4th Mar 2026 17:22
(Alliance News) - Faron Pharmaceuticals Ltd shares rose over 14% on Wednesday after the Turku, Finland-based biopharma's chief executive officer said the company is in "in-depth commercial discussions" in his comment on the full-year results.
The release of the results comes in the middle of a pivotal week for Faron, which on Monday reported that its shareholders had agreed to a EUR40 million rights offer to strengthen its capital structure while developing the drug bexmarilimab.
On the same day, it also announced that the US cancer research organisation City of Hope will evaluate it in an investigator-initiated trial on patients with relapsed or refractory myelodysplastic syndrome.
Faron has yet to generate any revenue, and as such, reported a EUR27.3 million loss before tax in 2025, 5.4% higher than 2024's EUR25.9 million, almost entirely due to operating expenses related to running the trials and financial costs.
The company is developing bexmarilimab, a cancer drug designed to overcome resistance to existing treatments.
In 2025, the drug was granted orphan designation by both the US Food & Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, which offers market exclusivity upon approval. It is currently undergoing trials for higher-risk MDS, a rare blood cancer condition affecting the ability of bone marrow to produce enough blood cells to replace dying ones, with the company saying it will start a phase three trial once data from phase two are thoroughly analysed.
City of Hope will instead investigate the drug in combination with decitabine/cedazuridine, an oral hypomethylating agent.
While this trial will still target forms of MDS, Faron says it is preparing to support similar initiatives in metastatic melanoma, metastatic lung cancer, soft tissue sarcoma, hormone-positive breast cancer, and acute myeloid leukaemia, as these could show the drug has combination potential against solid tumours.
CEO Juho Jalkanen said: "We begin the year with two main themes: advancing bexmarilimab’s development in HR MDS and demonstrating that our lead asset is also suitable in other indications, especially in solid tumours. In HR MDS, we have already generated some of the best clinical data ever seen. We have adapted our clinical program to hopefully overcome all existing challenges..to eventually secure a positive phase three".
"In the broader market context, we believe that the pharmaceutical sector is poised for a resurgence. Major pharma companies are facing a patent cliff, threatening to put a significant portion of their revenues at risk through 2030...The fundamentals concerning the business are solid and industry trends are in our favour...Our time will come." he added.
Faron shares closed up 14% at 58.00 pence each on Wednesday in London.
By Martin Miraglia, Alliance News reporter
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