Item 1. Business
References to “Plus,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Plus Therapeutics, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries. References to “Notes” refer to the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included herein (refer to Item 8).
General
Plus Therapeutics is committed to developing and delivering innovative treatments for rare and difficult to treat cancers, with a focus on cancers of the central nervous system. Plus Therapeutics’ mission is to transform the clinical care of cancer patients through its innovative drugs that have the potential to improve survival and quality of life.
Plus has a nanoscale drug development platform and the requisite expertise to innovate and produce product candidates that have the potential to become new and better therapeutics for rare cancers. We believe that this approach will produce investigational drugs that provide unique benefits such as improved mechanism of action, better tumor targeting, improved pharmacokinetics and higher treatment doses to the tumor. Benefits such as these may then improve the overall efficacy of drugs while reducing the side effects associated with more traditional drug delivery methods. To support this goal, Plus Therapeutics has an established, GMP-validated nanoscale drug R&D and commercial scale manufacturing facility in San Antonio, TX. This facility is suited to support our efforts to produce nanoliposomal drug candidates for research, development, clinical and commercial use.
As part of our strategy to leverage our nanotechnology platform and expertise, we use a simple multi-step model that management believes allows Plus to best address unmet market needs or underserved medical conditions while managing risks and minimizing development costs. This model includes: (1) market landscape mapping, (2) internal drug redesign, (3) in house drug manufacturing, (4) performance of critical non-clinical (i.e. bench, animal) analyses, (5) scale-up manufacturing for commercial purposes and performance of early-stage clinical trials, and (6) partnering for late-stage clinical trials, regulatory approval, and, ultimately, commercial launch.
Pipeline
Plus Therapeutics currently has four investigational drugs, three of which are at the clinical stage for rare and difficult to treat cancers. The three clinical stage drugs in our pipeline are:
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Rhenium NanoLiposomes (RNL™), a patented radiotherapy for patients with recurrent glioblastoma (rGBM) that is currently being evaluated in the U.S. NCI-supported, multi-center ReSPECT™ Phase 1 dose-finding clinical trial;
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DocePLUS™, a patented chemotherapy for patients with solid tumors that has been evaluated in a completed U.S. single-center Phase 1 clinical trial; and
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DoxoPLUS™, a generic chemotherapy that has been evaluated in a completed, bioequivalence clinical trial in the U.S., Canada, and Ukraine versus Janssen’s CAELYX® in patients with ovarian cancer.
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In addition, Plus has an early preclinical investigational drug which is a proprietary combination of Rhenium Nanpoliposomes and liposomal doxorubicin. Theoretically, this combination could provide a synergistic combination of both chemotherapy and radiation in a single treatment.
Current business activities related to both DocePLUS and DoxoPLUS are focused on identification of potential partners for these two drugs.
Plus’ RNL™ technology was a key part of the licensed radiotherapeutic portfolio that we acquired from NanoTx, Corp. (“NanoTx”) on May 7, 2020. The licensed radiolabeled nanoliposome platform can be applied toward several cancer targets and was developed by a multi-institutional consortium based in Texas at the Mays Cancer Center / UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson Cancer Center now led by Dr. Andrew Brenner, MD, PhD, who is the Kolitz Chair in Neuro-Oncology Research and Co-Leader of the Experimental and Developmental Therapeutics Program. The licensed technology was previously funded by both the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI) and the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). Dr. Brenner’s RNL research program has an active $3M award from NIH/NCI which will financially support the continued clinical development of RNL for recurrent glioblastoma through the completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial and enrollment of up to 55 patients.
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Plus Therapeutics’ lead investigational drug, RNL™, is a novel injectable radiotherapy designed to deliver targeted high dose radiation directly into a brain tumor in a safe, effective, and convenient manner to optimize patient outcomes. RNL™, which is composed of radionuclide Rhenium-186 (186Re) and a nanoliposomal carrier, is infused directly into the brain tumor via precision brain mapping and convection enhanced delivery. The RNL radiation dose delivered to patients may be up to 15-20x greater than what is possible with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT). Some additional potential benefits of RNL compared to EBRT include:
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RNL can be visualized in real-time during administration, possibly giving doctors better control of radiation dosing and distribution.
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Potentially more effectively treats the bulk tumor and microscopic disease in surrounding healthy tissue.
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Using a small catheter, RNL is infused directly into the targeted tumor, which may reduce radiation exposure to healthy cells. By contrast, EBRT is less targeted and selective.
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RNL is given during a single 3- to 4-day in-patient hospital visit, while EBRT requires out-patient visits 5 days a week for approximately 6 weeks.
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Recurrent glioblastoma (GBM) affects approximately 12,000 patients annually in the U.S. and is the most common and lethal form of brain cancer. The average life expectancy with glioblastoma is less than 24 months, with a one-year survival rate of 40.8% and a five-year survival rate of only 6.8%. GBM can cause headaches, seizures, vision changes and other neurological complications. Despite the best available medical treatments to eliminate the initial brain tumor, some microscopic disease frequently remains, with tumor regrowth within months. In fact, approximately 90% of patients experience tumor recurrence. This tumor type is incredibly difficult to remove completely, and often is resistant or quickly develops resistance to most available therapies. The treatment of GBM remains a significant challenge and it has been nearly a decade since the FDA approved a new therapy for this disease. There is no clear standard of care for recurrent GBM and even the few currently approved treatments, in aggregate, provide only marginal survival benefit. Current approved therapies are associated with significant side effects, which limit dosing and prolonged use.
By infusing the RNL™ drug directly into the tumor, bypassing the blood-brain barrier, normal brain and external tissues may be spared from radiation damage. We believe that radiation in the form of high energy electrons may be effective against glioblastoma if an adequate dose can be effectively delivered. For comparison, current EBRT protocols for recurrent glioblastoma typically recommend a total maximum dose of about 35 Gy. In contrast, the most recently dosed patient with RNL in our clinical trial received over 500 Gy without significant adverse effects to-date.
RNL is currently being evaluated for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma in the Phase 1 multi-center ReSPECT™ dose-finding clinical trial. ReSPECT is evaluating the safety, tolerability, and distribution of RNL for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma. Thus far, RNL has demonstrated early potential efficacy signals in patients with adequate dosing and tumor coverage with two patients surviving more than 30 months, compared to a median survival of approximately 9 months with the current standard of care. The sixth dose escalation cohort of this trial has been completed, which increased the RNL drug volume to 8.8 milliliters and radiation dose to 22.3 millicuries. The increased treatment volume in the sixth cohort will allow treatment of tumors up to approximately 4.5 cm in size, which may include the majority of glioblastoma tumors that appear in the recurrent setting. No treatment-related SAEs have been observed thus far. ReSPECT is supported by an award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).
In September 2020, the FDA granted both Orphan Drug designation and Fast Track designation to RNL for the treatment of patients with glioblastoma.
Based on substantial preclinical work completed and published, RNL is thought to have potential clinical benefits in other difficult to treat cancers such as leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, peritoneal carcinomatosis, recurrent head and neck cancer, and pediatric brain cancer.
Licensing
On March 29, 2020, we entered into a Patent and Know-How License Agreement (the “NanoTx License Agreement”) with NanoTx, pursuant to which NanoTx granted us an irrevocable, perpetual, exclusive, fully paid-up license, with the right to sublicense and to make, develop, commercialize and otherwise exploit certain patents, know-how and technology related to the development of radiolabeled nanoliposomes.
The transaction terms included an upfront payment of $400,000 in cash and $300,000 in our voting stock (the “Equity Compensation”). Furthermore, we may pay up to $136.5 million in development and sales milestone payments and a tiered single-digit royalty on U.S. and European sales.
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The licensed drug portfolio is anchored around nanoliposome-encapsulated radionuclides for several cancer targets. The lead drug asset is a chelated RNLTM, initially being developed for recurrent glioblastoma. RNL is infused directly into the brain tumor via precision brain mapping and convection enhanced delivery technology to deliver very high therapeutic doses of radiation to patients whose cancer has recurred following initial surgical resection and treatment with chemotherapy and radiation.
The licensed radiolabeled nanoliposome platform was developed by a multi-institutional consortium based in Texas at the Mays Cancer Center / UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson Cancer Center led by Dr. Andrew Brenner, MD, PhD, who is the Kolitz Chair in Neuro-Oncology Research and Co-Leader of the Experimental and Developmental Therapeutics Program. The technology was previously owned by NanoTx and funded by both the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI) and the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). There is an active $3M award from NIH/NCI which will financially support the continued clinical development of RNL for recurrent glioblastoma.
Manufacturing
We have a dedicated nanoparticle research & development and commercial scale manufacturing facility located in San Antonio, Texas. The facility and processes are designed to comply with current good manufacturing practices (“cGMP”) per FDA and EMA regulations for the manufacture of drug candidates for clinical, research, development and commercial use. Upon approval of our drug candidates, our manufacturing capabilities will include validated manufacturing processes for the drug product as well as a quality assurance product release process with the ability to ultimately scale-up the process to meet increasing market demands. We believe our strategic investments in the analytical and manufacturing capabilities, including personnel with expertise from drug discovery through drug development, will allow us to advance our product candidates more quickly. Expertise gained in manufacturing our drug products may be applied to other formulations in the future, further leveraging our capabilities. Our San Antonio facility enables us to produce drug substances in a cost-effective manner while retaining control over the process and timing. As needed, the use of a qualified Contract Drug Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) may be utilized to perform various manufacturing processes as we deem appropriate to meet our operational objectives. In addition, we have entered into master services agreements with third parties, including Piramal Pharma Solutions, Inc. (“Piramal”), in connection with the manufacture of RNL. The master services agreement with Piramal (the “Piramal MSA”) was entered into on January 8, 2021. The Piramal MSA provides for Piramal to perform certain services related to the development, manufacture, and supply of our RNL-Liposome Intermediate Drug Product. The Piramal MSA includes the transfer of analytical methods, development of microbiological methods, process transfer and optimization, intermediate drug product manufacturing, and stability studies for us. The transfer will be performed at Piramal’s facility located in Lexington, Kentucky. The parties contemplate that the MSA will lead to clinical and commercial supply agreements between us and Piramal. The Piramal MSA has a term of five years and will automatically renew for successive one-year terms unless either party notifies the other no later than six months prior to the original term or any additional terms of its intention to not renew the Piramal MSA. We have the right to terminate the Piramal MSA for convenience upon thirty days’ prior written notice. Either party may terminate the Piramal MSA upon an uncured material breach by the other party or upon the bankruptcy or insolvency of the other party.
Competition
We will compete primarily on the basis of the safety and efficacy of our therapies across a broad range of clinical indications to address significant unmet medical and market needs, supported by our brand name, pricing, products, published clinical data, regulatory approvals, and reimbursement. We believe that our continued success depends on our ability to:
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develop and innovate our product and technology platforms;
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initiate new and advance existing clinical development programs;
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secure and maintain regulatory agency approvals;
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build and expand our commercial footprint;
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produce high quality products per our specifications and in line with customer expectations;
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achieve improved economies of scale;
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generate and protect intellectual property;
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hire and retain key talent; and
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successfully execute acquisition, licensing, and partnership activities.
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Competition for RNL™ in the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma may come from a single or combination therapy in the future. Bayer, VBL Therapeutics, Kintara Therapeutics, Istari Oncology, Medicenna, MediciNova, Oncoceutics, PharmAbcine, VBI Vaccines, Ziopharm Oncology, Bristol Myers Squibb, ImmunoCellular, Novartis, EnGeneIC, Berg, Bexion, and others have reported drug development programs at various clinical stages for recurrent glioblastoma and Plus Therapeutics continues to monitor their progress.
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Intellectual Property
Our success depends in large part on our ability to protect our proprietary technology, and to operate without infringing on the proprietary rights of third parties. We rely on a combination of patent, trade secret, copyright and trademark laws, as well as confidentiality agreements, licensing agreements and other agreements, to establish and protect our proprietary rights. Our success also depends, in part, on our ability to avoid infringing patents issued to others.
We license the proprietary formulation and proprietary methods of manufacture of the nanoliposome-encapsulated radionucleotides. RNL™ is covered by U.S. Patent No. 7,718,160, (the ‘160 Patent) which will expire in December 2026. Patent term extension, codified in 35 U.S.C. §156, provides a means of recapturing time lost during the regulatory approval process. Based upon this regulation, we will apply for patent term extension for the ‘160 Patent for the time equal to the regulatory review period for RNL™. This has the potential to extend patent coverage for this product for at least another 5 years. The ‘160 Patent covers the method of manufacture of RNL™ and product-by-process claims. Our patent family also contains granted patents in Canada (Patent No. 2,490,959), Europe (Patent No. EP1536843), and Australia (Patent No. 2003241598), which are expected to expire in May 2023. We are not aware of any valid patent claims that would be infringed by RNL™.
We also own U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/115,519, titled Radiolabeled Liposomes and Methods of Use Thereof, which is directed to methods of treating cancer comprising administering 186Re nanoliposomes via convection-enhanced delivery. This application was filed on November 18, 2020, and any issued patents resulting from this application are expected to expire in November 2041, not including any patent term adjustment or patent term extension.
In addition, we own the proprietary formulation and proprietary methods of manufacture of a protein-stabilized liposomal form of docetaxel, DocePLUS. DocePLUS is covered by U.S. Patent No. 7,179,484, (the ‘484 Patent) which will expire in April 2024. Patent term extension, codified in 35 U.S.C. §156, provides a means of recapturing time lost during the regulatory approval process. Based upon this regulation, we will apply for patent term extension for the ‘484 Patent for the time equal to the regulatory review period for DocePLUS. This has the potential to extend patent coverage for this product for at least another 10 years. The ‘484 Patent covers the method of manufacture of DocePLUS and product-by-process claims. We filed Provisional Patent Application No. 62/542,993 with the USPTO in August 2017. This was converted to a PCT application (US2018/045339) in August 2018 (the ‘339 application). The ‘339 Application covers methods of treating refractory small cell lung cancer with DocePLUS and may provide protection until 2037 in the U.S. and worldwide. We are not aware of any valid patent claims that would be infringed by the DocePLUS product, or methods of using the same in the treatment of refractory small cell lung cancer. Docetaxel is a well-known and widely-administered drug that has been off-patent in the U.S. since 2010.
Government Regulation and Product Approval
Government authorities in the United States, at the federal, state and local level, and in other countries and jurisdictions, including the European Union, extensively regulate, among other things, the research, development, testing, manufacture, quality control, approval, packaging, storage, recordkeeping, labeling, advertising, promotion, distribution, marketing, post-approval monitoring and reporting, and import and export of pharmaceutical products. The processes for obtaining regulatory approvals in the United States and in foreign countries and jurisdictions, along with subsequent compliance with applicable statutes and regulations and other regulatory authorities, require the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources. Our nanoparticle oncology drug products must receive regulatory approvals from the EMA and the FDA and from other applicable governments prior to their sale.
FDA Approval Process
In the United States, pharmaceutical products are subject to extensive regulation by the FDA. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or the FDC Act, and other federal and state statutes and regulations, govern, among other things, the research, development, testing, manufacture, storage, recordkeeping, approval, labeling, promotion and marketing, distribution, post-approval monitoring and reporting, sampling, and import and export of pharmaceutical products. Failure to comply with applicable U.S. requirements may subject a company to a variety of administrative or judicial sanctions, such as clinical hold, FDA refusal to approve pending NDAs, warning or untitled letters, product recalls, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions, fines, civil penalties, and criminal prosecution.
Product development for a new product or certain changes to an approved product in the United States typically involves preclinical laboratory and animal tests, the submission to the FDA of an investigational new drug application, or IND, which must become effective before clinical testing may commence, and adequate and well-controlled clinical trials to establish the safety and effectiveness of the drug for each indication for which FDA approval is sought. Satisfaction of FDA pre-market approval requirements
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typically takes many years and the actual time required may vary substantially based upon the type, complexity, and novelty of the product or disease.
