Thanks to support from the Innovate UK Cancer Therapeutics programme, the company’s lead asset – THEO-260 – is being evaluated in clinical trials as a new therapeutic option for ovarian cancer where there is a significant need for new therapies.

The challenge

Approximately 1 in 52 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in their lifetime, and currently only 35% of women diagnosed survive for 10 or more years. This poor prognosis is largely due to the complexity of the disease and the limited advancements in treatment options. Developing effective treatments in this setting has been particularly challenging because of the prominent and intricate nature of the tumour microenvironment (the complex ecosystem surrounding the tumour) in ovarian cancer.

The Theolytics solution

Oncolytic viruses have the potential to selectively kill tumour cells and transform the tumour microenvironment. They can also stimulate an immune response, leading to the detection and clearing of cancer cells by the patient’s own immune system.

Theolytics has created a library of over 100 million variants of oncolytic viruses based on adenovirus (a virus type that causes colds and other mild infections). The library provides a very large and diverse pool of potential candidates and can be used to search for the optimal candidates for treating cancer patients.

The company conducts research on tumour samples from cancer patients. It developed a lead candidate, THEO-260 as it was effective in many ovarian cancer patient samples tested, killing cancer cells, cancer-supporting cells and stimulating an immune response. The company is excited about its differentiated mode of action and what this could mean for future ovarian cancer treatment.

A self-amplifying therapy

Pre-clinical work has shown that when the virus encounters cells of the tumour and its microenvironment, it will attack and destroy them, leaving healthy cells intact. The virus can also elicit an enduring immune response by the patients’ own immune system. This works in the same way that the immune system defends against other diseases or infections, meaning patients could potentially be protected from their cancer recurring.

The approach is unique in that a small amount of adenovirus can self amplify and replicate over time very selectively within a tumour, following just a short treatment regime. It is hoped that this will result in strong activity and sustained immune response against the cancer while avoiding serious side effects.

From lab bench to the clinic with Innovate UK

Funding from Innovate UK enabled Theolytics to take its technology from the laboratory into patients in the clinic. It allowed the company to start a first-in-human trial for its lead asset THEO-260 in patients with advanced ovarian cancer, an area of medicine with a really high unmet need and where patients have poor prognosis.

Put simply, as Dr Margaret Duffy CSO and Co-founder of Theolytics said:

The mission of the company is to improve the lives of cancer patients and their families. The funding from the Innovate UK Cancer Therapeutics programme enables us to evaluate our lead candidate in the clinic and provides the opportunity to advance a new therapeutic option for patients with a very high unmet need.