Calviri, a Phoenix, Arizona based company with a mission to end cancer worldwide and to accomplish this mission with affordable products, has been named the Arizona Bioscience Company of the Year and will be celebrated at the 20th annual AZBio Awards on September 18, 2024 at the Phoenix Convention Center.
Learn more about this exciting Arizona-based company at Calviri.com.
According to the National Cancer Institute, 2,001,140 new cases of cancer are estimated to be diagnosed in the United States in 2024, which is about 5,480 new cases per day. An estimated 611,720 people are also expected to die from cancer in 2024.
The American Association for Cancer Research projects that annual cancer care costs in the US will exceed $245 billion by 2030.
The Veterinary Cancer Society reports that cancer is the leading cause of death in 47% of dogs, especially dogs over age ten. Dogs get cancer at about the same rate as humans.
Globally, it is estimated that the total economic cost of cancer will reach over $25 billion by 2030.
These numbers are scary, but they cannot compare to sitting in a doctor’s office and hearing “You have cancer.”
Today, we treat cancer and measure success in 5-year survival rates. Cancer treatment can be brutal and often financially toxic. Even then, we are not always successful in halting the progression of this dreadful disease.
Imagine, if in our lifetime, we could say “People used to get cancer.”
Calviri is a small, Phoenix, Arizona based company with a big mission. Calviri’s team is on a mission to end cancer worldwide – with affordable products. The company is developing a diagnostic for the early detection of cancer in dogs and people, as well as off the shelf therapeutic and preventative cancer vaccines. Calviri is a spin-out of Arizona State University and headquartered in the Phoenix Bioscience Core.
Calviri announced the successful conclusion of its Vaccine Against Canine Cancer Study (VACCS) on May 4, 2024. This five-year clinical trial investigated a novel preventative cancer vaccine in dogs. This multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the largest of its kind in veterinary oncology, represents a significant milestone in the fight against canine cancer.
For many years, attempts at developing cancer vaccines have been unsuccessful. However, the realization of the importance of neoantigens for generating immune responses against tumors has led to recent reports of successful vaccines in humans. Neoantigens are irregular peptides from mutations in tumor DNA. Unfortunately, these mutations are unique to each patient, requiring personal vaccines.
Calviri’s VACCS trial marks a paradigm shift by leveraging what we now know are shared neoantigens. Stephen Albert Johnston, CEO of Calviri and former Professor at Arizona State University, discovered these unique protein fragments that arise from errors during tumor RNA processing, and that they are present across multiple cancer types. The VACCS vaccine consisted of 31 of these shared neoantigens, allowing for a broad-spectrum approach to cancer prevention. This strategy has the potential to revolutionize canine cancer prevention by offering a single vaccine to protect against a wide range of cancers and may provide critical proof-of-concept to initiate similar efforts for human cancer.
The VACCS trial was made possible thanks to grant funding from Open Philanthropy and stands as a significant advancement in the field of canine cancer prevention. This trial has the potential to pave the way for a future where canine cancer is not a constant threat, but a preventable disease.
“The VACCs team has done an amazing job” said Heather Youngs, Senior Program Officer at Open Philanthropy. “We are so pleased with the progress on this trial and the potential of this technology to save many animal (and potentially human) lives in the future.”
For its team’s commitment to ending cancer by developing a diagnostic for the early detection of cancer in dogs and people, as well as off the shelf therapeutic and preventative cancer vaccines, Calviri is being honored as the 2024 Arizona Bioscience Company of the year.
Learn more about this exciting Arizona-based company at Calviri.com.
About AZBio
Founded in 2003, the Arizona Bioindustry Association, Inc. (AZBio) supports life science innovation and life science innovators in Arizona. A key component in Arizona’s life science ecosystem, AZBio is the only statewide organization exclusively focused on Arizona’s bioscience industry. AZBio membership includes patient advocacy organizations, life science innovators, educators, healthcare partners, philanthropists, and leading business organizations. AZBio members employ over 345,000 Arizonans.
About the AZBio Awards
Now in its 20th year, the AZBio Awards honors leaders from across the state of Arizona that illustrate the depth and breadth of our life science industry. The 20th annual AZBio Awards will take place at the Phoenix Convention Center on September 18, 2024.