Bio-tech firm Lantern Pharma Inc. raised $3.7 million from its Series A equity financing to continue its search for and testing of abandoned cancer drugs.

The Dallas-based company will use the funds to continue research on phase two clinical candidate Tavocept (LP-300) and the as-yet unnamed LP-184.

LANTERN PHARMA AND ADAPTIVE REUSE

Lantern, whose company tagline is “pioneering precision medicine,” rescues and repurposes cancer drugs cast aside by other pharma companies during the clinical testing phase because they showed positive results only among small patient sub-sets.

Lantern Pharma’s proprietary 5M-AI biomarker approach. Click the image for a full-size view on the company’s site.

Lantern leans heavily on data and artificial intelligence to research biomarkers of patients who responded favorably within the clinical trials.

The company then creates genetic profiles that can be incorporated into additional testing, meaning a better-targeted and potentially successful cancer therapy treatment. 

“By incorporating that into the selection and testing process, we can save years and tens of millions of dollars, thereby making treatments more personalized and accessible,” Lantern Pharma co-founder and CEO Arun Asaithambi said in a statement. “We believe this will lead to better outcomes, efficient and faster drug development.”

THREE’S A CHARM

Lantern has three clinical-stage products in the pipeline. Tavocept has been effective, in combination with other treatments, among a sub-set of patients with non-small cell lung cancer. LP-184, currently being prepared for biomarker-based clinical trials, is doing well against multiple solid tumors, especially of the gynecologic variety.

And, Lantern licensed Irofulven-1, its first program, to a European pharma company for additional testing and development. The drug was originally developed and tested for treatment against pancreatic cancer and is showing great promise in treating ovarian and peritoneal cancer.

Meanwhile, Lantern is partnering with Cancer Genetics Inc, for genomic data access, laboratory testing, and analysis services. Additionally, the company is working with artificial intelligence leader Intuition Systems to boost analysis, cloud support, and infrastructure for drug development and biomarker identification.

Dr. Arun Asaithambi

The Dallas startup is a graduate of the 2014 Health Wildcatters class, and landed a nearly $1 million investment from Dallas-based Green Park & Golf Ventures and other investors in 2015, according to the Dallas Business Journal. The company’s drug development efforts are led by Dr. Arun Asaithambi, a biotechnology scientist and entrepreneur who previously co-founded Signal Therapeutics.

“Dr. Asaithambi and his team have made significant strides in bringing their treatments to market since graduating from our program in 2014,” said Dr. Hubert Zajicek, CEO of Health Wildcatters. “We are proud to watch their success through clinical trials and raising funds for their work in the battle of fighting cancer. Their treatments will have a significant impact on the biopharmaceutical industry and this Series A financing will help put them one step closer.”

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