SAN DIEGO and PENNINGTON, N.J., April 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- OncoSec Medical Incorporated ("OncoSec") (Nasdaq: ONCS), a company developing late-stage intratumoral cancer immunotherapies, today announced pre-clinical data from a feasibility study of its visceral lesion applicator (VLA) electroporation device and APOLLO generator which were presented online at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR). The feasibility study demonstrated the capability of a rigid, trocar-like VLA applicator to safely deliver and electroporate DNA-based immunotherapy directly into target organs in a large animal model using a CT-guided approach and OncoSec's new, lower voltage APOLLO generator.

In a study titled, "Can an Intratumoral DNA-Encoded Immunotherapeutic Device Platform Currently Used in the Management of Cutaneous Lesions Be Scaled in Size to Function in the Treatment of Visceral Tumors Through Image-Guided Techniques?", investigators built upon data presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Interventional Oncology (SIO) demonstrating the VLA's ability to reach deep visceral organs using laparoscopic/ultrasound and bronchoscope/steerable catheter methods in live large animal models.

In the study presented online at the Annual Meeting of the SIR, OncoSec demonstrated the ability to guide and deploy the VLA under a different guidance method and electroporate with the APOLLO generator.  Using CT-guidance, investigators were able to reach high value targets including liver, lung, bone, and pancreas in a live large animal model.  Additionally, TAVO was safely delivered and electroporated directly into the liver.  Importantly, data also showed that it had no significant effects on hemodynamics, as indicated by consistent heart rate and arterial blood pressure.  Animals were survived for at least 24 hours and no adverse events were observed.

"The potential opportunities that this technology represents are very promising. Interventional radiologists are eager to find treatment solutions that extend beyond standard of care.  The possibility of delivering potent immunotherapy directly to visceral tumors in radiology suites could shift the paradigm of how we treat certain tumors, particularly in the liver, lung and bone," said Dr. Daniel Simon, Board Certified Interventional Radiologist at Vascular Management Associates of New Jersey and Maryland Cardiology Associates, and scientific advisor to OncoSec, who performed these large animal studies presented at SIR.

OncoSec has developed a short mechanism of action video that illustrates the way the VLA system is designed to target and treat tumors in humans.  The video can be accessed on the Company's website via https://oncosec.com/vla/.

In the previous feasibility study originally reported at SIO, large live healthy animal subjects were placed under general anesthesia while investigators safely and successfully accessed and deployed the VLA in the lungs with a flexible, catheter-based applicator using a bronchoscope and a steerable catheter, and liver using ultrasound-guided laparoscopy with a rigid-trocar-based applicator. Following deployment of the VLA, electroporation was performed in the liver using the company's proprietary APOLLO generator. No adverse effects were recorded during or after electroporation. Additionally, initial data from the APOLLO generator's built-in feedback system embedded within the platform detected and recorded trends in impedance values between different tissue types, as well as between the presence and absence of DNA. The APOLLO generator was also able to indicate when the applicator tip was not effectively placed within the tissue. These data highlight the safety mechanisms as well as the future possibility of differentiating between healthy tissue and a local tumor.  Data from both SIR and SIO can be accessed via the two respective posters at https://oncosec.com/vla/.

"This study of our VLA device demonstrates the feasibility of reaching critical tissue targets, delivering a drug -- in this case our lead product, TAVO, and electroporating in a large-animal model," said John Rodriguez, Vice President, Product Engineering at OncoSec. "We are very encouraged by these data, as they support our belief that electroporation combined with delivering drug intratumorally may be possible in tumors located within internal organs.  These results allow us to move forward with a preclinical safety study in the near term, followed by the potential filing of an Investigational New Drug application and initiation of a phase 1 human clinical trial using the VLA platform in combination with TAVO."

About OncoSec Medical Incorporated

OncoSec Medical Incorporated (the "Company," "OncoSec," "we" or "our") is a late-stage biotechnology company focused on developing cytokine-based intratumoral immunotherapies to stimulate the body's immune system to target and attack cancer.  OncoSec's lead immunotherapy investigational product candidate – TAVO™ (tavokinogene telseplasmid) – enables the intratumoral delivery of DNA-based interleukin-12 (IL-12), a naturally occurring protein with immune-stimulating functions.  The technology, which employs electroporation, is designed to produce a controlled, localized expression of IL-12 in the tumor microenvironment, enabling the immune system to target and attack tumors throughout the body. OncoSec has built a deep and diverse clinical pipeline utilizing TAVO™ as a potential treatment for multiple cancer indications either as a monotherapy or in combination with leading checkpoint inhibitors; with the latter potentially enabling OncoSec to address a great unmet medical need in oncology: anti-PD-1 non-responders.  Results from recently completed clinical studies of TAVO™ have demonstrated a local immune response, and subsequently, a systemic effect as either a monotherapy or combination treatment approach along with an acceptable safety profile, warranting further development. In addition to TAVO™, OncoSec is identifying and developing new DNA-encoded therapeutic candidates and tumor indications for use with its new Visceral Lesion Applicator (VLA), to target deep visceral lesions, such as liver, lung or pancreatic lesions. For more information, please visit www.oncosec.com.  

TAVO™ is a trademark of OncoSec Medical Incorporated.

Risk Factors and Forward-Looking Statements

This release, as well as other information provided from time to time by the Company or its employees, may contain forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide the Company's current beliefs, expectations and intentions regarding future events and involve risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond the Company's control) and assumptions. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify forward-looking statements by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. These statements may include words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "potential," "should," "will" and "would" and similar expressions (including the negative of these terms).  Although we believe that expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. The Company intends these forward-looking statements to speak only at the time they are published on or as otherwise specified, and does not undertake to update or revise these statements as more information becomes available, except as required under federal securities laws and the rules and regulations of the Securities Exchange Commission ("SEC"). In particular, you should be aware that the success and timing of our clinical trials, including safety and efficacy of our product candidates, patient accrual, unexpected or expected safety events, the impact of COVID-19 on the supply of our candidates or the initiation or completion of clinical trials, the allowance by FDA of the clinical use of CORVax12 and our next-generation APOLLO generator in this or any future clinical trials, and the usability of data generated from our trials may differ and may not meet our estimated timelines. Please refer to the risk factors and other cautionary statements provided in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2019 and subsequent periodic and current reports filed with the SEC (each of which can be found at the SEC's website www.sec.gov), as well as other factors described from time to time in the Company's filings with the SEC.

Company Contact:
Gem Hopkins
Head of Corporate Communications
858-210-7334
[email protected]

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