Candel Therapeutics Secures $22.5 Million Series C Financing to Advance Proprietary Immuno-Oncology Platforms

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) has learned that Candel Therapeutics announced on April 1 the completion of a $22.5 million Series C preferred equity financing round. The round was led by Northpond Ventures, with participation from Sands Capital Ventures, H7 Holdings, and Level One Partners. Dr. Michael P. Rubin, Founder and CEO of Northpond Ventures, will join the Board of Directors of Candel Therapeutics. Candel Therapeutics plans to use the proceeds to expand its operations and further accelerate its clinical development programs.

Candel Therapeutics is a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company developing its proprietary immuno-oncology platform. The company’s platform includes the Gene-Mediated Cytotoxic Immunotherapy (GMCI) platform and the rQNestin34.5 platform for the treatment of solid tumors.

GMCI is a low-toxicity adenoviral immunotherapy that induces immunogenic tumor cell death, stimulates a hyper-immunogenic microenvironment, and elicits cancer-specific immune responses from the patient’s own immune system. rQNestin34.5 is an immuno-oncology approach that employs a genetically engineered oncolytic herpes simplex virus (HSV) to enhance anticancer efficacy. This candidate product is currently undergoing Phase I clinical trials in patients with recurrent malignant glioma.

Currently, GMCI is being evaluated in 11 completed clinical trials and five ongoing clinical trials involving multiple indications, including prostate cancer, brain cancer, pancreatic cancer, and lung cancer. GMCI has been administered to 650 patients at more than 1,200 patient doses, with substantial evidence demonstrating its favorable tolerability and safety profile. These studies include a pivotal registration trial. Under a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the company is evaluating the GMCI candidate product for the treatment of patients with localized prostate cancer. If proven effective, the GMCI candidate product would be the first therapy approved for the treatment of localized prostate cancer.

Dr. Estuardo Aguilar-Cordova, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Candel Therapeutics, stated, “This financing has enhanced our financial flexibility. We possess the most comprehensive and promising clinical dataset in the development of viral immunotherapies for multiple oncology indications, and Michael’s addition brings us critical relevant expertise.”

Candel recently announced a collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Adult Brain Tumor Consortium to launch a clinical study evaluating GMCI in combination with checkpoint inhibitors. The company is also continuing its research on patients with recurrent GBM using the rQNestin34.5 platform. Furthermore, the company plans to use the proceeds from this financing to initiate pivotal trials of GMCI for patients with brain cancer.

Northpond Ventures is a science-driven venture capital firm headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, USA. The company’s investment activities are primarily focused on life sciences, medical technology, and healthcare-related industries.

Sands Capital Ventures, based in Arlington, Virginia, is a venture capital and growth equity investment firm that invests in companies at all stages in the biotechnology and enterprise software sectors.

Level One Partners, founded in 2005 and headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA, primarily provides a range of business services.

(Compiled by Li Chengping)