Preclinical tests include laboratory evaluation of product chemistry, formulation, and toxicity, as well as animal trials to assess the characteristics and potential safety and efficacy of the product. The conduct of some preclinical tests must comply with federal regulations and requirements, including good laboratory practices. The results of preclinical testing are submitted to the FDA as part of an IND along with other information, including information about product chemistry, manufacturing and controls, and a proposed clinical trial protocol. Long term preclinical tests, such as animal tests of reproductive toxicity and carcinogenicity, may continue after the IND is submitted. A 30-day waiting period after the submission of each IND is required prior to the commencement of clinical testing in humans. If the FDA has neither commented on nor questioned the IND within this 30-day period, the clinical trial proposed in the IND may begin. Clinical trials involve the administration of the investigational drug product to healthy volunteers or patients under the supervision of a qualified investigator. Clinical trials must be conducted: (i) in compliance with federal regulations; (ii) in compliance with good clinical practice, or GCP, an international standard meant to protect the rights and health of patients and to define the roles of clinical trial sponsors, administrators, and monitors; as well as (iii) under protocols detailing the objectives of the trial, the parameters to be used in monitoring safety, and the effectiveness criteria to be evaluated. Each protocol involving testing on U.S. patients and subsequent protocol amendments must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND.
The FDA may order the temporary, or permanent, discontinuation of a clinical trial at any time, or impose other sanctions, if it believes that the clinical trial either is not being conducted in accordance with FDA requirements or presents an unacceptable risk to the clinical trial patients. The trial protocol and informed consent information for patients in clinical trials must also be submitted to an institutional review board, or IRB, for approval. An IRB may also require the clinical trial at the site to be halted, either temporarily or permanently, for failure to comply with the IRB’s requirements, or may impose other conditions.
Clinical trials to support drug products for marketing approval are typically conducted in three sequential phases, but the phases may overlap. In Phase 1, the initial introduction of the drug product into healthy human subjects or patients, the product is tested to assess safety, metabolism, pharmacokinetics, pharmacological actions, side effects associated with increasing doses, and, if possible, early evidence on effectiveness. Phase 2 usually involves trials in a limited patient population to determine the effectiveness of the drug for a particular indication, dosage tolerance, and optimal dosage, and to identify common adverse effects and safety risks. If a compound demonstrates evidence of effectiveness and an acceptable safety profile in Phase 2 evaluations, Phase 3 trials are undertaken to obtain the additional information about clinical efficacy and safety in a larger number of patients, typically at geographically dispersed clinical trial sites, to permit the FDA to evaluate the overall benefit-risk relationship of the drug and to provide adequate information for the labeling of the product. In most cases, the FDA requires two adequate and well-controlled Phase 3 clinical trials to demonstrate the efficacy of the drug product. A single Phase 3 trial with other confirmatory evidence may be sufficient in rare instances where the trial is a large multicenter trial demonstrating internal consistency and a statistically very persuasive finding of a clinically meaningful effect on mortality, irreversible morbidity or prevention of a disease with a potentially serious outcome and confirmation of the result in a second trial would be practically or ethically impossible.
In addition, the manufacturer of an investigational drug in a Phase 2 or Phase 3 clinical trial for a serious or life-threatening disease is required to make available, such as by posting on its website, its policy on evaluating and responding to requests for expanded access to such investigational drug.
After completion of the required clinical testing, a drug product is prepared and submitted to the FDA. FDA approval of the drug product is required before marketing of the product may begin in the United States. The drug product must include the results of all preclinical, clinical, and other testing and a compilation of data relating to the product’s pharmacology, chemistry, manufacture, and controls. The cost of preparing and submitting a drug product is substantial. The submission of most drug products is additionally subject to a substantial application user fee, and the applicant under an approved drug product is also subject to an annual program fee for each prescription product. These fees are typically increased annually. The FDA has 60 days from its receipt of a drug candidate to determine whether the application will be accepted for filing based on the agency’s threshold determination that it is sufficiently complete to permit substantive review. Once the submission is accepted for filing, the FDA begins an in-depth review. The FDA has agreed to certain performance goals in the review of drug candidates. Most such applications for standard review are reviewed within ten months of the date the FDA files the drug candidate; most applications for priority review are reviewed within six months of the date the FDA files the drug candidate. Priority review can be applied to a drug candidate that the FDA determines has the potential to treat a serious or life-threatening condition and, if approved, would be a significant improvement in safety or effectiveness compared to available therapies. The review process for both standard and priority review may be extended by the FDA for three additional months to consider certain late-submitted information, or information intended to clarify information already provided in the submission.
The FDA may also refer applications for drug candidates that present difficult questions of safety or efficacy, to an advisory committee—typically a panel that includes clinicians and other experts—for review, evaluation, and a recommendation as to whether
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the application should be approved. The FDA is not bound by the recommendation of an advisory committee, but it generally follows such recommendations. Before approving a drug candidate, the FDA will typically inspect one or more clinical sites to assure compliance with GCP. Additionally, the FDA will inspect the facility or the facilities at which the drug product is manufactured. The FDA will not approve the product unless compliance with current good manufacturing practice, or cGMP, is satisfactory and the drug candidate contains data that provide substantial evidence that the drug candidate is safe, pure, potent and effective in the intended indication.
After the FDA evaluates the drug candidate and the manufacturing facilities, it issues either an approval letter or a complete response letter. A complete response letter generally outlines the deficiencies in the submission and may require substantial additional testing, or information, in order for the FDA to reconsider the application. If, or when, those deficiencies have been addressed to the FDA’s satisfaction in a resubmission of the drug candidate, the FDA will issue an approval letter. The FDA has committed to reviewing such resubmissions in two or six months depending on the type of information included. An approval letter authorizes commercial marketing of the drug candidate with specific prescribing information for specific indications. As a condition of approval, the FDA may require a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy, or REMS, to help ensure that the benefits of the drug candidate outweigh the potential risks. REMS can include medication guides, communication plans for healthcare professionals, and elements to assure safe use, or ETASU. ETASU can include, but are not limited to, special training or certification for prescribing or dispensing, dispensing only under certain circumstances, special monitoring, and the use of patient registries. The requirement for a REMS can materially affect the potential market and profitability of the product. Moreover, product approval may require substantial post-approval testing and surveillance to monitor the product’s safety or efficacy.
Once granted, product approvals may be withdrawn if compliance with regulatory standards is not maintained or problems are identified following initial marketing. Changes to some of the conditions established in an approved application, including changes in indications, labeling, or manufacturing processes or facilities, require submission and FDA approval of a new drug candidate or drug candidate supplement before the change can be implemented. A drug candidate supplement for a new indication typically requires clinical data similar to that in the original application, and the FDA uses the same procedures and actions in reviewing drug candidate supplements as it does in reviewing drug candidates.
Fast Track Designation and Accelerated Approval
The FDA is required to facilitate the development, and expedite the review, of drug candidates that are intended for the treatment of a serious or life-threatening disease or condition for which there is no effective treatment and which demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs for the condition. Under the fast track program, the sponsor of a new drug candidate may request that the FDA designate the candidate for a specific indication as a fast track drug concurrent with, or after, the filing of the IND for the candidate. The FDA must determine if the drug candidate qualifies for fast track designation within 60 days of receipt of the sponsor’s request. Under the fast track program and FDA’s accelerated approval regulations, the FDA may approve a drug candidate for a serious or life-threatening illness that provides meaningful therapeutic benefit to patients over existing treatments based upon a surrogate endpoint that is reasonably likely to predict clinical benefit, or on a clinical endpoint that can be measured earlier than irreversible morbidity or mortality, that is reasonably likely to predict an effect on irreversible morbidity or mortality or other clinical benefit, taking into account the severity, rarity, or prevalence of the condition and the availability or lack of alternative treatments.
In clinical trials, a surrogate endpoint is a measurement of laboratory or clinical signs of a disease or condition that substitutes for a direct measurement of how a patient feels, functions, or survives. Surrogate endpoints can often be measured more easily or more rapidly than clinical endpoints. A drug candidate approved on this basis is subject to rigorous post-marketing compliance requirements, including the completion of Phase 4 or post-approval clinical trials to confirm the effect on the clinical endpoint. Failure to conduct required post-approval trials, or confirm a clinical benefit during post-marketing trials, will allow the FDA to withdraw the drug candidate from the market on an expedited basis. All promotional materials for drug candidates approved under accelerated regulations are subject to prior review by the FDA.
In addition to other benefits such as the ability to use surrogate endpoints and engage in more frequent interactions with the FDA, the FDA may initiate review of sections of a fast track product before the application is complete. This rolling review is available if the applicant provides, and the FDA approves, a schedule for the submission of the remaining information and the applicant pays applicable user fees. However, the FDA’s time period goal for reviewing an application does not begin until the last section of the IND is submitted. Additionally, the fast track designation may be withdrawn by the FDA if the FDA believes that the designation is no longer supported by data emerging in the clinical trial process.
Breakthrough Therapy Designation
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The FDA is also required to expedite the development and review of the application for approval of drug candidate products that are intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition where preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug candidate may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints. Under the breakthrough therapy program, the sponsor of a new drug candidate may request that the FDA designate the candidate for a specific indication as a breakthrough therapy concurrent with, or after, the filing of the IND for the drug candidate. The FDA must determine if the drug candidate product qualifies for breakthrough therapy designation within 60 days of receipt of the sponsor’s request.
Orphan Drug Designation
Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may grant orphan drug designation to drug candidate products intended to treat a rare disease or condition—generally a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or if it affects more than 200,000 individuals in the United States, there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing and making a product available in the United States for such disease or condition will be recovered from sales of the product.
Orphan drug designation must be requested before submitting a IND. After the FDA grants orphan drug designation, the generic identity of the drug product and its potential orphan use are disclosed publicly by the FDA. Orphan drug designation does not convey any advantage in, or shorten the duration of, the regulatory review and approval process. The first IND applicant to receive FDA approval for a particular active moiety to treat a particular disease with FDA orphan drug designation is entitled to a seven-year exclusive marketing period in the United States for that product for that indication. During the seven-year exclusivity period, the FDA may not approve any other applications to market a drug product containing the same principal molecular structural features for the same disease, except in limited circumstances, such as a showing of clinical superiority to the product with orphan drug exclusivity. A product is clinically superior if it is safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care. Orphan drug exclusivity does not prevent the FDA from approving a different drug for the same disease or condition, or the same drug product for a different disease or condition. Among the other benefits of orphan drug designation are tax credits for certain research and a waiver of the IND user fee.
Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher Program
Under the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher program, the FDA may award a priority review voucher to the sponsor of an approved marketing application for a product that treats or prevents a rare pediatric disease. The voucher entitles the sponsor to priority review of one subsequent marketing application.
A voucher may be awarded only for an approved rare pediatric disease product application. A rare pediatric disease product application is an NDA or IND for a product that treats or prevents a serious or life-threatening disease in which the serious or life-threatening manifestations primarily affect individuals aged from birth to 18 years; in general, the disease must affect fewer than 200,000 such individuals in the U.S.; the NDA or IND must be deemed eligible for priority review; the NDA or IND must not seek approval for a different adult indication (i.e., for a different disease/condition); the product must not contain an active ingredient that has been previously approved by the FDA; and the NDA or IND must rely on clinical data derived from studies examining a pediatric population such that the approved product can be adequately labeled for the pediatric population. Before NDA or IND approval, the FDA may designate a product in development as a product for a rare pediatric disease, but such designation is not required to receive a voucher.
To receive a rare pediatric disease priority review voucher, a sponsor must notify the FDA, upon submission of the NDA or IND, of its intent to request a voucher. If the FDA determines that the NDA or IND is a rare pediatric disease product application, and if the NDA or IND is approved, the FDA will award the sponsor of the NDA or IND a voucher upon approval of the NDA or IND. The FDA may revoke a rare pediatric disease priority review voucher if the product for which it was awarded is not marketed in the U.S. within 365 days of the product’s approval.
The voucher, which is transferable to another sponsor, may be submitted with a subsequent NDA or IND and entitles the holder to priority review of the accompanying NDA or IND. The sponsor submitting the priority review voucher must notify the FDA of its intent to submit the voucher with the NDA or IND at least 90 days prior to submission of the NDA or IND and must pay a priority review user fee in addition to any other required user fee. The FDA must take action on an NDA or IND under priority review within six months of receipt of the NDA or IND.
The Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher program was reauthorized in the 21st Century Cures Act, allowing a product that is designated as a product for a rare pediatric disease prior to October 1, 2020 to be eligible to receive a rare pediatric disease priority review voucher upon approval of a qualifying NDA or IND prior to October 1, 2022.
Disclosure of Clinical Trial Information
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Sponsors of clinical trials of the FDA-regulated products are required to register and disclose certain clinical trial information. Information related to the product, patient population, phase of investigation, trial sites and investigators, and other aspects of the clinical trial is then made public as part of the registration. Sponsors are also obligated to discuss the results of their clinical trials after completion. Disclosure of the results of these trials can be delayed in certain circumstances for up to two years after the date of completion of the trial. Competitors may use this publicly available information to gain knowledge regarding the progress of development programs.
Pediatric Information
Under the Pediatric Research Equity Act, or PREA, NDAs or supplements to NDAs must contain data to assess the safety and effectiveness of the drug product for the claimed indications in all relevant pediatric subpopulations and to support dosing and administration for each pediatric subpopulation for which the drug product is safe and effective. The FDA may grant full or partial waivers, or deferrals, for submission of data. Unless otherwise required by statute or regulation, PREA generally does not apply to a drug for an indication for which orphan designation has been granted; however, beginning in 2020, PREA will apply to INDs for orphan-designated drugs if the drug is a molecularly targeted cancer product intended for the treatment of an adult cancer and is directed at a molecular target that the FDA has determined is substantially relevant to the growth or progression of a pediatric cancer.
Patent Term Restoration
After approval, owners of relevant drug patents may apply for up to a five-year patent extension. The allowable patent term extension is calculated as half of the drug’s testing phase—the time between IND application and NDA submission—and all of the review phase—the time between NDA submission and approval up to a maximum of five years. The time can be shortened if the FDA determines that the applicant did not pursue approval with due diligence. The total patent term after the extension may not exceed 14 years.
For patents that might expire during the application phase, the patent owner may request an interim patent extension. An interim patent extension increases the patent term by one year and may be renewed up to four times. For each interim patent extension granted, the post-approval patent extension is reduced by one year. The director of the U.S. PTO must determine that approval of the drug covered by the patent for which a patent extension is being sought is likely. Interim patent extensions are not available for a drug for which an NDA has not been submitted.
Other U.S. Healthcare Laws and Compliance Requirements
In the United States, our activities are potentially subject to regulation by various federal, state and local authorities in addition to the FDA, including but not limited to, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, other divisions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (e.g., the Office of Inspector General), the U.S. Department of Justice, or DOJ, and individual U.S. Attorney offices within the DOJ, and state and local governments. For example, sales, marketing and scientific/educational grant programs must comply with the anti-fraud and abuse provisions of the Social Security Act, the false claims laws, the privacy provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, and similar state laws, each as amended.
The federal Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits, among other things, any person or entity, from knowingly and willfully offering, paying, soliciting or receiving any remuneration, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, to induce or in return for purchasing, leasing, ordering or arranging for the purchase, lease or order of any item or service reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs. The term remuneration has been interpreted broadly to include anything of value. The Anti-Kickback Statute has been interpreted to apply to arrangements between pharmaceutical manufacturers on one hand and prescribers, purchasers, and formulary managers on the other. There are a number of statutory exceptions and regulatory safe harbors protecting some common activities from prosecution. The exceptions and safe harbors are drawn narrowly and practices that involve remuneration that may be alleged to be intended to induce prescribing, purchasing or recommending may be subject to scrutiny if they do not qualify for an exception or safe harbor. Failure to meet all of the requirements of a particular applicable statutory exception or regulatory safe harbor does not make the conduct per se illegal under the Anti-Kickback Statute. Instead, the legality of the arrangement will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis based on a cumulative review of all of its facts and circumstances. Our practices may not in all cases meet all of the criteria for protection under a statutory exception or regulatory safe harbor.
