Cancer continues to be one of the deadliest diseases on the planet. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, in 2018, there were 18.1 million new diagnoses around the world, and about 9.5 million reported deaths.

Last week, NuCana, a UK-based clinical-stage biopharma, announced promising results in an early clinical trial for its potent anti-cancer molecule NUC-7738 derived from Himalayan Caterpillar Fungus.

NUC-7738 is synthesized by researchers at the University of Oxford in partnership with NuCana. Researchers reported encouraging signals of anti-tumor activity and prolonged disease stabilization in patients participating in the ongoing Phase 1 trial, which began in 2019.

NuCana harnesses the power of ProTide technology (phosphoramidate chemistry) to develop next-generation chemotherapeutics designed to overcome the key cancer resistance mechanisms of existing nucleoside analogs. Hugh S. Griffith, Founder and CEO of believes “NuCana is striving to significantly improve outcomes for patients by transforming chemotherapy and pioneering a new era in oncology.”