Evaxion Expands R&D Pipeline with AI-Designed Off-the-Shelf Brain Cancer Vaccine Programme
Tuesday, August 18, 2026
Evaxion has expanded and refocused its research and development pipeline with EVX-05, a new vaccine programme targeting glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
The clinical-stage TechBio company is developing EVX-05 in collaboration with experts from Duke University School of Medicine. The programme targets antigens derived from endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) that are shared among glioblastoma patients. Evaxion’s AI-Immunology platform is being used to identify these targets as potential candidates for off-the-shelf cancer vaccines.
EVX-05 is being developed as a new therapeutic approach for glioblastoma, where existing treatment options often provide limited benefits and patient outcomes remain poor.
Evaxion is currently optimising a lead vaccine candidate for EVX-05 ahead of initial clinical testing. Professor Mustafa Khasraw and his team at Duke University will contribute clinical expertise and knowledge of patient needs to help guide the programme’s development. The collaboration could also support a cost-efficient route towards a Phase 1 clinical trial.
The programme uses the same ERV-targeting approach as EVX-04, Evaxion’s vaccine candidate for acute myeloid leukaemia. The company believes the approach could be applied across different cancers where existing immunotherapies remain inadequate and shared immunogenic antigens can be identified.
Development of EVX-05 builds on experience gained from the EVX-03 programme, which has now been discontinued and removed from Evaxion’s R&D pipeline as part of its portfolio management.
The company said the development costs for EVX-05 are covered by its existing budgets and are not expected to affect its cash runway, which currently extends into the second half of 2027.
Source: globenewswire.com
