing SC291 in B-cell mediated autoimmune diseases, and emphasised its islet cell projects in type 1 diabetes; an approach also being pursued by Vertex. Sana does have one remaining clinical-stage oncology hope, the CD22-targeted allo Car-T SC262, being tested in lymphoma patients post CD19 Car-T. Data from the phase 1 Vivid study are due in 2025, Sana said on Monday, versus a previous estimate of 2024. Intriguigingly, the in vivo project SG299 is still in play, although early, with potential in both cancer and autoimmune diseases, according to Sana. But the company is now late to the in vivo arena, with Interius BioTherapeutics recently dosing the first patient with its CD20-targeting INT2104, and Umoja and AbbVie not far behind with their CD19 project UB-VV111. Sana reckons it has enough cash to last until 2026, but progress so far has been slow.
Sana’s oncology pipeline
| Project | Description | Status |
|---|---|---|
| SC291 | CD19-targeted allogeneic Car-T, with CD47 overexpression | Focus now on autoimmune diseases; enrolment halted in ph1 Ardent in B-cell malignancies, seeking partner |
| SC262 | CD22-directed allogeneic Car-T | Ph1 Vivid in r/r NHL (post CD19 Car-T) continues; data due 2025 |
| SG299 | CD19-targeted in vivo Car-T | Preclinical work ongoing; potential in autoimmune & oncology |
| SC255 | BCMA-targeted allogeneic Car-T | Not mentioned in Nov 2024 update; had been preclinical as of Aug 2024 |
Source: OncologyPipeline; company release 4 Nov 2024.
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