Additionally, the intent standard under the Anti-Kickback Statute was amended by the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, to a stricter standard such that a person or entity no longer needs to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation. In addition, the ACA codified case law that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the federal False Claims Act (discussed below).
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The civil monetary penalties statute imposes penalties against any person or entity who, among other things, is determined to have presented or caused to be presented a claim to a federal health program that the person knows or should know is for an item or service that was not provided as claimed or is false or fraudulent.
The federal False Claims Act prohibits, among other things, any person or entity from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, a false claim for payment to, or approval by, the federal government or knowingly making, using, or causing to be made or used a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim to the federal government. As a result of a modification made by the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009, a claim includes “any request or demand” for money or property presented to the U.S. government. Recently, several pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies have been prosecuted under these laws for allegedly providing free product to customers with the expectation that the customers would bill federal programs for the product. Other companies have been prosecuted for causing false claims to be submitted because of the companies’ marketing of the product for unapproved, and thus generally non-reimbursable, uses.
HIPAA created new federal criminal statutes that prohibit knowingly and willfully executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme to defraud or to obtain, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, any money or property owned by, or under the control or custody of, any healthcare benefit program, including private third-party payors and knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up by trick, scheme or device, a material fact or making any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement in connection with the delivery of or payment for healthcare benefits, items or services.
Also, many states have similar fraud and abuse statutes or regulations that apply to items and services reimbursed under Medicaid and other state programs, or, in several states, apply regardless of the payor. We may be subject to data privacy and security regulations by both the federal government and the states in which we conduct our business. HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or HITECH, and its implementing regulations, imposes requirements relating to the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable health information. Among other things, HITECH makes HIPAA’s privacy and security standards directly applicable to business associates, independent contractors or agents of covered entities that receive or obtain protected health information in connection with providing a service on behalf of a covered entity. HITECH also created four new tiers of civil monetary penalties, amended HIPAA to make civil and criminal penalties directly applicable to business associates, and gave state attorneys general new authority to file civil actions for damages or injunctions in federal courts to enforce the federal HIPAA laws and seek attorneys’ fees and costs associated with pursuing federal civil actions. In addition, state laws govern the privacy and security of health information in specified circumstances, many of which differ from each other in significant ways and may not have the same effect, thus complicating compliance efforts.
Additionally, the federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act within the ACA, and its implementing regulations, require that certain manufacturers of drugs, devices, biological and medical supplies for which payment is available under Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (with certain exceptions) to report information related to certain payments or other transfers of value made or distributed to physicians and teaching hospitals, or to entities or individuals at the request of, or designated on behalf of, the physicians and teaching hospitals and to report annually certain ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members. The reported data are posted in searchable form on a public website on an annual basis. Failure to submit required information may result in civil monetary penalties. Effective January 1, 2022, we will also be required to report on transfers of value to physician assistants, nurse practitioners or clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetists, and certified nurse-midwives.
In order to distribute products commercially, we must comply with state laws that require the registration of manufacturers and wholesale distributors of drug and biological products in a state, including, in certain states, manufacturers and distributors who ship products into the state even if such manufacturers or distributors have no place of business within the state. Some states also impose requirements on manufacturers and distributors to establish the pedigree of product in the chain of distribution, including some states that require manufacturers and others to adopt new technology capable of tracking and tracing product as it moves through the distribution chain. Several states have enacted legislation requiring pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to establish marketing compliance programs, file periodic reports with the state, make periodic public disclosures on sales, marketing, pricing, clinical trials and other activities, and/or register their sales representatives, as well as to prohibit pharmacies and other healthcare entities from providing certain physician prescribing data to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for use in sales and marketing, and to prohibit certain other sales and marketing practices. All of our activities are potentially subject to federal and state consumer protection and unfair competition laws.
If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the federal and state healthcare laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to penalties, including without limitation, civil, criminal and/or administrative penalties, damages, fines, disgorgement, exclusion from participation in government programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, injunctions, private “qui tam” actions brought by individual whistleblowers in the name of the government, or refusal to allow us to enter into government contracts, contractual damages, reputational harm, administrative burdens, diminished profits and
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future earnings, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of operations.
Coverage, Pricing and Reimbursement
Significant uncertainty exists as to the coverage and reimbursement status of any product candidates for which we obtain regulatory approval. In the United States and markets in other countries, sales of any products for which we receive regulatory approval for commercial sale will depend, in part, on the extent to which third-party payors provide coverage, and establish adequate reimbursement levels for such products. In the United States, third-party payors include federal and state healthcare programs, private managed care providers, health insurers and other organizations. The process for determining whether a third-party payor will provide coverage for a product may be separate from the process for setting the price of a product or for establishing the reimbursement rate that such a payor will pay for the product. Third-party payors may limit coverage to specific products on an approved list, also known as a formulary, which might not include all of the FDA-approved products for a particular indication. Third-party payors are increasingly challenging the price, examining the medical necessity and reviewing the cost-effectiveness of medical products, therapies and services, in addition to questioning their safety and efficacy. We may need to conduct expensive pharmaco-economic studies in order to demonstrate the medical necessity and cost-effectiveness of our product candidates, in addition to the costs required to obtain the FDA approvals. Our product candidates may not be considered medically necessary or cost-effective. A payor’s decision to provide coverage for a product does not imply that an adequate reimbursement rate will be approved. Further, one payor’s determination to provide coverage for a product does not assure that other payors will also provide coverage for the product. Adequate third-party reimbursement may not be available to enable us to maintain price levels sufficient to realize an appropriate return on our investment in product development.
Different pricing and reimbursement schemes exist in other countries. In the EU, governments influence the price of pharmaceutical products through their pricing and reimbursement rules and control of national health care systems that fund a large part of the cost of those products to consumers. Some jurisdictions operate positive and negative list systems under which products may only be marketed once a reimbursement price has been agreed. To obtain reimbursement or pricing approval, some of these countries may require the completion of clinical trials that compare the cost-effectiveness of a particular product candidate to currently available therapies. Other member states allow companies to fix their own prices for medicines, but monitor and control company profits. The downward pressure on health care costs has become very intense. As a result, increasingly high barriers are being erected to the entry of new products. In addition, in some countries, cross-border imports from low-priced markets exert a commercial pressure on pricing within a country.
The marketability of any product candidates for which we receive regulatory approval for commercial sale may suffer if the government and third-party payors fail to provide adequate coverage and reimbursement. In addition, emphasis on managed care in the United States has increased and we expect will continue to increase the pressure on healthcare pricing. Coverage policies and third-party reimbursement rates may change at any time. Even if favorable coverage and reimbursement status is attained for one or more products for which we receive regulatory approval, less favorable coverage policies and reimbursement rates may be implemented in the future.
Healthcare Reform
The ACA has substantially changed some aspects of healthcare financing and delivery by both governmental and private insurers. The ACA has affected existing government healthcare programs and resulted in the development of new programs.
Among the ACA provisions of importance to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, in addition to those otherwise described above, are the following:
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an annual, nondeductible fee on any entity that manufactures or imports certain specified branded prescription drugs and biologic agents apportioned among these entities according to their market share in some government healthcare programs, that began in 2011;
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an increase in the statutory minimum rebates a manufacturer must pay under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, retroactive to January 1, 2010, to 23.1% and 13% of the average manufacturer price for most branded and generic drugs, respectively and capped the total rebate amount for innovator drugs at 100% of the Average Manufacturer Price, or AMP;
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a Medicare Part D coverage gap discount program, in which manufacturers must agree to offer 70% point-of-sale discounts off negotiated prices of applicable brand drugs to eligible beneficiaries during their coverage gap period, as a condition for the manufacturers’ outpatient drugs to be covered under Medicare Part D;
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extension of manufacturers’ Medicaid rebate liability to covered drugs dispensed to individuals who are enrolled in Medicaid managed care organizations;
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expansion of eligibility criteria for Medicaid programs by, among other things, allowing states to offer Medicaid coverage to additional individuals beginning in 2014 and by adding new mandatory eligibility categories for individuals with income at or below 133% of the federal poverty level, thereby potentially increasing manufacturers’ Medicaid rebate liability;
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expansion of the entities eligible for discounts under the Public Health Service pharmaceutical pricing program; and
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a new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to oversee, identify priorities in, and conduct comparative clinical effectiveness research, along with funding for such research.
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On January 20, 2017, federal agencies with authorities and responsibilities under the ACA were directed to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay the implementation of any provision of the ACA that would impose a fiscal burden on states or a cost, fee, tax, penalty or regulatory burden on individuals, healthcare providers, health insurers, or manufacturers of pharmaceuticals or medical devices. More recently, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into law in December 2017, which eliminated certain requirements of the ACA, including the individual mandate, and plans to repeal all or portions of the ACA have also been suggested. We cannot predict whether these challenges will continue or whether other proposals will be made or adopted, or what impact these efforts may have on us.
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, prohibits any U.S. individual or business from paying, offering, or authorizing payment or offering of anything of value, directly or indirectly, to any foreign official, political party or candidate for the purpose of influencing any act or decision of the foreign entity in order to assist the individual or business in obtaining or retaining business. The FCPA also obligates companies whose securities are listed in the United States to comply with accounting provisions requiring the company to maintain books and records that accurately and fairly reflect all transactions of the corporation, including international subsidiaries, and to devise and maintain an adequate system of internal accounting controls for international operations.
Additional Regulation
In addition to the foregoing, state and federal laws regarding environmental protection and hazardous substances, including the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Resource Conservancy and Recovery Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act, affect our business. These and other laws govern our use, handling and disposal of various biological, chemical and radioactive substances used in, and wastes generated by, our operations. If our operations result in contamination of the environment or expose individuals to hazardous substances, we could be liable for damages and governmental fines. We believe that we are in material compliance with applicable environmental laws and that continued compliance therewith will not have a material adverse effect on our business. We cannot predict, however, how changes in these laws may affect our future operations.
Europe / Rest of World Government Regulation
In addition to regulations in the United States, we will be subject to a variety of regulations in other jurisdictions governing, among other things, clinical trials and any commercial sales and distribution of our product candidates. Whether or not we obtain FDA approval of a product, we must obtain the requisite approvals from regulatory authorities in foreign countries prior to the commencement of clinical trials or marketing of the product in those countries. Certain countries outside of the United States have a similar process that requires the submission of a clinical trial application much like the IND prior to the commencement of human clinical trials. In the EU, for example, a clinical trial application must be submitted to each country’s national health authority and an independent ethics committee, much like the FDA and IRB, respectively. Once the clinical trial application is approved in accordance with a country’s requirements, clinical trial development may proceed.
The requirements and process governing the conduct of clinical trials, product licensing, pricing and reimbursement vary from country to country. In all cases, the clinical trials are conducted in accordance with GCP and the applicable regulatory requirements and the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki.
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To obtain regulatory approval of an investigational drug product under EU regulatory systems, we must submit a marketing authorization application. The application used to file the drug product in the United States is similar to that required in the EU, with the exception of, among other things, country-specific document requirements.
For other countries outside of the EU, such as countries in Eastern Europe, Latin America or Asia, the requirements governing the conduct of clinical trials, product licensing, pricing and reimbursement vary from country to country. In all cases, again, the clinical trials are conducted in accordance with GCP and the applicable regulatory requirements and the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki.
If we or our potential collaborators fail to comply with applicable foreign regulatory requirements, we may be subject to, among other things, fines, suspension or withdrawal of regulatory approvals, product recalls, seizure of products, operating restrictions and criminal prosecution.
Employees and Human Capital
As of December 31, 2020, we had twelve full-time employees. Of these full-time employees, six were engaged in research and development, and six were engaged in management, finance and administration. From time to time, we also employ independent contractors to support our operations. Our employees are not represented by any collective bargaining agreements and we have never experienced an organized work stoppage.
Diversity and Inclusion
We are committed to our continued efforts to increase diversity and foster an inclusive work environment. We recruit the best qualified employees regardless of gender, ethnicity, or other protected traits and it is our policy to fully comply with all laws (domestic and foreign) applicable to discrimination in the workplace. Our diversity, equity and inclusion principles are also reflected in our employee training and policies. We continue to enhance our diversity, equity and inclusion policies which are guided by our executive leadership team.
Workforce Health and Safety
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, we instituted a remote work protocol to help ensure the safety of our employees, our community, and to adhere to federal, state, and local requirements and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommendations of social distancing and limited public exposure in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. We did not implement any furlough, layoff, or salary reductions during this time. We continue to evaluate our ability to operate in light of recent resurgences of COVID-19 and the advisability of continuing operations based on federal, state and local guidance, evolving data concerning the pandemic and the best interests of our employees, third parties with whom we collaborate, and our stockholders.
Compensation and Benefits
We believe that we must offer and maintain market competitive compensation and benefit programs for our employees in order to attract and retain qualified personnel. In addition to cash compensation, we provide equity compensation, a company-matched 401(k) Plan, healthcare and insurance benefits, health savings and flexible spending accounts, paid time off, family leave, and employee assistance programs.
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Corporate Information
We were initially formed as a California general partnership in July 1996 and incorporated in the State of Delaware in May 1997. We were formerly known as Cytori Therapeutics, Inc., before that as MacroPore Biosurgery, Inc. and before that as MacroPore, Inc. On July 20, 2019 we changed our name from Cytori Therapeutics, Inc. to Plus Therapeutics, Inc. Our corporate offices are located at 4200 Marathon Blvd., Suite 200, Austin, TX. Our telephone number is (737) 255-7194. We maintain a website at www.plustherapeutics.com.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
The risk factors described below, as well as statements described elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including our audited Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations”, or in other SEC filings, describe risks that could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations, which could also cause the trading price of our equity securities to decline. These risks are not the only risks that we face. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could also be affected by additional factors that are not presently known to us or that we currently consider to be immaterial to our operations.
Risks Related to our Financial Position and Capital Requirements
We have incurred losses since inception, we expect to incur significant net losses in the foreseeable future and we may never become profitable.
We generated negative cash flows from operations and have incurred net operating losses each year since we started business. For the year ended December 31, 2020, we incurred net losses of $8.2 million and our net cash used in operating activities was $8.4 million. As of December 31, 2020, our accumulated deficit was $433.5 million. We expect to continue to incur net losses and negative cash flow from operating activities for at least the next twelve months. As our focus on development of nanomedicine and the development of therapeutic applications has increased, losses have resulted primarily from expenses associated with research and development and clinical trial-related activities, as well as general and administrative expenses. While we have implemented and continue to implement cost reduction measures where possible, we nonetheless expect to continue operating in a loss position on a consolidated basis and expect that recurring operating expenses will be at higher levels for the year ended December 31, 2021 as we prepare for and perform clinical trial and other development activities for our nanomedicine product candidates.
Our ability to generate sufficient revenue from any of our products, product candidates or technologies to achieve profitability will depend on a number of factors including, but not limited to:
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our ability to manufacture, test and validate our product candidates in compliance with applicable laws and as required for submission to applicable regulatory bodies, including manufacturing, testing and validation of our RNL candidate;
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our or our partners’ ability to successfully complete clinical trials of our product candidates;
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our ability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals for our product candidates;
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our or our partners’ ability to negotiate and receive favorable reimbursement for our product candidates, including for our product candidates that have been granted or may be granted orphan drug status or otherwise command currently anticipated pricing levels;
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our ability to negotiate favorable arrangements with third parties to help finance the development of, and market and distribute, our products and product candidates; and
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the degree to which our approved products are accepted in the marketplace.
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Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with our commercialization and product development efforts, we are unable to predict the extent of our future losses or when or if we will become profitable and it is possible we will never become profitable. If we do not generate significant sales from any of our product candidates that may receive regulatory approval, there would be a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects, which in turn could result in our inability to continue operations.
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We will need substantial additional funding to develop our product candidates and conduct our future operations and to repay our outstanding debt obligations. If we are unable to obtain the funds necessary to do so, we may be required to delay, scale back or eliminate our product development activities or may be unable to continue our business operations.
