US-based biotechnology company Marker Therapeutics has treated the first patient in its Phase I APOLLO trial of MT-601 for lymphoma.

MT-601 is designed to treat lymphoma patients who have failed or are not eligible to receive anti-CD19 CAR T cell treatment.

The drug is a multi-tumour-associated, antigen (multiTAA)-specific T cell therapy that targets six antigens at the 200 million cell dose level.

Marker's treating the first patient in the trial marks the start of the multicentre, open-label APOLLO study.

The trial’s primary objective is to assess MT-601's safety, optimum dose and preliminary efficacy for the treatment of patients with various subtypes of lymphoma.

The first patient was supervised for 18 days post-dosing with no treatment-related adverse events observed, which indicates that MT-601 was well-tolerated.

The treatment was also found to be consistent with the favourable safety profile and tolerability data previously reported for lymphoma patients in the Phase I TACTAL study.

Conducted by Baylor College of Medicine, the TACTAL trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of a multiTAA-specific T cell solution that recognises five tumour antigens in Hodgkin’s lymphoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

The APOLLO trial will include up to 30 patients in its dose escalation phase, who will be dosed across eight clinical sites in the US.

Marker Therapeutics chief medical officer Monic Stuart said: “The initiation of clinical treatment under the APOLLO trial represents not just a major achievement for our team at Marker, but a beacon of hope for countless individuals with lymphoma who are confronting the reality of disease progression.

“Our vision with MT-601 is to fundamentally change the treatment landscape of lymphoma, providing a solution that could drastically enhance the lives of patients.

“The collected data will serve as a foundation for refining our understanding of the performance of MT-601 and its potential outcomes in patients with lymphoma who have relapsed after anti-CD19 CAR T therapy.”