Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. announces that company scientists came up with breakthrough findings showing that the anti-cancer and protective effects in the liver are conferred via the signalling protein adiponectin. This very important positive cytokine plays a pivotal role in regulating anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, metabolic and insulin resistance. Namodenoson increases adiponectin production in pre-clinical studies and in humans.

The data will be presented at the 20th Annual Congress of International Drug Discovery Science & Technology, China Branch (IDDST-2024), September 12-14, Shanghai, China. This conference will host 300 leading scientists from the academia and industry worldwide to discuss the latest developments in drug discovery and therapy. Namodenoson is currently being evaluated in LiverationTM, a pivotal Phase III study for advanced liver cancer that has been approved by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and also in a Phase IIb study in patients with MASH.

Namodenoson is a small orally bioavailable drug that binds with high affinity and selectivity to the A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR). Namodenoson was evaluated in Phase II trials for two indications, as a second line treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma, and as a treatment for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). A3AR is highly expressed in diseased cells whereas low expression is found in normal cells.

This differential effect accounts for the excellent safety profile of the drug.