ERYTECH Partners with New York Blood Center for Red Blood Cell Supply and Research

LYON, France and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Nov. 15, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ERYTECH Pharma (Euronext: ERYP - Nasdaq: ERYP), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies by encapsulating drug substances inside red blood cells, today announced a strategic partnership with New York Blood Center (NYBC) for red blood cell supply and research.

The partnership encompasses NYBC becoming a long-term supplier of donor red blood cells (RBC) to ERYTECH, enabling ERYTECH to diversify and broaden its supply of RBC source materials for the production of eryaspase and future product candidates derived from its proprietary ERYCAPS® platform as the company ramps up clinical development. Specifically for the Phase 3 trial in second-line metastatic pancreatic cancer that recently started enrolling patients in Europe, and the Phase 2 trial in first-line triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), which are both expected to begin enrollment in the United States early in 2019. The partnership will also foster the creation of an RBC research platform leveraging NYBC’s infrastructure and capabilities in blood science to support ERYTECH’s preclinical activities in the United States. 

“NYBC’s blood collection and processing scale in the Northeast United States will strengthen our RBC supply to be utilized at our New Jersey manufacturing site which is currently under construction,” stated Gil Beyen, Chief Executive Officer at ERYTECH. “We also look forward to working with NYBC to advance our preclinical platform based on our proprietary ERYCAPS® technology.”

“We are excited to partner with ERYTECH to advance the development of vital and novel cancer treatments,” said Beth Shaz, Chief Medical and Scientific Officer at New York Blood Center. “Our state-of-the-art infrastructure and expertise in blood services and research make us uniquely suited to support clinical and preclinical activities with both products and laboratory services.”

About New York Blood Center: www.nybloodcenter.org

Founded in 1964, New York Blood Center (NYBC) is a nonprofit organization that is one of the largest independent, community-based blood centers in the world. NYBC, along with its partner organizations Community Blood Center of Kansas City, Missouri (CBC), Innovative Blood Resources (IBR), Blood Bank of Delmarva (BBD), and Rhode Island Blood Center (RIBC), collect approximately 4,000 units of blood products each day and serve local communities of more than 45 million people in the Tri-State area (NY, NJ, CT), Mid Atlantic area (PA, DE, MD), the Kansas City metropolitan area, Minnesota, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and Southern New England. NYBC and its partners also provide a wide array of transfusion-related medical services, including Comprehensive Cell Solutions, the National Center for Blood Group Genomics, the National Cord Blood Program, and the Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, which — among other milestones — developed the Hepatitis B vaccine and a patented solvent detergent plasma process innovating blood-purification technology worldwide.

About ERYTECH: www.erytech.com  

ERYTECH is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative red blood cell-based therapeutics for cancer and orphan diseases. Leveraging its proprietary ERYCAPS® platform, a novel technology to encapsulate drug substances inside red blood cells, ERYTECH is developing a pipeline of product candidates to address markets with high unmet medical needs.

ERYTECH’s primary focus is on the development of product candidates that target the altered metabolism of cancer cells by depriving them of amino acids necessary for their growth and survival. The Company’s lead product candidate, eryaspase, which consists of L-asparaginase encapsulated inside donor-derived red blood cells, targets the cancer cell’s altered asparagine and glutamine metabolism. Eryaspase is in Phase 3 clinical development for the treatment of second-line pancreatic cancer and in preparations to enter Phase 2 clinical development for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. ERYTECH’s next product candidate erymethionase, which consists of methionine-gamma-lyase encapsulated in red blood cells to target methionine-dependent cancers, has demonstrated promising preclinical results and is in preparations to enter Phase 1 clinical development.

ERYTECH is also exploring the use of its ERYCAPS® platform for developing cancer immunotherapies (ERYMMUNE™) and enzyme therapies (ERYZYME™).

ERYTECH produces product candidates at its GMP-approved and operational manufacturing site in Lyon, France, and the American Red Cross in Philadelphia, USA. A large-scale GMP manufacturing facility is under construction in New Jersey, USA.

ERYTECH is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market in the United States (ticker: ERYP) and on the Euronext regulated market in Paris (ISIN code: FR0011471135, ticker: ERYP). ERYTECH is part of the CAC Healthcare, CAC Pharma & Bio, CAC Mid & Small, CAC All Tradable, EnterNext PEA-PME 150 and Next Biotech indexes.   

Forward-looking information

This press release contains forward-looking statements, forecasts and estimates with respect to the clinical results from and the development plans of eryaspase, business and regulatory strategy, expansion of manufacturing capacity and anticipated future performance of ERYTECH and of the market in which it operates. Certain of these statements, forecasts and estimates can be recognized by the use of words such as, without limitation, “believes”, “anticipates”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “seeks”, “estimates”, “may”, “will” and “continue” and similar expressions. All statements contained in this press release other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding the potential advantage of ERYTECH’s product pipeline and its propriertary ERYCAPS®  technology, its clinical development and regulatory plans for eryaspase, the initiation, enrollment, timing, progress, release of data from and results of ERYTECH’s planned and ongoing clinical studies and trials and and the anticipated impact of the procurement of additional supply arrangements on its RBC capacity for current and future clinical studies and trials. Such statements, forecasts and estimates are based on various assumptions and assessments of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which were deemed reasonable when made but may or may not prove to be correct. Actual events are difficult to predict and may depend upon factors that are beyond ERYTECH's control. There can be no guarantees with respect to pipeline product candidates that the candidates will receive the necessary regulatory approvals or that they will prove to be commercially successful. Therefore, actual results may turn out to be materially different from the anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements, forecasts and estimates. Further description of these risks, uncertainties and other risks can be found in the Company’s regulatory filings with the French Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings and reports, including in the Company’s 2017 Document de Référence filed with the AMF in April 2018 and in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on April 24, 2018 and future filings and reports by the Company. Given these uncertainties, no representations are made as to the accuracy or fairness of such forward-looking statements, forecasts and estimates. Furthermore, forward-looking statements, forecasts and estimates only speak as of the date of this press release. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of these forward-looking statements. ERYTECH disclaims any obligation to update any such forward-looking statement, forecast or estimates to reflect any change in ERYTECH’s expectations with regard thereto, or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement, forecast or estimate is based, except to the extent required by law.

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