Israel-based clinical-stage biotechnology company Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE American: CANF; TASE: CANF), which develops small-molecule drugs for oncological and inflammatory diseases, on Monday reported new preclinical findings showing that namodenoson enhances the anti-cancer activity of gemcitabine in pancreatic cancer.

The data support the design of its planned Phase IIb trial combining namodenoson with gemcitabine and other standard therapy in advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Preclinical studies found that the combination increased levels of cleaved caspase-3. According to the company, this suggests namodenoson weakens cancer cell survival mechanisms and heightens susceptibility to chemotherapy.

The findings support the proposed randomised Phase IIb study, which will assess namodenoson with gemcitabine and Nab-paclitaxel. The trial builds on the favourable safety profile and clinical activity observed with namodenoson monotherapy in Can-Fite's Phase 2a pancreatic cancer study.

Namodenoson is an orally bioavailable A3 adenosine receptor agonist currently in a Phase 3 trial for advanced liver cancer, a Phase 2b trial for Metabolic Dysfunction-associated Steatohepatitis, and has completed a Phase 2a pancreatic cancer study. The receptor is highly expressed in diseased cells and minimally expressed in normal cells, which may contribute to the drug's safety profile.