04:44 AM EDT, 07/12/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Immutep ( IMMP ) said late Thursday it achieved "positive" results from cohort B of the TACTI-003 phase 2b trial evaluating the company's eftilagimod alfa in combination with Merck's ( MRK ) Keytruda as a potential first-line treatment for recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in patients with negative PD-L1 expression.

According to the results, the combination therapy achieved an objective response rate of 35.5% and a disease control rate of 58.1%. The company said these results are "among the highest recorded for a chemotherapy-free approach in negative PD-L1 patients."

The combination therapy also attained a high complete response rate of 9.7%.

Meanwhile, the combination therapy continues to have a favorable safety profile with no new safety signals observed, the company said.

Immutep ( IMMP ) rose more than 35% in recent premarket activity on Friday.

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