PhoreMost Raises $46 Million to Advance Brain Cancer Treatment into Clinic

Rare Daily Staff

UK-based oncology focused biotech PhoreMost said it completed an oversubscribed $46 million (£33 million) series B financing round, which it will use to advance its lead therapeutic candidate targeting glioma into the clinic.

Glioma is a rare cancer that starts as tumor in the glial cells of the brain or the spine. Gliomas make up about 30 percent of all central nervous system tumors, and 80 percent of all malignant brain tumors.

BGF led the financing, which included new investors XtalPi, Astellas Venture Management, Trend Investment Group, and o2h ventures, and existing investors Parkwalk Advisors, Morningside Ventures, and Jonathan Milner.

The funding will be used to progress PhoreMost’s preclinical ‘Allosteric PLK1’ collaboration with Sentinel Oncology into the clinic in 2022. The program is initially targeted towards glioma.

The company will also progress multiple additional internal first-in-class drug discovery programs across its oncology and aging therapeutic indications.

PhoreMost says its SITESEEKER platform can identify the best new therapeutic targets for any chosen disease setting, and rapidly identify how to develop novel drugs to these targets. This has the potential to significantly increase the diversity of novel treatments for cancer and other unmet diseases. PhoreMost has recently deployed its platform towards the identification of novel E3-ligands, the progression of which, the company says, have the potential to be highly disruptive within the targeted protein degradation therapeutic modality space.

“PhoreMost is at an incredibly exciting phase of development, having made tremendous progress since the series A funding,” said Chris Torrance, CEO of PhoreMost. “Our lead ‘Allosteric PLK1’ asset is well positioned for clinical entry and our SITESEEKER platform has made valuable discoveries within the targeted protein degradation, oncology and ageing fields. This funding now positions PhoreMost well to prosecute asset development across these high value therapeutic areas.”

Photo: Chris Torrance, CEO of PhoreMost