TIL - Instil Bio drops 11% as clinical priorities change

Instil Bio ( NASDAQ: TIL ) announced an approximately 60% reduction in its U.S. headcount on Thursday as cancer-focused biotech undertook a major reprioritization of its pipeline in a pivot from a registration-driven company to a development-stage company. The company shares fell 11% in reaction to the news.

Accordingly, the company will discontinue the unmodified TIL programs for ITIL-168, including the DELTA-1 trial in advanced melanoma and the DELTA-2 trial for non-small cell lung cancer, cervical cancer, and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Instead, the company will prioritize proprietary, genetically engineered CoStAR-TIL programs, including the lead program for ITIL-306, which is in a Phase 1 dose escalation trial for NSCLC with data expected in 2023.

While the decision to discontinue ITIL-168 was difficult, it "provides us the opportunity to accelerate the development of CoStAR and other novel technologies to enhance TIL therapies for patients," Chief Executive Bronson Crouch remarked.

"We are excited to resume dosing patients in the Phase 1 ITIL-306 study and anticipate providing initial data readouts next year."

In October, Instil Bio ( TIL ) shares plunged after the company said a production issue prompted it to pause enrollment in ongoing clinical trials for the lead TIL candidates ITIL-168 and ITIL-306.

For further details see: