GRASPA® is a new medicinal product consisting of L-Asparaginase entrapped into human homologous red blood cells.

Asparagine is a tumor growth factor. Tumor cells are unable to produce their own asparagine and depend of its presence in patient’s serum. Asparaginase antitumoral activity is based on the degradation of circulating asparagine to starving the tumor.

Asparaginase is efficient in removing asparagine from the serum and is part of numerous treatment protocols. It is used since decades in US, UK, Europe and Asian protocols for patients with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). ALL is the first childhood cancer. It accounts for 60% of acute leukemias of childhood, with most cases occurring between ages 3 and 7. ALL also occurs in adults, where it accounts for 40% of all adult leukemias.

L-asparaginase should be use more intensively and introduce in other indications but its administration is associated with high immunogenicity and great side effects such as liver toxicity and coagulation disorders.

GRASPA® opens the perspective to also treat these more fragile patients as it limits the exposure of the body to the drug.

GRASPA® in ALL:

Clinical status is as follow:

• A Phase II/III in Relapsed and Allergic ALL patients in Europe is ongoing

• A Phase II clinical trial in First line in Adult > 55 patients with ALL in Europe is ongoing

• A Clinical trial in Relapsed ALL patients in US is planned

GRASPA® in Other Indications:

Clinical status:

• Phase I clinical trial in pancreatic cancer in France completed

• Preclinical development in other liquid and solid tumors ongoing 

Companion test supporting GRASPA® :

In parallel of the development of the product itself, ERYTECH is developing a companion test that will help to select most sensitive patients and support product prescription and pricing in these indications.

A research collaboration with MD Anderson Cancer Center, which has identified a candidate biomarker that may predict L-asparaginase activity against solid tumors, is ongoing.