Kuros receives milestone payment from Checkmate

Switzerland-based Kuros Biosciences says it has been informed by US clinical-stage biopharma company Checkmate Pharmaceuticals that the first melanoma patient has been dosed in a Phase Ib clinical trial with CMP-001, formerly known as CYT003.

The trial is designed as a multi-center, open-label study of CMP-001 in combination with pembrolizumab for patients with advanced melanoma who have either progressed on anti-PD1 therapy or have failed to respond to at least 12 weeks of therapy.

In August 2015, Checkmate acquired exclusive access to Cytos’ clinically-validated product candidate CYT003 as well as its VLP platform and to technology related to oligonucleotide synthesis for multiple products in the field of oncology. Cytos merged with Kuros Biosurgery last December, leading to the creation of Kuros Biosciences.