We have had, and we will continue to have, an ongoing need to raise additional cash from outside sources to continue funding our operations, including our continuing substantial research and development expenses. We do not currently believe that our cash balance will be sufficient to fund the development and marketing efforts required to reach profitability without raising additional capital from accessible sources of financing in the near future. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:
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our ability to raise capital to fund our operations on terms acceptable to us, or at all;
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our perceived capital needs with respect to our development programs, and any delays in, adverse events and excessive costs of such programs beyond what we currently anticipate;
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our ability to establish and maintain collaborative and other arrangements with third parties to assist in bringing our product candidates to market and the cost of such arrangements at the time;
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costs associated with operating at our San Antonio, Texas facility;
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the cost of manufacturing our product candidates, including compliance with good manufacturing practices applicable to our product candidates;
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expenses related to the establishment of sales and marketing capabilities for product candidates awaiting approval or products that have been approved;
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competing technological and market developments; and
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our ability to introduce and sell new products.
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We will continue to require substantial additional capital to continue our clinical development and potential commercialization activities. Accordingly, we will need to raise substantial additional capital to continue to fund our operations. Our financing plans include seeking to raise additional cash through the use of debt and/or equity offering programs, strategic corporate partnerships, state and federal development programs, licensing, and sales of assets and equity. The amount and timing of our future funding requirements will depend on many factors, including the pace and results of its clinical development efforts.
We have secured capital historically from grant revenue, collaboration proceeds, and debt and equity offerings. To obtain additional capital, we may pursue debt and/or equity offering programs, strategic corporate partnerships, state and federal development programs, licensing arrangements, and sales of assets or debt or equity securities. We cannot be certain that additional capital will be available on terms acceptable to us, or at all. If we are unsuccessful in our efforts to raise any such additional capital, we may be required to take actions that could materially and adversely harm our business, including a possible significant reduction in our research, development and administrative operations (including reduction of our employee base), the surrender of our rights to some technologies or product opportunities, delay of our clinical trials or regulatory and reimbursement efforts, or curtailment or cessation of operations.
In connection with the purchase agreement (the “2020 Purchase Agreement”) and registration rights agreement, dated September 30, 2020, we entered into with Lincoln Park Capital Fund, LLC (“Lincoln Park”) we may direct Lincoln Park to purchase up to $25.0 million worth of shares of our common stock under the 2020 Purchase Agreement over a 36-month period generally in amounts up to 50,000 shares of our common stock, which may be increased to up to 100,000 shares of our common stock depending on the market price of our common stock at the time of sale, provided that Lincoln Park’s committed obligation under such single regular purchase shall not exceed $500,000. Through December 31, 2020, we have sold a total of 353,113 shares, excluding 180,701 shares issued for commitment fee, under the 2020 Purchase Agreement for net proceeds of $0.7 million. During 2021 and through the date of filing of this Form 10-K, we issued 985,186 shares of our common stock under the 2020 Purchase Agreement for total proceeds of $2.9 million.
The extent we rely on Lincoln Park as a source of funding will depend on a number of factors including the prevailing market price of our common stock and the extent to which we are able to secure working capital from other sources. If obtaining sufficient funding from Lincoln Park were to prove unavailable or prohibitively dilutive, we will need to secure another source of funding in order to satisfy our working capital needs. Even if we sell all $25.0 million of shares of our common stock under the 2020 Purchase Agreement to Lincoln Park, we may still need additional capital to finance our future production plans and working capital needs, and we may have to raise funds through the issuance of equity or debt securities. Depending on the type and the terms of any financing we pursue, stockholders’ rights and the value of their investment in our common stock could be reduced. A financing could involve one or more types of securities including common stock, convertible debt or warrants to acquire common stock. These securities could be issued at or below the then prevailing market price for our common stock. In addition, if we issue secured debt securities, the holders of the debt would have a claim to our assets that would be prior to the rights of stockholders until the debt is paid. Interest on these debt securities would increase costs and negatively impact operating results. If the issuance of new securities results in diminished rights to holders of our common stock, the market price of our common stock could be negatively impacted.
In addition, on October 23, 2020, we entered into an Equity Distribution Agreement (the “Distribution Agreement”) with Canaccord Genuity LLC (“Canaccord”), pursuant to which we may issue and sell, from time to time, shares of our common stock
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having an aggregate offering price of up to $10,000,000 (the “ATM Shares”), depending on market demand, with Canaccord acting as an agent for sales. Sales of the ATM Shares may be made by any method permitted by law deemed to be an “at the market offering” as defined in Rule 415(a)(4) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), including, without limitation, sales made directly on or through the NASDAQ Capital Market. Canaccord will use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell the ATM Shares we request to be sold on our behalf, consistent with Canaccord’s normal trading and sales practices, under the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Distribution Agreement. We have no obligation to sell any of the ATM Shares. We may instruct Canaccord not to sell the ATM Shares if the sales cannot be effected at or above the price we designate from time to time and we may at any time suspend sales pursuant to the Distribution Agreement.
Failure to raise capital as and when needed, on favorable terms or at all, would have a significant negative impact on our financial condition and our ability to develop our product candidates.
The disruption and volatility in the global capital markets may negatively impact our ability to obtain additional debt financings and modify our existing debt facilities and may increase the risk of non-compliance with covenants under our existing loan agreement.
Under the Loan and Security Agreement, dated May 29, 2015 (the “Loan and Security Agreement”), as amended, with Oxford Finance, LLC (“Oxford”), Oxford made a term loan to us in an aggregate principal amount of $17.7 million (the “Term Loan”) subject to the terms and conditions set forth therein. As of December 31, 2020, the outstanding principal balance of the Term Loan was $4.3 million subsequent to a repayment of $5.0 million on April 1, 2020 pursuant to the Ninth Amendment to the Loan and Security Agreement. In addition, we are obligated to pay a final payment fee of $3.2 million at the earlier of the maturity date, acceleration, or payment of the Term Loan.
The Term Loan accrues interest at a floating rate equal to the three-month LIBOR rate (with a floor of 1.00%) plus 7.95% per annum. On March 29, 2020, we and Oxford amended the Loan and Security Agreement to extend the interest-only period. Beginning May 1, 2021, we will be required to make payments of principal and accrued interest in equal monthly installments to amortize the Term Loan through September 1, 2024, the new maturity date.
As security for our obligations under the Loan and Security Agreement, we granted a security interest in substantially all of our existing and after-acquired assets, excluding our intellectual property assets, subject to certain exceptions set forth in the Loan and Security Agreement. If we are unable to discharge these obligations, Oxford could foreclose on these assets, which would, at a minimum, have a severe material adverse effect on our ability to operate our business.
Our indebtedness to Oxford could adversely affect our operations and liquidity, by, among other things:
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causing us to use a larger portion of our cash flow to fund interest and principal payments, reducing the availability of cash to fund working capital and capital expenditures and other business activities;
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making it more difficult for us to take advantage of significant business opportunities, such as acquisition opportunities, and to react to changes in market or industry conditions; and
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limiting our ability to borrow additional monies in the future to fund working capital and capital expenditures and for other general corporate purposes.
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The Loan and Security Agreement, as amended, requires us to maintain at least $2.0 million in unrestricted cash and/or cash equivalents and includes certain reporting and other covenants, that, among other things, restrict our ability to (i) dispose of assets, (ii) change the business we conduct, (iii) make acquisitions, (iv) engage in mergers or consolidations, (v) incur additional indebtedness, (vi) create liens on assets, (vii) maintain any collateral account, (viii) pay dividends, (ix) make investments, loans or advances, (x) engage in certain transactions with affiliates, and (xi) prepay certain other indebtedness or amend other financing arrangements. If we fail to comply with any of these covenants or restrictions, such failure may result in an event of default, which if not cured or waived, could result in Oxford causing the outstanding loan amount to become immediately due and payable. If the maturity of our indebtedness is accelerated, we may not have, or be able to timely procure, sufficient cash resources to satisfy our debt obligations, and such acceleration would adversely affect our business and financial condition.
The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the global economic activity and caused significant volatility and negative pressure in the financial markets. This volatility and downturn may affect our business, liquidity position, and financial results. This in turn may negatively impact our ability to remain in compliance with the financial and operating covenants under the Loan and Security Agreement and may restrict our ability to obtain covenant waivers, restructure or amend the terms of our existing debt, or obtain additional debt financing. If the maturity of our indebtedness is accelerated or if we are unable to amend the terms or obtain any necessary waivers under our debt facilities or obtain additional debt or other financing, it would materially and adversely affect our liquidity position and ability to fund our operations. This in turn would materially harm our business and financial conditions.
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The report of our independent registered public accounting firm contains an emphasis paragraph regarding the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”
The audit report of our independent registered public accounting firm covering the December 31, 2020 consolidated financial statements contains an explanatory paragraph that states that our recurring losses from operations, liquidity position, and debt service requirements raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. This going concern opinion could materially limit our ability to raise additional funds through the issuance of new debt or equity securities or otherwise. Future reports on our financial statements may also include an explanatory paragraph with respect to our ability to continue as a going concern. To date, our operating losses have been funded primarily from outside sources of invested capital and gross profits. We have had, and we will likely continue to have, an ongoing need to raise additional cash from outside sources to fund our future operations. However, no assurance can be given that additional capital will be available when required or on terms acceptable to us. If we are unsuccessful in our efforts to raise any such additional capital, we may be required to take actions that could materially and adversely harm our business, including a possible significant reduction in our research, development and administrative operations (including reduction of our employee base), the surrender of our rights to some technologies or product opportunities, delay of our clinical trials or regulatory and reimbursement efforts, or the curtailment or cessation of operations. We also cannot give assurance that we will achieve sufficient revenue in the future to achieve profitability and cash flow positive operations to allow us to continue as a going concern. The perception that we may not be able to continue as a going concern may cause third parties to choose not to deal with us due to concerns about our ability to meet our contractual obligations, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Our operating results have been and will likely continue to be volatile.
Our prospects must be evaluated in light of the risks and difficulties frequently encountered by emerging companies and particularly by such companies in rapidly evolving and technologically advanced biotech, pharmaceutical and medical device fields. Our visibility as to our future operating results and our clinical development timeline may be further limited by the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, our budgeted expense levels are based in part on our expectations concerning future research and development activities. We may be unable to reduce our expenditures in a timely manner to compensate for any unexpected events. Accordingly, unexpected events could have an immediate and material impact on our business and financial condition. From time to time, we have tried to update our investors’ expectations as to our operating results. If we revise any timelines we may give with respect to our clinical trials, it could materially harm our reputation and the market’s perception of us and could cause our stock price to decline.
Our ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited.
We do not expect to make profits in the near future. Under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change” (generally defined as a greater than 50% change, by value, in its equity ownership over a three year period), the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards and other pre-change tax attributes to offset its post-change taxable income and taxes may be limited. We may have experienced, or may in the future experience, “ownership changes” as a result of shifts in stock ownership. Any such ownership changes could limit our ability to use net operating loss carryforwards and other pre-change tax attributes. Furthermore, under 2017 U.S. tax legislation, although the treatment of tax losses generated before December 31, 2017 has generally not changed, tax losses generated in calendar year 2018 and beyond may be used to offset only 80% of taxable income. This change may require us to pay federal income taxes in future years despite generating a loss for federal income tax purposes in prior years.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
Our future success is in large part dependent upon our ability to successfully integrate and develop our nanomedicine platform and commercialize RNL and any failure to do so could significantly harm our business and prospects.
Our ability to successfully integrate, develop and commercialize RNL is subject to a number of risks, including the following:
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we do not have substantive drug development, manufacturing, and commercialization experience, and thus we may be required to hire and rely on significant numbers of scientific, quality, regulatory and other technical personnel with the experience and expertise necessary to develop, manufacture, and commercialize our Plus Therapeutics nanomedicine product candidates. We may be unable to identify, hire and retain personnel with the requisite experience to conduct the operations necessary to obtain regulatory approval and commercialize our RNL product candidate, in which case our business would be materially harmed;
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we intend to find a commercialization partner to share or assume responsibility for marketing, sales, and distribution activities and related costs and expenses for our RNL product candidate. There can be no assurance that we would obtain sufficient capital to fund the development, manufacturing, and commercialization of our nanomedicine program
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ourselves, or if we do obtain such capital, that our development, manufacturing, and commercialization efforts would be successful;
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conduct of this acquired business will require significant capital, and to the extent that we incur unanticipated expenses in our business, are unable to timely obtain sufficient additional capital on terms acceptable to us (or at all) to fund this business, our ability to develop our RNL product candidate could be materially and adversely impacted;
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we have discontinued development activities for DoxoPLUS and DocoPLUS and are actively seeking to monetize these assets; and
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we are not experienced in acquiring and integrating new businesses.
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If we are unable to successfully partner with other companies to commercialize our product candidates, our business could materially suffer.
A key part of our business strategy is to leverage strategic partnerships/collaborations to commercialize our product candidates. We do not have the financial, human or other resources necessary to develop, commercialize, launch or sell our therapeutic offerings in all of the geographies that we are targeting, and thus it is important that we identify and partner with third parties who possess the necessary resources to bring our product candidates to market. We expect that any such partners will provide regulatory and reimbursement/pricing expertise, sales and marketing resources, and other expertise and resources vital to the success of our product offerings in their territories. We further expect, but cannot guarantee, that any such partnering arrangements will include upfront cash payments to us in return for the rights to develop, manufacture, and/or sell our product candidates in specified territories, as well as downstream revenue in the form of milestone payments and royalties.
Our current business strategy is high-risk and may not be successful.
Our current business strategy is to aggressively develop our nanomedicine platforms, while simultaneously controlling expenses, which is a high-risk strategy for a number of reasons including the following:
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we do not have a long operating history as a drug company, or prior experience with obtaining regulatory, reimbursement, or other approvals for product candidates such as RNL and DocePLUS;
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our nanomedicine product candidates, if commercialized, will compete against established competitive drugs that are marketed and sold by large companies with significant human, technical and financial resources;
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we are not experienced in acquiring and integrating new assets;
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there is an intense and rapidly evolving competitive landscape for our nanomedicine product candidates, including chemotherapies, targeted therapies and immuno-oncology therapies, and as such key assumptions regarding market entry, pricing, and revenue/unit share may not be realized;
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our product candidates may never become commercially viable; and
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we may not be able to prevent other companies from depriving us of market share and profit margins by selling products based on our intellectual property and developments.
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We face intense competition, and if our competitors market or develop products that are marketed more effectively, approved more quickly than our product candidates, or demonstrated to be safer or more effective than our product candidates, our commercial opportunities could be reduced or eliminated.
The life science industry is characterized by rapidly advancing technologies, intense competition, and a strong emphasis on proprietary therapeutics. We face competition from a number of sources, some of which may target the same indications as our products or product candidates, including small and large, domestic and multinational, medical device, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, government agencies, and private and public research institutions, many of which have greater financial resources, sales and marketing capabilities, including larger, well-established sales forces, manufacturing capabilities, experience in obtaining regulatory approvals for product candidates, and other resources than we do.
We expect that product candidates in our pipeline, if approved, to compete on the basis of, among other things, product efficacy and safety, time to market, price, coverage, and reimbursement by third-party payers, extent of adverse side effects, and convenience of treatment procedures. One or more of our competitors may develop other products that compete with ours, obtain necessary approvals for such products from the FDA, EMA, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare or other agencies, if required, more rapidly than we do or develop alternative products or therapies that are safer, more effective and/or more cost effective than any products developed by us. The competition that we encounter with respect to any of our product candidates that receive the requisite regulatory approval and classification and are marketed may have an effect on our product prices, market share, and results of operations. We may not be able to differentiate any products that we are able to market from those of our competitors, successfully develop or introduce new products that are less costly or offer better results than those of our competitors, or offer purchasers of our products payment and other commercial terms as favorable as those offered by our competitors. In addition, competitors may seek to
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develop alternative formulations of or technological approaches to our product candidates and/or drug delivery technologies that address our targeted indications.
We may face competition for our RNL product candidate (which is intended for the treatment of glioblastoma) from multiple drug classes.
Competition for RNL™ in the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma may come from a single or combination therapy in the future. Bayer, VBL Therapeutics, Kintara Therapeutics, Istari Oncology, Medicenna, MediciNova, Oncoceutics, PharmAbcine, VBI Vaccines, Ziopharm Oncology, Bristol Myers Squibb, ImmunoCellular, Novartis, EnGeneIC, Berg, Bexion, and others have reported drug development programs at various clinical stages for recurrent glioblastoma and we continue to monitor their progress.
Competitors may have greater experience in developing drugs, conducting clinical trials, obtaining regulatory clearances or approvals, manufacturing and commercialization. It is possible that competitors may obtain patent protection, approval, or clearance from the FDA or achieve commercialization earlier than we can, any of which could have a substantial negative effect on our business. Many of our potential competitors have substantially greater:
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research and development resources and experience, including personnel and experience;
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product development, clinical trial and regulatory resources and experience;
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sales and marketing resources and experience;
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manufacturing and distribution resources and experience;
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name, brand and product recognition; and
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resources, experience and expertise in prosecution and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
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As a result of these factors, our competitors may obtain regulatory approval of their products more quickly than we are able to or may obtain patent protection or other intellectual property rights that limit or block us from developing or commercializing our product candidates. Our competitors may also develop products that are more effective, more useful, better tolerated, subject to fewer or less severe side effects, more widely prescribed or accepted, or less costly than ours and may also be more successful than we are in manufacturing and marketing their products. If we are unable to compete effectively with the marketed therapeutics of our competitors or if such competitors are successful in developing products that compete with any of our product candidates that are approved, our business, results of operations, financial condition, and prospects may be materially adversely affected.
Our current and future clinical trials may fail to demonstrate acceptable levels of safety and efficacy for our product candidates, which could prevent or significantly delay their regulatory approval and commercialization, which would have a material and adverse impact on our business.
Clinical testing of our product candidates is a long, expensive and uncertain process, and the failure or delay of a clinical trial can occur at any stage. Many factors, currently known and unknown, can adversely affect clinical trials and the ability to evaluate a product candidate’s efficacy. During the course of treatment, patients can die or suffer other adverse events for reasons that may or may not be related to the proposed product being tested. Even if initial results of preclinical and nonclinical studies or clinical trial results are promising, we may obtain different results in subsequent trials or studies that fail to show the desired levels of safety and efficacy, or we may not obtain applicable regulatory approval for a variety of other reasons.
Further, with respect to the conduct and results of clinical trials generally, in the United States, Europe, Japan, and other jurisdictions, the conduct and results of clinical trials can be delayed, limited suspended, or otherwise adversely affected for many reasons, including, among others:
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clinical results may not meet prescribed endpoints for the studies or otherwise provide sufficient data to support the efficacy of our product candidates;
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clinical and nonclinical test results may reveal side effects, adverse events or unexpected safety issues associated with the use of our product candidates;
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lack of adequate funding to continue the clinical trial, including the incurrence of unforeseen costs due to enrollment delays, requirements to conduct additional trials and studies, and increased expenses associated with the services of our contract research organizations, and other third parties;
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inability to design appropriate clinical trial protocols;
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slower than expected rates of subject recruitment and enrollment rates in clinical trials;
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regulatory review may not find a product safe or effective enough to merit either continued testing or final approval;
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regulatory review may not find that the data from preclinical testing and clinical trials justifies approval;
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regulatory authorities may require that we change our studies or conduct additional studies which may significantly delay or make continued pursuit of approval commercially unattractive;
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a regulatory agency may reject our trial data or disagree with our interpretations of either clinical trial data or applicable regulations;
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the cost of clinical trials required for product approval may be greater than what we originally anticipate, and we may decide to not pursue regulatory approval for such a product;
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a regulatory agency may identify problems or other deficiencies in our existing manufacturing processes or facilities or the existing processes or facilities of our collaborators, our contract manufacturers, or our raw material suppliers;
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a regulatory agency may change its formal or informal approval requirements and policies, act contrary to previous guidance, adopt new regulations, or raise new issues or concerns late in the approval process;
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a product candidate may be approved only for indications that are narrow or under conditions that place the product at a competitive disadvantage, which may limit the sales and marketing activities for such products or otherwise adversely impact the commercial potential of a product; and
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a regulatory agency may ask us to put a clinical study on hold pending additional safety data (and there can be no assurance that we will be able to satisfy the regulator agencies’ requests in a timely manner, which can lead to significant uncertainty in the completion of a clinical study).
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We also face clinical trial-related risks with regard to our reliance on other third parties in the performance of many of the clinical trial functions, including contract research organizations, that help execute our clinical trials, the hospitals and clinics at which our trials are conducted, the clinical investigators at the trial sites, and other third-party service providers. Failure of any third-party service provider to adhere to applicable trial protocols, laws and regulations in the conduct of one of our clinical trials could adversely affect the conduct and results of such trial (including possible data integrity issues), which could seriously harm our business.
We rely on third parties to conduct our clinical trials, manufacture our product candidates, and perform other services. If these parties are not able to successfully perform due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic or otherwise, we may not be able to successfully complete clinical development, obtain regulatory approval or commercialize our product candidates and our business could be substantially harmed.
We rely on third parties in the performance of many of the clinical trial functions, including contract research organizations, that help execute our clinical trials, the hospitals and clinics at which our trials are conducted, the clinical investigators at the trial sites, and other third-party service providers. Failure of any third-party service provider to adhere to applicable trial protocols, laws and regulations in the conduct of one of our clinical trials could adversely affect the conduct and results of such trial (including possible data integrity issues), which could seriously harm our business. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a strain on hospitals and clinics, contract research organizations, and other providers of clinical and medical supplies and equipment. This in turn could impact the ability of third parties such as hospitals to support our clinical trials or perform other services in support of our clinical programs. In addition, third parties may not prioritize our clinical trials relative to those of other customers due to resource or other constraints as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We may experience enrollment at a slower pace at certain of our clinical trial sites than initially anticipated. Further, our clinical trial sites may be required to suspend enrollment due to travel restrictions, workplace safety concerns, quarantine, facility closures, and other governmental restrictions. Some of our clinical trial sites have imposed limited accessibility to conduct clinical monitoring and training on-site. As a result, results from our clinical trials may be delayed, which in turn would have a material adverse impact on our clinical trial plans and timelines and impair our ability to successfully complete clinical development, obtain regulatory approval, or commercialize our product candidates. This in turn would substantially harm our business and operations.
We may have difficulty enrolling, or fail to enroll patients, in our clinical trials, which could delay or prevent clinical trials of our drug candidates.
Identifying and enrolling patients to participate in clinical trials of our product candidates is essential to our success. The timing of our clinical trials depends in part on the rate at which we can recruit patients to participate in clinical trials of our product candidates, and we may experience delays in our clinical trials if we encounter difficulties in enrollment. The eligibility criteria of our planned clinical trials may further limit the available eligible trial participants as we require that patients have specific characteristics that we can measure or meet the criteria to assure their conditions are appropriate for inclusion in our clinical trials. We may not be able to identify, recruit and enroll a sufficient number of patients to complete our clinical trials in a timely manner because of the perceived risks and benefits of the drug candidate under study, the availability and efficacy of competing therapies and clinical trials, and the willingness of physicians to participate in our planned clinical trials. If patients are unwilling to participate in our clinical trials for any reason, the timeline for conducting trials and obtaining regulatory approval of our drug candidates may be delayed.
If we experience delays in the completion of, or termination of, any clinical trials of our drug candidates, the commercial prospects of our product candidates could be harmed, and our ability to generate product revenue from any of these product candidates could be delayed or prevented. In addition, any delays in completing our clinical trials would likely increase our overall costs, impair product candidate development and jeopardize our ability to obtain regulatory approval relative to our current plans. Any of these occurrences may materially and adversely harm our business, financial condition, and prospects.
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Our success depends in substantial part on our ability to obtain regulatory approvals for our RNL product candidate. However, we cannot be certain that we will receive regulatory approval for this product candidate or our other product candidates.
We have only a limited number of product candidates in development, and our business depends substantially on their successful development and commercialization. Our product candidates will require development, regulatory review and approval in multiple jurisdictions, substantial investment, access to sufficient commercial manufacturing capacity and significant marketing efforts before we can generate any revenue from sales of our product candidates. The research, testing, manufacturing, labeling, approval, sale, marketing and distribution of products are subject to extensive regulation by the FDA and other regulatory authorities in the United States and other countries, whose regulations differ from country to country.
We are not permitted to market our product candidates in the United States until we receive approval from the FDA, or in any foreign countries until we receive the requisite approval from the regulatory authorities of such countries (including centralized marketing authorization from EMA), and we may never receive such regulatory approvals. Obtaining regulatory approval for a product candidate is a lengthy, expensive and uncertain process, and may not be obtained. Any failure to obtain regulatory approval of any of our product candidates would limit our ability to generate future revenue (and any failure to obtain such approval for all of the indications and labeling claims we deem desirable could reduce our potential revenue), would potentially harm the development prospects of our product candidates and would have a material and adverse impact on our business.
Even if we successfully obtain regulatory approvals to market our product candidates, our revenue will be dependent, in part, on our ability to commercialize such products as well as the size of the markets in the territories for which we gain regulatory approval. If the markets for our product candidates are not as significant as we estimate, our business and prospects will be harmed.
If a product candidate is not approved in a timely fashion on commercially viable terms, or if development of any product candidate is terminated due to difficulties or delays encountered in the regulatory approval process, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, and we may become more dependent on the development of other proprietary products and/or our ability to successfully acquire other products and technologies. There can be no assurance that any product candidate will receive regulatory approval in a timely manner, or at all.
If our product candidates and technologies receive regulatory approval but do not achieve broad market acceptance, especially by physicians, the revenue that we generate will be limited.
The commercial success of any of our approved products or technologies will depend upon the acceptance of these products and technologies by physicians, patients and the medical community. The degree of market acceptance of these products and technologies will depend on a number of factors, including, among others:
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acceptance by physicians and patients of the product as a safe and effective treatment;
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any negative publicity or political action related to our or our competitors’ products or technologies;
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the relative convenience and ease of administration;
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the prevalence and severity of adverse side effects;
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demonstration to authorities of the pharmacoeconomic benefits;
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demonstration to authorities of the improvement in burden of illness;
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limitations or warnings contained in a product’s approved labeling;
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payers’ level of restrictions and/or barriers to coverage;
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the clinical indications for which a product is approved;
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availability and perceived advantages of alternative treatments;
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the effectiveness of our or future collaborators’ sales, marketing and distribution strategies; and
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pricing and cost effectiveness.
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Competition for RNL™ in the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma may come from a single or combination therapy in the future. Bayer, VBL Therapeutics, Kintara Therapeutics, Istari Oncology, Medicenna, MediciNova, Oncoceutics, PharmAbcine, VBI Vaccines, Ziopharm Oncology, Bristol Myers Squibb, ImmunoCellular, Novartis, EnGeneIC, Berg, Bexion, and others have reported drug development programs at various clinical stages for recurrent glioblastoma.
We expect physicians’ inertia and skepticism to also be a significant barrier as we attempt to gain market penetration with our future products. We believe we will continue to need to finance lengthy time-consuming clinical studies to provide evidence of the medical benefit of our products and resulting therapies in order to overcome this inertia and skepticism.
Overall, our efforts to educate the medical community on the benefits of any of our products or technologies for which we obtain marketing approval from the FDA or other regulatory authorities and gain broad market acceptance may require significant resources and may never be successful. If our products and technologies do not achieve an adequate level of acceptance by physicians, pharmacists and patients, we may not generate sufficient revenue from these products to become or remain profitable.
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All potential applications of our product candidates are pre-commercial, which subjects us to development and marketing risks.
Our product candidates are at various stages of development. Successful development and market acceptance of our products is subject to developmental risks, including risk of negative clinical data from current and anticipated trials, failure of inventive imagination, ineffectiveness, lack of safety, unreliability, manufacturing hurdles, failure to receive necessary regulatory clearances or approvals, high commercial cost, preclusion or obsolescence resulting from third parties’ proprietary rights or superior or equivalent products, competition from copycat products and general economic conditions affecting purchasing patterns. There can be no assurance that we or our partners will successfully develop and commercialize our product candidates, or that our competitors will not develop competing technologies that are superior or less expensive. Failure to successfully develop and market our product candidates would have a substantial negative effect on our results of operations and financial condition. If we are unable to establish or sustain coverage and adequate reimbursement for any future product candidates from third-party payors, the adoption of those products and sales revenue will be adversely affected, which, in turn, could adversely affect the ability to market or sell those product candidates, if approved.
If we or any party to a key collaboration, licensing, development, acquisition or similar arrangement fails to perform material obligations, or commit a breach, under such arrangement, or any arrangement is terminated for any reason, there could be an adverse effect on our business.
We are currently party to certain licensing, collaboration and acquisition agreements under which we may make or receive future payments in the form of milestone payments, maintenance fees, royalties and/or minimum product purchases. Our collaborators may not devote the attention and resources to such efforts to be successful. The termination of a key collaboration agreement by one of our collaborators could materially impact our ability to enter into additional collaboration agreements with new collaborators on favorable terms.
In February 2017, we acquired substantially all of the assets of Azaya Therapeutics Inc (“Azaya”), including DoxoPLUS and DocePLUS, and related manufacturing equipment and inventory pursuant to an asset purchase agreement (the “Azaya Purchase Agreement”). Under the Azaya Purchase Agreement, we are required to use commercial reasonable efforts to develop our DoxoPLUS and DocePLUS product candidates. Further, we are subject to future milestone, earn-out and other payments to Azaya all of which are tied to our commercialization and sale activities for these product candidates. If we are unsuccessful in our efforts to develop our DoxoPLUS and DocePLUS drug assets, or if Azaya and we were to enter into a dispute over the terms of our agreement, then our business could be seriously harmed.
On March 29, 2020, we entered into an exclusive license agreement with NanoTx for the global rights to develop and commercialize NanoTx’s glioblastoma treatment, RNL. Under the license agreement with NanoTx, we are required to use commercial reasonable efforts to develop the RNL product candidate acquired under the license agreement. Further, we are subject to future milestone, earn-out and other payments to NanoTx all of which are tied to our commercialization and sale activities for product candidates. If we are unsuccessful in our efforts to develop these assets, or if NanoTx and we were to enter into a dispute over the terms of our agreement, then our business could be seriously harmed.
If we breach any of the agreements under which we license the use, development and commercialization rights to our product candidates or technology from third parties, we could lose license rights that are important to our business. Licensing of intellectual property is of critical importance to our business and involves complex legal, business and scientific issues. Disputes may arise between us and our licensors regarding intellectual property subject to a license agreement, including:
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the scope of rights granted under the license agreement and other interpretation-related issues;
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whether and the extent to which our technology and processes infringe on intellectual property of the licensor that is not subject to the licensing agreement;
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our right to sublicense patent and other intellectual property rights to third parties under collaborative development relationships;
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our diligence obligations with respect to the use of the licensed technology in relation to our development and commercialization of our product candidates, and what activities satisfy those diligence obligations;
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the ownership of inventions and know-how resulting from the joint creation or use of intellectual property by our licensors and us and our partners; and
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whether and the extent to which inventors are able to contest the assignment of their rights to our licensors.
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If disputes over intellectual property that we have licensed prevent or impair our ability to maintain our current licensing arrangements on acceptable terms or at all, we may be unable to successfully develop and commercialize the affected product candidates. In addition, if disputes arise as to ownership of licensed intellectual property, our ability to pursue or enforce the licensed
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patent rights may be jeopardized. If we or our licensors fail to adequately protect this intellectual property, our ability to commercialize our products could suffer.
If we or collaborators fail to comply with regulatory requirements applicable to the development, manufacturing, and marketing of our product candidates, regulatory agencies may take action against us or them, which could significantly harm our business.
Our product candidates, along with the clinical development process, the manufacturing processes, post-approval clinical data, labeling, advertising, and promotional activities for these products, are subject to continual requirements and review by the FDA and state and foreign regulatory bodies. Regulatory authorities subject a marketed product, its manufacturer, and the manufacturing facilities to continual review and periodic inspections. We, our collaborators, and our and their respective contractors, suppliers and vendors, will be subject to ongoing regulatory requirements, including complying with regulations and laws regarding advertising, promotion and sales of products (including applicable anti-kickback, fraud and abuse and other health care laws and regulations), required submissions of safety and other post-market information and reports, registration requirements, Clinical Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) regulations (including requirements relating to quality control and quality assurance, as well as the corresponding maintenance of records and documentation), and the requirements regarding the distribution of samples to physicians and recordkeeping requirements. Regulatory agencies may change existing requirements or adopt new requirements or policies. We, our collaborators, and our and their respective contractors, suppliers, and vendors, may be slow to adapt or may not be able to adapt to these changes or new requirements.
Failure to comply with regulatory requirements may result in any of the following:
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restrictions on our product candidates or manufacturing processes;
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withdrawal of the products from the market;
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voluntary or mandatory recall;
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suspension or withdrawal of regulatory approvals;
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suspension or termination of any of our ongoing clinical trials;
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refusal to permit the import or export of our product candidates;
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refusal to approve pending applications or supplements to approved applications that we submit;
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imposition of civil or criminal penalties.
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We and our product candidates are subject to extensive regulation, and the requirements to obtain regulatory approvals in the United States and other jurisdictions can be costly, time-consuming and unpredictable. If we or our partners are unable to obtain timely regulatory approval for our product candidates, our business may be substantially harmed.
The worldwide regulatory process for our nanomedicine drug candidates can be lengthy and expensive, with no guarantee of approval.
Before any new drugs may be introduced to the U.S. market, the manufacturer generally must obtain FDA approval through either an ANDA process for generic drugs off patent that allow for bioequivalence to an existing RLD or the lengthier NDA process, which typically requires multiple successful and successive clinical trials to generate clinical data supportive of safety and efficacy along with extensive pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic preclinical testing to demonstrate safety. RNL is subject to the FDA’s 505(b)(1) NDA process. NDA drugs can take significant time due to the preclinical and clinical trial requirements.
There are numerous risks arising out of the regulation of our nanomedicine product candidates include the following:
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we can provide no assurances that our current and future oncology drugs will meet all of the stringent government regulation in the United States, by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, and/or in international markets such as Europe, by the EMA under its Medicinal Products Directive;
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our nanomedicine product candidates, if approved, will still be subject to post-market reporting requirements for deaths or serious injuries when the drug may have caused or contributed to the death or serious injury, or serious adverse events;
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there are no assurances that our product candidates will not have safety or effectiveness problems occurring after the drugs reach the market;
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there are no assurances that regulatory authorities will not take steps to prevent or limit further marketing of the drug due to safety concerns; and
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it is possible that the new legislation in our priority markets will yield additional regulatory requirements for therapeutic drugs for our nanomedicine product candidates.
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Changing, new and/or emerging government regulations, including healthcare legislative reform measures, may adversely affect us.
Any regulatory review committees and advisory groups and any contemplated new guidelines may lengthen the regulatory review process, require us to perform additional studies, increase our development costs, lead to changes in regulatory positions and interpretations, delay or prevent approval and commercialization of our product candidates or lead to significant post-approval limitations or restrictions. As we advance our product candidates, we may be required to consult with these regulatory and advisory groups and comply with applicable guidelines. If we fail to do so, we may be required to delay or discontinue development of our product candidates. Delay or failure to obtain, or unexpected costs in obtaining, the regulatory approval necessary to bring a product candidate to market could decrease our ability to generate sufficient revenue to maintain our business. Divergence in regulatory criteria for different regulatory agencies in international jurisdictions could result in the repeat of clinical studies and/or preclinical studies to satisfy local territory requirements, resulting in the repeating of studies and/or delays in the regulatory process. Some territories may require clinical data in their indigenous population, resulting in the repeat of clinical studies in whole or in part. Some territories may object to the formulation ingredients in the final finished product and may require reformulation to modify or remove objectionable components; resulting in delays in regulatory approvals. Such objectionable reformulations include, but are not limited to, human or animal components, Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy and/or Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy risks, banned packaging components, prohibited chemicals, and banned substances. There can be no assurances that the FDA or foreign regulatory authorities will accept our pre-clinical and/or clinical data.
Anticipated or unanticipated changes in the way or manner in which the FDA or other regulators regulate products or classes/groups of products can delay, further burden, or alleviate regulatory pathways that were once available to other products. There are no guarantees that such changes in the FDA’s or other regulators’ approach to the regulatory process will not deleteriously affect some or all of our product candidates or product applications.
Our nanoparticle technology and pipeline oncology products, such as RNL and DocePLUS, are being developed under existing government criteria, which are subject to change in the future. Clinical and/or pre-clinical criteria in addition to cGMP manufacturing requirements may change and impose additional regulatory burdens. Clinical requirements are subject to change which may result in delays in completing the regulatory process. Divergence in regulatory criteria for different regulatory agencies around the globe could result in the repeat of clinical studies and/or preclinical studies to satisfy local jurisdictional requirements, which would significantly lengthen the regulatory process and increase uncertainty of outcome. Some jurisdictions may require clinical data in their indigenous population, resulting in the repeat of clinical studies in whole or in part. Some jurisdictions may object to the formulation ingredients in the final finished product and may require reformulation to modify or remove objectionable components; resulting in delays in regulatory approvals. Such objectionable reformulations include, but are not limited to, human or animal components, bovine spongiform encephalopathy/ transmissible spongiform encephalopathy risks, banned packaging components, prohibited chemicals, banned substances, etc. There can be no assurance that the FDA or foreign regulatory authorities will accept our pre-clinical and/or clinical data.
In the United States and in some other jurisdictions, there have been a number of legislative and regulatory changes and proposed changes regarding the health care system that could prevent or delay marketing approval of our drug candidates, restrict or regulate post-approval activities, or affect our ability to profitably sell any drug candidates for which we obtain marketing approval, if any. Further, any increased scrutiny of the FDA’s approval process for drugs and biological products may significantly delay or prevent marketing approval, as well as subject us to more stringent product labeling and post-marketing testing and other requirements. There also are a number of state and local legislative and regulatory efforts related to drug pricing, including drug price transparency laws that apply to pharmaceutical manufacturers, which may have an impact on our business.
In addition, the Drug Supply Chain Security Act enacted in 2013 imposes new obligations on manufacturers of pharmaceutical products related to product tracking and tracing, and that law is expected to be fully implemented over a ten-year period. Most recently, in December 2019, the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act for 2020 was signed into law (P.L. 116-94) that includes a piece of bipartisan legislation called the Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples Act of 2019 or the “CREATES Act.” The CREATES Act aims to address the concern articulated by both the FDA and others in the industry that some brand manufacturers have improperly restricted the distribution of their products, including by invoking the existence of a REMS for certain products, to deny generic and biosimilar product developers access to samples of brand products. The CREATES Act establishes a private cause of action that permits a generic or biosimilar product developer to sue the brand manufacturer to compel it to furnish the necessary samples on “commercially reasonable, market-based terms.” Whether and how generic and biosimilar product developments will use this new pathway, as well as the likely outcome of any legal challenges to provisions of the CREATES Act, remain highly uncertain and its potential effects on our future commercial products are unknown. Other legislative and regulatory proposals have been made to expand post-approval requirements and restrict sales and promotional activities for pharmaceutical products. We cannot be sure whether additional legislative changes will be enacted, or whether FDA regulations, guidance or interpretations will be changed, or what the impact of such changes on the marketing approvals, if any, of our drug candidates, may be or whether such changes will have any other impacts on our business. In addition, increased scrutiny by the U.S. Congress of the
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FDA’s approval process may significantly delay or prevent marketing approval, as well as subject us to more stringent product labeling and post-marketing conditions and other requirements.
In the European Union, similar political, economic and regulatory developments may affect our ability to profitably commercialize our product candidates. In addition to continuing pressure on prices and cost containment measures, legislative developments at the European Union or EU member state level may result in significant additional requirements or obstacles that may increase our operating costs.
We expect that other legislative or healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in more rigorous coverage criteria, lower reimbursement, and additional downward pressure on the price that we will receive for any approved product. Any reduction in payments from Medicare or other government-funded programs may result in a similar reduction in payments from private payors. The implementation of cost containment measures or other healthcare reforms may prevent us from being able to generate revenue, attain profitability, or commercialize our product candidates.
Some intellectual property that we have in-licensed may have been discovered through government funded programs and thus may be subject to federal regulations such as "march-in" rights, certain reporting requirements and a preference for U.S.-based companies. Compliance with such regulations may limit our exclusive rights, and limit our ability to contract with non-U.S. manufacturers.
Some of the intellectual property rights we have licensed are generated through the use of U.S. government funding and are therefore subject to certain federal regulations. As a result, the U.S. government may have certain rights to intellectual property embodied in our current or future product candidates pursuant to the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980, or Bayh-Dole Act, and implementing regulations. These U.S. government rights in certain inventions developed under a government-funded program include a non-exclusive, non-transferable, irrevocable worldwide license to use inventions for any governmental purpose. In addition, the U.S. government has the right to require us or our licensors to grant exclusive, partially exclusive, or non-exclusive licenses to any of these inventions to a third party if it determines that: (i) adequate steps have not been taken to commercialize the invention; (ii) government action is necessary to meet public health or safety needs; or (iii) government action is necessary to meet requirements for public use under federal regulations (also referred to as "march-in rights"). The U.S. government also has the right to take title to these inventions if we, or the applicable licensor, fail to disclose the invention to the government and fail to file an application to register the intellectual property within specified time limits. These time limits have recently been changed by regulation, and may change in the future. Intellectual property generated under a government funded program is also subject to certain reporting requirements, compliance with which may require us or the applicable licensor to expend substantial resources. In addition, the U.S. government requires that any products embodying the subject invention or produced through the use of the subject invention be manufactured substantially in the United States. The manufacturing preference requirement can be waived if the owner of the intellectual property can show that reasonable but unsuccessful efforts have been made to grant licenses on similar terms to potential licensees that would be likely to manufacture substantially in the United States or that under the circumstances domestic manufacture is not commercially feasible. This preference for U.S. manufacturers may limit our ability to contract with non-U.S. product manufacturers for products covered by such intellectual property. To the extent any of our current or future intellectual property is generated through the use of U.S. government funding, the provisions of the Bayh-Dole Act may similarly apply.
Orphan drug designation may not ensure that we will enjoy market exclusivity in a particular market, and if we fail to obtain or maintain orphan drug designation or other regulatory exclusivity for some of our product candidates, our competitive position would be harmed.
A product candidate that receives orphan drug designation can benefit from potential commercial benefits following approval. Under the U.S. Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may designate a product candidate as an orphan drug if it is intended to treat a rare disease or condition, defined as affecting a patient population of fewer than 200,000 in the United States, or a patient population greater than 200,000 in the United States where there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing the drug will be recovered from sales in the United States. In the European Union, the EMA’s Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products, grants orphan drug designation to promote the development of products that are intended for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of a life-threatening or chronically debilitating condition affecting not more than 10,000 persons in the European Union. Currently, this designation provides market exclusivity in the U.S. and the European Union for seven years and ten years, respectively, if a product is the first such product approved for such orphan indication. This market exclusivity does not, however, pertain to indications other than those for which the drug was specifically designated in the approval, nor does it prevent other types of drugs from receiving orphan designations or approvals in these same indications. Further, even after an orphan drug is approved, the FDA can subsequently approve a drug with similar chemical structure for the same condition if the FDA concludes that the new drug is clinically superior to the orphan product or a market shortage occurs. In the European Union, orphan exclusivity may be reduced to six years if the drug no longer satisfies the original designation criteria or can be lost altogether if the marketing authorization holder consents to a second orphan drug application or cannot supply enough drug, or when a second applicant demonstrates its drug is “clinically superior” to the
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original orphan drug. In September 2020, the FDA granted both Orphan Drug designation and Fast Track designation to RNL for the treatment of patients with glioblastoma.
If we experience an interruption in supply from a material sole source supplier, our business may be harmed
We acquire some of our components and other raw materials from sole source suppliers. If there is an interruption in supply of our raw materials from a sole source supplier, for any reason, including due to disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, there can be no assurance that we will be able to obtain adequate quantities of the raw materials within a reasonable time or at commercially reasonable prices. Interruptions in supplies due to pricing, timing, availability, or other issues with our sole source suppliers could have a negative impact on our ability to manufacture products and product candidates, which in turn could adversely affect the development and commercialization of our nanomedicine product candidates and cause us to potentially breach our supply or other obligations under our agreements with certain other counterparties.
We are dependent on sole source suppliers to manufacture the active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and certain other components of our nanomedicine product candidates. There is no assurance that these sole source suppliers will enter into supply agreements with us to provide contractual assurance to us around supply and pricing. Regardless of whether a sole source supplier enters into a written supply arrangement with us, such supplier could still delay, suspend, or terminate supply of raw materials to us for a number of reasons, including manufacturing or quality issues, payment disputes with us, bankruptcy or insolvency, or other occurrences.
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a significant strain on the pharmaceutical and medical industries, manufacturers of clinical supplies, and healthcare-related supplies and resources in general. For instance, we have experienced increased difficulties in obtaining certain materials for manufacturing that are also components of COVID-19 vaccine candidates. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the risks to which we are subject due to our reliance on third-party (and in some cases, sole source) suppliers. Additionally, our suppliers may experience operational difficulties, and resource constraints due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. If our third-party suppliers were to encounter any of these difficulties, or otherwise fail to comply with their contractual obligations, our ability to provide our product candidates to patients in clinical trials would be jeopardized. Any delay or interruption in the procurement of clinical trial supplies could delay the completion of clinical trials, increase the costs associated with maintaining clinical trial programs and, depending upon the period of delay, require us to commence new clinical trials at additional expense or terminate clinical trials completely.
If a sole source supplier ceases supply of raw materials necessary there is no guarantee that we will find an alternative supplier for the necessary raw materials on terms acceptable to us, or at all. Further the qualification process for a new vendor could take months or years, and any such day in qualification could significantly harm our business.
We may engage in strategic transactions that could impact our liquidity, increase our expenses, and present significant distractions to our management.
From time to time we may consider strategic transactions, such as acquisitions of companies, asset purchases and out-licensing or in-licensing of products, product candidates or technologies. Growth of the nanomedicine business will require significant management time and attention. Further, the future growth of our business will depend in part on our ability to in-license or otherwise acquire the rights to additional product candidates or technologies. We cannot assure you that we will be able to in-license or acquire the rights to any product candidates or technologies from third parties on acceptable terms or at all.
Additional potential transactions that we may consider include a variety of different business arrangements, including spin-offs, strategic partnerships, joint ventures, restructurings, divestitures, business combinations and investments. Any such transaction may require us to incur non-recurring or other charges, may increase our near and long-term expenditures and may pose significant integration challenges or disrupt our management or business, which could adversely affect our operations and financial results. For example, these transactions may entail numerous operational and financial risks, including:
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exposure to unknown liabilities;
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disruption of our business and diversion of our management’s time and attention in order to develop acquired products, product candidates or technologies;
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incurrence of substantial debt or dilutive issuances of equity securities to pay for acquisitions;
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higher than expected acquisition and integration costs;
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write-downs of assets or goodwill or impairment charges;
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increased amortization expenses;
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difficulty and cost in combining the operations and personnel of any acquired businesses with our operations and personnel;
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impairment of relationships with key suppliers or customers of any acquired businesses due to changes in management and ownership; and
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inability to retain key employees of any acquired businesses.
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In addition, strategic transactions, including acquisitions and divestitures, may expose us to litigation risks. To this point, we are currently engaged in a dispute with a third party arising out of our sale of certain assets pursuant to an asset and equity purchase agreement entered into in 2019 (the "APA"). In October 2020, we received correspondence from such third party informing us of an alleged breach of certain representations and warranties in the APA and asserting indemnification claims. In December 2020, we responded to the third party and asserted that its improper use of our intellectual property constituted a breach of the APA and further asserted an indemnification claim against the third party for our losses in connection therewith. While we believe the claims asserted against us to be spurious and without merit, this dispute remains ongoing and there can be no assurance that it will not result in litigation. Resolution of this matter or any resulting litigation would be expensive and time-consuming and the outcome is uncertain.
