First Subjects Enrolled In Phase IIa Clinical Trial Of EPODURE Biopumps To Treat Anemia In Patients With End-Stage Renal Disease On Dialysis

In a prior Phase I/Phase II study with EPODURE Biopumps, Medgenics treated pre-dialysis patients with chronic kidney disease. That study, which only allowed for a single fixed dose to each patient, showed that a single administration of EPODURE Biopumps successfully raised or maintained hemoglobin in the therapeutic range for six to 36 months without the need for EPO or ESA injections, while serum EPO levels remained within normal range. This latest Phase IIa study allows for an adjustment of the initial dose based on the patient’s response to the prior EPO injections, which the administration of EPODURE Biopumps aims to replace for many months at a time.

For the first two patients in the current study, the EPODURE procedure has gone well, as in the previous study, and EPO concentrations were confirmed to be elevated within normal range in the patients’ blood in the days following EPODURE administration. This is consistent with the Phase I/Phase II findings, which indicated that EPODURE Biopumps were delivering EPO in the patients. Moving forward, patients will be followed to determine how long their hemoglobin levels remain in the desired range while EPO levels remain within normal range.

“Our planned Phase II studies will provide valuable insight into extending the use of EPODURE from treating anemia in pre-dialysis patients to treating the anemia of dialysis patients – the largest segment of the anemia market. Although it is very early, we are pleased to see that EPODURE is performing similarly in dialysis patients as it did in pre-dialysis patients, providing us further confidence in EPODURE and in the Biopump platform. While we continue our Phase IIa study in Israel, we are preparing for the launch of the larger, Phase IIb study in dialysis patients in the U.S. before the end of this year. Once completed, we believe that these studies will provide data to support the use of EPODURE in the treatment of anemia from chronic kidney disease,” stated Andrew L. Pearlman, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Medgenics.

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