Avacta Group plc has announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ending 30 June 2023. The company reported substantial clinical progress and continued growth during this period. In the Therapeutics Division, Avacta's lead pre|CISION™ programme, AVA6000, made significant progress in a Phase 1a clinical trial, with an excellent safety profile observed. The company plans to bring forward the start of a potentially pivotal Phase 2 study based on the positive Phase 1a data. Preclinical data regarding AVA3996, the second pre|CISION™ programme, were also presented, supporting confidence in its potential to restrict tumor growth. The joint venture with Daewoong Pharmaceutical, AffyXell Therapeutics, continued to progress well, with the triggering of a second milestone payment. Avacta's Board of Directors was strengthened with the appointment of Shaun Chilton as Non-Executive Director.

In the Diagnostics Division, Avacta completed the acquisition of Coris Bioconcept SRL, adding a broad range of marketed professional-use rapid tests to its product portfolio. The acquisition supports the company's strategy of acquiring commercial routes into the diagnostics market and IP-rich product portfolios. The integration of the previous acquisition, Launch Diagnostics, has been successfully completed. The Diagnostics Division reported a reduced adjusted EBITDA loss compared to the previous year.

Financially, Avacta reported increased revenues of £11.9 million for H1 2023, compared to £5.5 million in H1 2022. The adjusted EBITDA loss was £7.9 million, and the operating loss from continuing operations was £11.9 million. The reported loss from continuing operations was £11.5 million, and the loss per ordinary share from continuing operations was 4.3p. The company had cash and short-term deposit balances of £26.0 million at the end of June 2023.

Looking ahead, Avacta aims to complete the AVA6000 three-weekly dose escalation safety study and provide a detailed data read-out in Q4 2023. The company also plans to initiate a fortnightly dosing safety study for a Phase 2 registrational study in soft tissue sarcoma, with the goal of bringing the first pre|CISION™ targeted chemotherapy to market by the end of 2026. The company is progressing pre-clinical programs based on both the pre|CISION™ and Affimer platforms.