Mendus – executive interview

Mendus is a clinical-stage immunoncology company developing its lead candidate, vididencel, a cell-based vaccine, as a cancer maintenance therapy, aimed at the prevention or delay of tumour recurrence. Vididencel is in two clinical trials: Phase II (currently in long-term follow-up) in acute myeloid leukaemia (AML, ADVANCE II, next readout expected in Q423) and Phase I in ovarian cancer (ALISON). Key survival data from vididencel’s use in the treatment of AML was reported in Q422, demonstrating a competitive profile, in our view. Management plans to maximise the potential of vididencel with a Phase II combination study with Onureg, the only approved AML maintenance drug, expected to commence by the end of the year. The company’s second clinical asset, ilixadencel, is being developed as an intratumoral immune primer and is in preparations for a Phase II trial for the treatment of soft tissue sarcomas.

In this interview, Mendus CEO Erik Manting recaps the company’s pipeline and gives insight into what investors should expect from the upcoming ADVANCE II update at the American Society of Hematology meeting in December. Immunoncology remains a frenetic pharmaceutical development area with many clinical combination studies being conducted by pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Investors should expect relatively rich newsflows from this subsector over the next few years.