Mirati to press on with SAPPHIRE study despite mixed results

US clinical-stage targeted oncology company Mirati Therapeutics (Nasdaq: MRTX) saw its shares close up 5.2% at $96.25 on Friday, after it announced that, based on the results of an interim analysis on overall survival (OS), the registrational Phase III study evaluating sitravatinib in combination with nivolumab (Bristol Myers Squibb’s blockbuster drug Opdivo) in patients with second or third line non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSQ-NSCLC) who have acquired resistance to prior therapy with chemotherapy and immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy (SAPPHIRE) will continue to the study's final analysis.

The decision comes despite the fact that the trial did not hit the pre-planned interim analysis for both superiority and futility in the primary endpoint of OS. The final analysis is expected to be reached in mid-2023.

The news also comes at a time of speculation on a takeover bid for Mirati, which has a current market capitalization of around $5.26 billion.