The in-licensing and acquisition of these technologies is a competitive area, and a number of more established companies are also pursuing strategies to license or acquire product candidates or technologies that we may consider attractive. In addition, companies that perceive us to be a competitor may be unwilling to license rights to us. Furthermore, we may be unable to identify suitable product candidates or technologies within our area of focus. If we are unable to successfully obtain rights to suitable product candidates or technologies undertake or to successfully complete any additional transactions of the nature described above, our business, financial condition and prospects could suffer. In addition, even if we are able to successfully complete any additional transactions of the nature described above, any additional transactions that we do complete could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, and prospects.
We must maintain quality assurance certification and manufacturing approvals.
The manufacture of our product candidates is, and the manufacture of any future drug and/or cell-related therapeutic products would be, subject to periodic inspection by regulatory authorities and distribution partners. The manufacture of drug and device products for human use is subject to regulation and inspection from time to time by the FDA for compliance with the FDA’s cGMP, Quality System Regulations (“QSRs”), as well as equivalent requirements and inspections by state and non-U.S. regulatory authorities. There can be no assurance that the FDA or other authorities will not, during the course of an inspection of existing or new facilities, identify what they consider to be deficiencies in our compliance with QSRs or other requirements and request, or seek remedial action.
Failure to comply with such regulations or a potential delay in attaining compliance may adversely affect our manufacturing activities and could result in, among other things, injunctions, civil penalties, FDA refusal to grant pre- market approvals or clearances of future or pending product submissions, fines, recalls or seizures of products, total or partial suspensions of production and criminal prosecution. There can be no assurance that after such occurrences that we will be able to obtain additional necessary regulatory approvals or clearances on a timely basis, if at all. Delays in receipt of or failure to receive such approvals or clearances, or the loss of previously received approvals or clearances could have a substantial negative effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
If we are unable to identify, hire and/or retain key personnel, or if any of our personnel were to test positive for COVID-19, we may not be able to sustain or grow our business.
We maintain a very small executive team. Our ability to operate successfully and manage our potential future growth depends significantly upon our ability to attract, retain, and motivate highly skilled and qualified research, technical, clinical, regulatory, sales, marketing, managerial and financial personnel. We compete for talent with numerous companies, as well as universities and non-profit research organizations. In the future, we may hire a significant number of scientists, quality and regulatory personnel, and other technical staff with the requisite expertise to support and expand our nanomedicine business. The manufacturing of our oncology drug assets is a highly complex process that requires significant experience and know-how. If we are unable to attract personnel with the necessary skills and experience to reestablish and expand our nanomedicine business, which is currently conducted out of our San Antonio, Texas facility, our business could suffer.
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Our future success also depends on the personal efforts and abilities of the principal members of our senior management and scientific staff to provide strategic direction, manage our operations, and maintain a cohesive and stable environment. In particular, we are highly dependent on our executive officers, especially Marc Hedrick, M.D., our Chief Executive Officer. Given his leadership, extensive technical, scientific, and financial expertise and management and operational experience, if we were unable to retain the services of Dr. Hedrick for any reason, it would materially and adversely impact our business and operations. Further, the loss of services of Dr. Hedrick or any other executive officer could result in product development delays or the failure of our collaborations with current and future collaborators, which, in turn, may hurt our ability to develop and commercialize products and generate revenue. We do not maintain key man life insurance on the lives of any of the members of our senior management. The loss of key personnel for any reason or our inability to hire, retain, and motivate additional qualified personnel in the future could prevent us from sustaining or growing our business. In addition, if any of our personnel were to test positive for COVID-19, it would likely significantly impair our operations. The loss of services of any of our personnel, including Dr. Hedrick, particularly for an extended period due to COVID-19 or otherwise, would likely result in product development delays or the failure of our collaborations with current and future collaborators, which, in turn, may impede or delay our ability to develop and commercialize products and generate revenue. In addition, it could also result in difficulty to obtain additional funding for our development of products and our future operations.
We face potential product liability exposure, and if successful claims are brought against us, we may incur substantial liability if our insurance coverage for those claims is inadequate.
The clinical use of our product candidates exposes us to the risk of product liability claims. This risk exists even if a product or product candidate is approved for commercial sale by applicable regulatory authorities and manufactured in facilities regulated by such authorities. Our product candidates are designed to affect important bodily functions and processes. Any side effects, manufacturing defects, misuse, or abuse associated with our product candidates could result in injury to a patient or even death. For example, RNL is cytotoxic, or toxic to living cells, and, if incorrectly or defectively manufactured or labeled, or incorrectly dosed or otherwise used in a manner not contemplated by its label, could result in patient harm and even death. In addition, a liability claim may be brought against us even if our product candidates merely appear to have caused an injury.
Product liability claims may be brought against us by consumers, health care providers, pharmaceutical companies or others selling or otherwise coming into contact with our products or product candidates, if approved, among others. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against product liability claims, we will incur substantial liabilities. In addition, regardless of merit or eventual outcome, product liability claims may result in:
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the inability to commercialize our product candidates;
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decreased demand for our product candidates, if approved;
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impairment of our business reputation;
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product recall or withdrawal from the market;
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withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
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costs of related litigation;
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distraction of management’s attention from our primary business;
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substantial monetary awards to patients or other claimants; or
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We have obtained product liability insurance coverage for clinical trials with a $10 million per occurrence and annual aggregate coverage limit. Our insurance coverage may not be sufficient to cover all of our product liability related expenses or losses and may not cover us for any expenses or losses we may suffer. Moreover, insurance coverage is becoming increasingly expensive, and, in the future, we may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost, in sufficient amounts or upon adequate terms to protect us against losses due to product liability. If we determine that it is prudent to increase our product liability coverage, we may be unable to obtain this increased product liability insurance on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Large judgments have been awarded in class action or individual lawsuits based on drugs that had unanticipated side effects. A successful product liability claim or series of claims brought against us could cause our stock price to decline and, if judgments exceed our insurance coverage, could decrease our cash and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects.
A failure to adequately protect private health information could result in severe harm to our reputation and subject us to significant liabilities, each of which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Throughout the clinical trial process, we may obtain the private health information of our trial subjects. There are a number of state, federal and international laws protecting the privacy and security of health information and personal data. As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act 2009 (“ARRA”), Congress amended the privacy and security provisions of the Healthcare Information Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”). HIPAA imposes limitations on the use and disclosure of an individual’s healthcare information by healthcare providers conducting certain electronic transactions, healthcare clearinghouses, and health insurance plans, collectively referred to as covered entities. The HIPAA amendments also impose compliance obligations and corresponding penalties for non-compliance on certain individuals and entities that provide services to or perform certain functions on behalf of healthcare providers and other covered entities involving the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information,
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collectively referred to as business associates. ARRA also made significant increases in the penalties for improper use or disclosure of an individual’s health information under HIPAA and extended enforcement authority to state attorneys general. The amendments also create notification requirements to federal regulators, and in some cases local and national media, for individuals whose health information has been inappropriately accessed or disclosed. Notification is not required under HIPAA if the health information that is improperly used or disclosed is deemed secured in accordance with certain encryption or other standards developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”). Most states have laws requiring notification of affected individuals and state regulators in the event of a breach of personal information, which is a broader class of information than the health information protected by HIPAA. Many state laws impose significant data security requirements, such as encryption or mandatory contractual terms to ensure ongoing protection of personal information. Activities outside of the U.S. implicate local and national data protection standards, impose additional compliance requirements and generate additional risks of enforcement for non-compliance. The European Union’s Data Protection Directive, Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act and other data protection, privacy and similar national, state/provincial and local laws may also restrict the access, use and disclosure of patient health information abroad. We may be required to expend significant capital and other resources to ensure ongoing compliance with applicable privacy and data security laws, to protect against security breaches and hackers, or to alleviate problems caused by such breaches.
We and our collaborators must comply with environmental laws and regulations, including those pertaining to use of hazardous and biological materials in our business, and failure to comply with these laws and regulations could expose us to significant liabilities.
We and our collaborators are subject to various federal, state, and local environmental laws, rules and regulations, including those relating to discharge of materials into the air, water and ground, those relating to manufacturing, storage, use, transportation and disposal of hazardous and biological materials, and those relating to the health and safety of employees with respect to laboratory activities required for the development of our products and activities. In particular, our nanomedicine products and processes involve the controlled storage, use and disposal of certain cytotoxic, or toxic to living cells, materials. Even if we and these suppliers and collaborators comply with the standards prescribed by law and regulation, the risk of accidental contamination or injury from hazardous materials, or other violations of applicable environmental laws, rules or regulations cannot be completely eliminated. In the event of any violation of such laws, rules or regulations, we could be held liable for any damages that result, and any liability could exceed the limits or fall outside the coverage of any insurance we may obtain and could exceed our financial resources. We may not be able to maintain insurance on acceptable terms, or at all. We may incur significant costs in complying with environmental laws, rules and regulations.
Risks Relating to Our Intellectual Property
Our success depends in part on our ability to protect our intellectual property.
Our success depends in part on our ability to obtain and maintain patent, trademark, and trade secret protection of our platform technology and current product candidates, including but not limited to our nanomedicine product candidates, including RNL, as well as successfully defending our intellectual property against third-party challenges. Our ability to stop unauthorized third parties from making using selling, offering to sell, or importing our platform technology and/or our product candidates is dependent upon the extent to which we have rights under valid and enforceable patents or trade secrets that cover these activities.
The degree of future protection for our proprietary rights is uncertain because legal means afford only limited protection and may not adequately protect our rights or permit us to gain or keep our competitive advantage. For example:
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we, or NanoTx, as the case may be, might not have been the first to file patent applications for the covered inventions;
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it is possible that our pending patent applications will not result in issued patents;
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it is possible that there are dominating patents to our product candidates of which we are not aware;
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it is possible that there are prior public disclosures that could invalidate our patents, of which we are not aware;
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it is possible that others may circumvent our patents;
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it is possible that there are unpublished applications or patent applications maintained in secrecy that may later issue with claims covering our product candidates or technology similar to ours;
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the claims of our patents or patent applications, if and when issued, may not cover our system or products, or our system or product candidates;
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our owned or in-licensed issued patents may not provide us with any competitive advantages, or may be narrowed in scope, be held invalid or unenforceable as a result of legal administrative challenges by third parties;
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others may be able to make or use compounds that are the same or similar to the RNL product but that are not covered by the claims of our patents;
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we may not be able to detect infringement against our patents, which may be especially difficult for manufacturing processes or formulation patents, such as the patents/applications related to RNL;
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the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) used in RNL, 186-Re, is routinely produced in nuclear reactors or at a particle accelerator and is commercially available as 186-Re Sulfide for isotropic radiation synovectomy of medium sized joints and in developing countries as 186-Re-HEDP for bone pain palliation;
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we may not develop additional proprietary technologies for which we can obtain patent protection; or
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the patents of others may have an adverse effect on our business.
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The patent positions of pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and medical device companies can be highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions for which important legal principles remain unresolved. No consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed in patents in these fields has emerged to date in the United States. There have been recent changes regarding how patent laws are interpreted, and both the USPTO and Congress have recently made significant changes to the patent system. There have been three U.S. Supreme Court decisions that now show a trend of the Supreme Court which is distinctly negative on patents. The trend of these decisions along with resulting changes in patentability requirements being implemented by the USPTO could make it increasingly difficult for us to obtain and maintain patents on our product candidates. We cannot accurately predict future changes in the interpretation of patent laws or changes to patent laws which might be enacted into law. Those changes may materially affect our patents, our ability to obtain patents and/or the patents and applications of our collaborators and licensors. The patent situation in these fields outside the United States is even more uncertain. Changes in either the patent laws or in interpretations of patent laws in the United States and other countries may diminish the value of our intellectual property or narrow the scope of our patent protection. Accordingly, we cannot predict the breadth of claims that may be allowed or enforced in the patents we own or to which we have a license or third-party patents.
Intellectual property law outside the United States is uncertain and in many countries is currently undergoing review and revisions. The laws of some countries do not protect our patent and other intellectual property rights to the same extent as United States laws. Third parties may attempt to oppose the issuance of patents to us in foreign countries by initiating opposition proceedings. Opposition proceedings against any of our patent filings in a foreign country could have an adverse effect on our corresponding patents that are issued or pending in the United States. It may be necessary or useful for us to participate in proceedings to determine the validity of our patents or our competitors’ patents that have been issued in countries other than the United States. This could result in substantial costs, divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
Failure to obtain or maintain patent protection or protect trade secrets, for any reason (or third-party claims against our patents, trade secrets, or proprietary rights, or our involvement in disputes over our patents, trade secrets, or proprietary rights, including involvement in litigation), could have a substantial negative effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We may not be able to protect our trade secrets.
We may rely on trade secrets to protect our technology, especially with respect to the nanomedicine products, as well as in areas where we do not believe patent protection is appropriate or obtainable. Trade secrets are difficult to protect, and we have limited control over the protection of trade secrets used by our collaborators and suppliers. Although we use reasonable efforts to protect our trade secrets, our employees, consultants, contractors, outside scientific collaborators, and other advisors may unintentionally or willfully disclose our information to competitors. Enforcing a claim that a third party illegally obtained and is using any of our trade secrets is expensive and time consuming, and the outcome is unpredictable. In addition, state laws in the Unites States vary, and their courts as well as courts outside the United States are sometimes less willing to protect trade secrets. Moreover, our competitors may independently develop equivalent knowledge, methods, and know-how. If our confidential or proprietary information is divulged to or acquired by third parties, including our competitors, our competitive position in the marketplace will be harmed and our ability to successfully penetrate our target markets could be severely compromised.
We may be subject to claims that our employees have wrongfully used or disclosed alleged trade secrets of their former employers.
As is common in the device, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, we employ individuals who were previously employed at other device, biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, including our competitors or potential competitors. Although no claims against us are currently pending, we may be subject to claims that these employees or we have inadvertently or otherwise used or disclosed trade secrets or other proprietary information of their former employers. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims. Even if we are successful in defending against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management, which would adversely affect our financial condition.
We may incur substantial costs as a result of litigation or other proceedings relating to patent and other intellectual property rights, and we may be unable to protect our rights to our product candidates and technology.
Litigation may be necessary to enforce or confirm the ownership of any patents issued or licensed to us, or to determine the scope and validity of third-party proprietary rights, which would result in substantial costs to us and diversion of effort on our part. If our competitors claim technology also claimed by us and prepare and file patent applications in the United States, we may have to participate in interference proceedings declared by the USPTO or a foreign patent office to determine priority of invention, which could result in substantial costs to and diversion of effort, even if the eventual outcome is favorable to us. Any such litigation or interference proceeding, regardless of outcome, could be expensive and time-consuming.
Successful challenges to our patents through oppositions, reexamination proceedings or interference proceedings could result in a loss of patent rights in the relevant jurisdiction. If we are unsuccessful in actions we bring against the patents of other parties, and
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it is determined that we infringe the patents of third-parties, we may be subject to litigation, prevented from commercializing potential products in the relevant jurisdiction and/or may be required to obtain licenses to those patents or develop or obtain alternative technologies, any of which could harm our business. Furthermore, if such challenges to our patent rights are not resolved in our favor, we could be delayed or prevented from entering into new collaborations or from commercializing certain products, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
Competitors or third parties may infringe on or upon our patents. We may be required to file patent infringement claims, which can be expensive and time-consuming. In addition, in an infringement proceeding, a court may decide that a patent of ours is not valid or is unenforceable or that the third party’s technology does not in fact infringe upon our patents. An adverse determination of any litigation or defense proceedings could put one or more of our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and could put our related pending patent applications at risk of not issuing.
