Why did Kancera terminate the letter of intent with Recardio?
“The potential transaction with Recardio was subject to new external financing being in place. That is why Kancera signed a letter of intent and not a complete license agreement, as it allowed the companies to jointly seek external financing for the targeted transaction. The challenging situation in the international capital markets has however made it very difficult to raise the capital needed to complete the transaction in the near future. Ending the letter of intent now allows Kancera to explore other potential collaborations and financing options.”

What is the next step for Kancera after ending the Recardio letter of intent?
“With the letter of intent ended, we now have the ability to fully explore other strategic options, options we have considered in the event that the transaction with Recardio didn’t materialize. We are now reviewing the company’s strategy and business plan to decide which therapeutic areas and collaborations will give us the best ability to succeed. This includes exploring other potential out-licensing and business development opportunities, potential structural transactions and partnering with industrial investors.”
Will Kancera continue to focus on cardiovascular diseases?
“We are now evaluating which therapeutic areas and indications are best for us to focus on. When we conduct this evaluation, we base our review on the data we have generated in our pre-clinical and clinical development, but also take into account the external business development environment, e.g. in which areas the most transactions are made.

Ever since we received the positive phase II results in the FRACTAL study, we have been convinced that there are great opportunities for our fractalkine program in acute myocardial infarction, hence the strategic decision to focus our resources on the cardiovascular area. However, we have to deal with the fact that we have not been able to enter into financial or industrial partnerships based on these opportunities. We are therefore now also evaluating our opportunities in other therapeutic areas, such as cancer and autoimmune diseases.”

 What can shareholders and other stakeholders expect from Kancera now?
“The company is working intensively reviewing its strategic options and business plan. Our aim is to be as transparent as possible, and we will announce updates to the market when appropriate and possible.”