HEPHAISTOS-Pharma, a biotechnology company developing next-generation immunotherapies against cancer that target innate immunity to increase patient cure rates, has completed its €4.3 million Seed round to finance industrialisation and advance its lead candidate, ONCO-Boost, towards the clinic. This brings the funding total to €10.3 million from investors and non-dilutive financing.
ONCO-Boost is the first product from HEPHAISTOS-Pharma’s platform. It stimulates the patient’s own immune system, strengthening both innate and adaptive immune systems, to increase their responses against cold tumours.
ONCO-Boost can work both as a single agent and in combination with established immunotherapies that do not work against cold tumours, boosting their efficacy to breakthrough levels. Administered intravenously, ONCO-Boost is the first immunostimulant to demonstrate simultaneous efficacy against both primary tumours and metastases.
HEPHAISTOS-Pharma is headquartered in France, with a subsidiary in Liège, Belgium.
Elaia leads a consortium previously initiated by xista science ventures, the Fondation Fournier-Majoie and Noshaq.
Florian DENIS, Investment Director at Elaia, stated:
“Elaia is very proud to join and strengthen the syndication. HEPHAISTOS’ core technology based on immunostimulants has the potential to turn cold tumours into hot tumours in hard-to-treat cancers.
Frédéric CAROFF and his team have generated impressive preclinical data that will be scaled up towards additional value-creating milestones.”
According to Frederic CAROFF, CEO and co-founder of HEPHAISTOS-Pharma:
“ELAIA has a proven track record in supporting biotech companies through to the clinic and success, and we are delighted to have them on board.
With xista science ventures, Fondation Fournier-Majoie and Noshaq, our consortium of seed investors brings not only the necessary funds, but also complementary expertise and a network that will structure the company. They will play a crucial role in the success of HEPHAISTOS. ”
This seed round will mainly finance the industrialisation of drug production and regulatory toxicity studies to file for the CTA in Europe. HEPHAISTOS already has a lot of preclinical data in many cancer indications, but they plan to generate new additional data in monotherapy against unmet medical needs and in combination with promising drugs from other pharmaceutical companies. Finally, it will also help to recruit new talents and complete the structuring of the board.
Lead image: HEPHAISTOS-Pharma. Photo: uncredited.
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