Litigation may fail and, even if successful, may result in substantial costs and be a distraction to our management. We may not be able to prevent misappropriation of our proprietary rights, particularly in countries outside the United States where patent rights may be more difficult to enforce. Further, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential or sensitive information could be compromised by disclosure in the event of litigation. In addition, during the course of litigation there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments. If securities analysts or investors perceive these results to be negative, it could have a substantial adverse effect on the price of our common stock.
Some of our competitors may be able to sustain the costs of complex patent litigation more effectively than we can because they have substantially greater resources. In addition, any uncertainties resulting from the initiation and continuation of any litigation could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise the funds necessary to continue our operations or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, and prospects.
If we are sued for infringing intellectual property rights of third parties, it will be costly and time consuming, and an unfavorable outcome in that litigation would have a material adverse effect on our business.
Our commercial success will also depend, in part, on our ability to avoid infringing on patents issued by others. There may be issued patents of third parties of which we are currently unaware, that are infringed or are alleged to be infringed by our product candidate or proprietary technologies. Because some patent applications in the United States may be maintained in secrecy until the patents are issued, patent applications in the United States and many foreign jurisdictions are typically not published until eighteen months after filing, and publications in the scientific literature often lag behind actual discoveries, we cannot be certain that others have not filed patent applications for technology covered by our owned and in-licensed issued patents or our pending applications, or that we or, if applicable, a licensor were the first to invent the technology. Our competitors may have filed, and may in the future file, patent applications covering our product candidates or technology similar to ours. Any such patent application may have priority over our patent applications or patents, which could further require us to obtain rights to issued patents covering such technologies.
We may be exposed to, or threatened with, future litigation by third parties having patent or other intellectual property rights alleging that our product candidates and/or proprietary technologies infringe their intellectual property rights. These lawsuits are costly and could adversely affect our results of operations and divert the attention of managerial and technical personnel. There is a risk that a court would decide that we or our commercialization partners are infringing the third party’s patents and would order us or our partners to stop the activities covered by the patents. In addition, there is a risk that a court will order us or our partners to pay the other party damages for having violated the other party’s patents.
If a third-party’s patent were found to cover our product candidates, proprietary technologies or their uses, we could be enjoined by a court and required to pay damages and could be unable to commercialize our product candidates or use our proprietary technologies unless we or they obtained a license to the patent. A license may not be available to us on acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, during litigation, the patent holder could obtain a preliminary injunction or other equitable relief which could prohibit us from making, using or selling our product candidates, technologies or methods pending a trial on the merits, which could be years away.
Risks Relating to the Securities Markets and an Investment in our Common Stock
Our stockholders may experience substantial dilution in the value of their investment if we issue additional shares of our capital stock, including in connection with the sale or issuance of our common stock to Lincoln Park and the sale of the shares of common stock acquired by Lincoln Park and the sale of our common stock by Canaccord.
Our charter allows us to issue up to 100,000,000 shares of our common stock and to issue and designate the rights of, without stockholder approval, up to 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock. To raise additional capital, we may in the future sell additional shares of our common stock or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for our common stock at prices that are lower than the prices
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paid by existing stockholders, and investors purchasing shares or other securities in the future could have rights superior to existing stockholders, which could result in substantial dilution to the interests of existing stockholders.
On September 30, 2020, we entered into the 2020 Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Park, pursuant to which Lincoln Park committed to purchase up to $25.0 million of our common stock, subject to certain limitations. Upon the execution of the 2020 Purchase Agreement, we issued 180,701 shares of common stock as commitment shares to Lincoln Park in consideration for its commitment to purchase additional shares of our common stock under the 2020 Purchase Agreement. The remaining shares of our common stock that may be issued under the 2020 Purchase Agreement may be sold by us to Lincoln Park at our discretion from time to time over a 36-month period commencing November 6, 2020, subject to satisfaction of certain conditions. The purchase price for the shares that we may sell to Lincoln Park under the 2020 Purchase Agreement will fluctuate based on the price of our common stock. Depending on market liquidity at the time, sales of such shares may cause the trading price of our common stock to fall.
We generally have the right to control the timing and amount of any future sales of our shares to Lincoln Park. Additional sales of our common stock, if any, to Lincoln Park will depend upon market conditions and other factors to be determined by us. We may ultimately decide to sell to Lincoln Park all, some, or none of the additional shares of our common stock that may be available for us to sell pursuant to the 2020 Purchase Agreement. If and when we do sell shares to Lincoln Park, after Lincoln Park has acquired the shares, Lincoln Park may resell all or some of those shares at any time or from time to time in its discretion. Therefore, sales to Lincoln Park by us could result in substantial dilution to the interests of other holders of our common stock. Additionally, the sale of a substantial number of shares of our common stock to Lincoln Park, or the anticipation of such sales, could make it more difficult for us to sell equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and at a price that we might otherwise wish to effect sales.
We also may issue and sell, from time to time, shares of our common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $10,000,000, depending on market demand, with Canaccord acting as an agent for sales. Sales of the ATM Shares may be made by any method permitted by law deemed to be an “at the market offering” as defined in Rule 415(a)(4) of the Securities Act, including, without limitation, sales made directly on or through the NASDAQ Capital Market. Canaccord will use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell the ATM Shares we request to be sold on our behalf, consistent with Canaccord’s normal trading and sales practices, under the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Distribution Agreement. We have no obligation to sell any of the ATM Shares. We may instruct Canaccord not to sell the ATM Shares if the sales cannot be effected at or above the price we designate from time to time and we may at any time suspend sales pursuant to the Distribution Agreement.
Future sales of our common stock may depress our share price.
As of December 31, 2020, we had 6,749,028 shares of our common stock outstanding. Sales of a number of shares of common stock in the public market could cause the market price of our common stock to decline. We may also sell additional common stock or securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for common stock in subsequent public or private offerings or other transactions, which may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.
The market price of our common stock may be volatile and fluctuate significantly, which could result in substantial losses for stockholders.
The market price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, subject to significant fluctuations. Among the factors that may cause the market price of our common stock to fluctuate are the risks described in this “Risk Factors” section and other factors, including:
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fluctuations in our operating results or the operating results of our competitors;
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the outcome of clinical trials involving the use of our product candidates, including our sponsored trials;
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changes in estimates of our financial results or recommendations by securities analysts;
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variance in our financial performance from the expectations of securities analysts;
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changes in the estimates of the future size and growth rate of our markets;
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changes in accounting principles or changes in interpretations of existing principles, which could affect our financial results;
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conditions and trends in the markets we currently serve or which we intend to target with our product candidates;
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changes in general economic, industry and market conditions;
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the impact of the COVID-19 impact, including the magnitude, severity, duration, and uncertainty of the downturn in the domestic and global economies and financial markets;
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success of competitive products and services;
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changes in market valuations or earnings of our competitors;
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announcements of significant new products, contracts, acquisitions or strategic alliances by us or our competitors;
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our continuing ability to list our securities on an established market or exchange;
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the timing and outcome of regulatory reviews and approvals of our product candidates;
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the commencement or outcome of litigation involving our company, our general industry or both;
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changes in our capital structure, such as future issuances of securities or the incurrence of additional debt;
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actual or expected sales of our common stock by the holders of our common stock; and
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the trading volume of our common stock.
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In addition, the financial markets may experience a loss of investor confidence or otherwise experience continued volatility and deterioration due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A loss of investor confidence may result in extreme price and volume fluctuations in our common stock that are unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of our business, our financial condition or results of operations, which may materially harm the market price of our common stock and result in substantial losses for stockholders. Further, although our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market, there is currently a limited market for our common stock and an active market may never develop. An active trading market in our common stock may not develop.
We may be or become the target of securities litigation, which is costly and time-consuming to defend.
In the past, following periods of market volatility in the price of a company’s securities, the reporting of unfavorable news or continued decline in a company’s stock price, security holders have often instituted class action litigation. The market value of our securities has steadily declined over the past several years for a variety of reasons discussed elsewhere in this “Risk Factors” section, which heightens our litigation risk. If we face such litigation, we could incur substantial legal costs and our management’s attention could be diverted from the operation of our business, causing our business to suffer. Any adverse determination in any such litigation or any amounts paid to settle any such actual or threatened litigation could require that we make significant payments.
We may issue debt and equity securities or securities convertible into equity securities, any of which may be senior to our common stock as to distributions and in liquidation, which could negatively affect the value of our common stock.
In the future, we may attempt to increase our capital resources by entering into debt or debt-like financing that is unsecured or secured by up to all of our assets, or by issuing additional debt or equity securities, which could include issuances of secured or unsecured commercial paper, medium-term notes, senior notes, subordinated notes, guarantees, preferred stock, hybrid securities, or securities convertible into or exchangeable for equity securities. In the event of our liquidation, our lenders and holders of our debt and preferred securities would receive distributions of our available assets before distributions to the holders of our common stock. Because our decision to incur debt and issue securities in future offerings may be influenced by market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings or debt financings. Further, market conditions could require us to accept less favorable terms for the issuance of our securities in the future.
We could be delisted from Nasdaq, which would seriously harm the liquidity of our stock and our ability to raise capital.
The Nasdaq Stock Market has experienced significant volatility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has also impacted our stock price. In addition, we have a limited public float and our stock price has experienced a significant decline since our corporate restructuring in 2019. Between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, our closing stock price has fluctuated from a high of $3.14 at September 16, 2020 to a low of $1.05 at March 23, 2020.
On August 19, 2019, we received a written notice from Nasdaq staff indicating that we no longer met the alternative compliance standards of market value of listed securities or net income from continuing operations for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(b)(1) (the “Nasdaq Rule”). On August 12, 2020, we received a written notice from Nasdaq that we had regained compliance with the Nasdaq Rule. Based on our stockholders’ equity of $3.1 million as of December 31, 2020, we continue to meet the minimum stockholders’ equity requirement for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the Nasdaq Rule. However, if we fail to meet such requirement in the future, there is a risk that our common stock may be delisted from Nasdaq, which would adversely impact liquidity of our common stock and potentially result in even lower bid prices for our common stock.
If, for any reason, Nasdaq were to delist our securities from trading on its exchange and we are unable to obtain listing on another reputable national securities exchange, a reduction in some or all of the following may occur, each of which could materially adversely affect our stockholders:
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the liquidity and marketability of our common stock;
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the market price of our common stock;
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our ability to obtain financing for the continuation of our operations;
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the number of institutional and general investors that will consider investing in our common stock;
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the number of market makers in our common stock;
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the availability of information concerning the trading prices and volume of our common stock; and
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the number of broker-dealers willing to execute trades in shares of our common stock.
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In addition, if we cease to be eligible to trade on Nasdaq, we may have to pursue trading on a less recognized or accepted market, such as the over the counter markets, our stock may be traded as a “penny stock” which would make transactions in our stock would be more difficult and cumbersome, and we may be unable to access capital on favorable terms or at all, as companies trading on alternative markets may be viewed as less attractive investments with higher associated risks, such that existing or prospective institutional investors may be less interested in, or prohibited from, investing in our common stock. This may also cause the market price of our common stock to further decline.
Our charter documents contain anti-takeover provisions.
Certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws could discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change of control that stockholders may consider favorable. These provisions could also prevent or frustrate attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove members of our Board of Directors. Stockholders who wish to participate in these transactions may not have the opportunity to do so. These provisions:
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authorize our Board of Directors to issue without stockholder approval up to 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, the rights of which will be determined at the discretion of the Board of Directors;
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require that stockholder actions must be effected at a duly called stockholder meeting and cannot be taken by written consent;
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establish advance notice requirements for stockholder nominations to our Board of Directors or for stockholder proposals that can be acted on at stockholder meetings; and
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limit who may call stockholder meetings.
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We are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which may, unless certain criteria are met, prohibit large stockholders, in particular those owning 15% or more of the voting rights on our common stock, from merging or combining with us for a prescribed period of time.
We presently do not intend to pay cash dividends on our common stock.
We have never paid cash dividends in the past, and we currently anticipate that no cash dividends will be paid on the common stock in the foreseeable future. Furthermore, our Loan and Security Agreement with Oxford currently prohibits our issuance of cash dividends. This could make an investment in our common stock inappropriate for some investors, and may serve to narrow our potential sources of additional capital. While our dividend policy will be based on the operating results and capital needs of the business, it is anticipated that all earnings, if any, will be retained to finance the future expansion of our business.
If securities and/or industry analysts fail to continue publishing research about our business, if they change their recommendations adversely, or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our stock price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our common stock may be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline. In addition, it is likely that in some future period our operating results will be below the expectations of securities analysts or investors. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock, or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our stock price could decline.
General Risk Factors
The COVID-19 pandemic could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant downturn in the worldwide economy, the severity, magnitude, and duration of which is uncertain. In addition, the deterioration in credit markets and financial markets could limit our ability to obtain external financing to fund our operations and capital expenditures. The downturn in the worldwide economy could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business continue to evolve and are difficult to predict. To date, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly and negatively impacted the global economy, and the magnitude, severity, and duration of this impact is unclear and difficult to assess. To combat the spread of COVID-19, the United States and other locations in which we operate have imposed measures such as quarantines and “shelter-in-place” orders that are restricting business operations and travel and requiring individuals to work from home (“WFH”), which has impacted all aspects of our business as well as those of the third-parties with
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which we collaborate or upon which we rely for certain supplies and services. The continuation of WFH and other restrictions for an extended period of time may negatively impact our productivity, research and development, operations, preclinical studies, clinical trials, business and financial results. Among other things, the COVID-19 pandemic may result in:
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a global economic recession or depression that could significantly and negatively impact our business or those of third parties upon which we rely for services and supplies;
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constraints on our ability to conduct our operations and our preclinical studies and clinical trials;
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constraints on our ability to partner with other companies to commercialize our product candidates;
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constraints on our business strategy to aggressively develop our Nanomedicine platforms;
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reduced productivity in our business operations, research and development, marketing, and other activities;
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disruptions to our third-party manufacturers and suppliers;
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increased costs resulting from WFH or from our efforts to mitigate the impact of COVID-19; and
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reduced access to financing to fund our operations due to a deterioration of credit and financial markets.
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The continued disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic may negatively and materially impact our operating and financial operating results, including our cash flows. The resumption of normal business operations may be delayed and a resurgence of COVID-19 could occur, which would result in continued disruption to us or third parties with whom we do business. As a result, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic could have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition for the foreseeable future.
We may face business disruption and related risks resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the invocation of the Defense Production Act, either of which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Our development programs could be disrupted and materially adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of measures imposed by the governments in affected regions, many commercial activities, businesses and schools have been suspended as part of quarantines and other measures intended to contain this outbreak. The spread of COVID-19 worldwide has resulted in the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee of the World Health Organization declaring the outbreak of COVID-19 as a “public health emergency of international concern,” and the World Health Organization characterizing COVID-19 as a pandemic. International stock markets have also been significantly impacted and their volatility reflect the uncertainty associated with the potential economic impact of the outbreak. The volatility in the Dow Industrial Average since the end of February 2020 has been largely attributed to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. While we have not experienced any significant impact on our business as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to assess the potential impact the COVID-19 pandemic may have on our ability to effectively conduct our commercialization efforts and development programs and otherwise conduct our business operations as planned. There can be no assurance that we will not be further impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic or by any action taken by the federal government under the Defense Production Act, including downturns in business sentiment generally or in our industry and business in particular.
Increased information technology security threats and more sophisticated and targeted computer crime could pose a risk to our systems, networks, and products.
Increased global information technology security threats and more sophisticated and targeted computer crime pose a risk to the security of our systems and networks and the confidentiality, availability and integrity of our data and communications. While we attempt to mitigate these risks by employing a number of measures, including employee refreshers, monitoring of our networks and systems, and maintenance of backup and protective systems, our systems, networks and products remain potentially vulnerable to advanced persistent threats. Depending on their nature and scope, such threats could potentially lead to the compromising of confidential information and communications, improper use of our systems and networks, manipulation and destruction of data, defective products, production downtimes and operational disruptions, which in turn could adversely affect our reputation, competitiveness and results of operations.