Five Prime Therapeutics soars 349% after positive cancer trial results

• Five Prime Therapeutics soared as much as 349% on Wednesday after the biotechnology company released positive results for its phase 2 trial evaluating bemarituzumab in stomach cancer.
• Five Prime's Phase 2 FIGHT trial met all three primary endpoints of its study, including an improvement in progression-free survival.
• "These results bring us one step closer to the first potential targeted therapy for advanced gastric cancer in over a decade," Five Prime's Chief Medical Officer Helen Collins said.
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A potential breakthrough in the treatment of stomach cancer helped boost shares of Five Prime Therapeutics higher by as much as 349% to $24.00 in Wedsnesday trades.

The small-cap biotechnology company said on Tuesday that its phase 2 FIGHT trial evaluating bemarituzumab in front-line advanced gastric cancer and gastroesophageal junction cancer met all 3 pre-determined efficacy endpoints.

Bemarituzumab is a therapeutic antibody targeting FGFR2b+ tumors that are found in approximately 30% of HER2-gastric cancers worldwide, the company said.

In the study, the median progression-free survival improved from 7.4 months to 9.5 months. The median overall survival improved from 12.9 months to not reached, meaning that patients within the trial are still alive and they can not yet determine what the median overall survival is.

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In the trial, bemarituzumab was used in combination with chemo therapy, compared to the control group that received chemo therapy and a placebo.

"These results bring us one step closer to the first potential targeted therapy for advanced gastric cancer in over a decade," Five Prime's Chief Medical Officer Helen Collins said.

Collins added that bemarituzumab could have therapeutic potential in other forms of cancer, with FGFR2b+ being found in other cancers like squamous non-small cell lung cancer, triple negative breast cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, according to the company.

Five Prime will evaluate all available data from its phase 2 trial and work with investigators to present results at an upcoming medical conference.