NORCROSS, Ga., June 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Galectin Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:GALT), the leading developer of therapeutics that target galectin-3, today announced that it will attend the EASL 2024 meeting and deliver a scientific presentation. The meeting will be held June 5-8, 2024, in Milan, Italy.
“At this year’s meeting we are again pleased to share important scientific information with the hepatology community. Through the knowledge captured from our belapectin program, we are adding knowledge on liver cirrhosis, a disease that dramatically affects the lives of our patients and has been neglected for far too long. This year we show that collagen content in liver biopsies of MASH cirrhotic patients fails to correlate with measures of portal pressure, a main marker of disease progression. This further emphasizes the importance of using esophago-gastro-duodenal endoscopies to document the development esophageal varices, a direct consequence of increased portal pressure. The data also provide support to the use of prevention of esophageal varices as a primary outcome measure of efficacy for candidate drugs,” said Pol Boudes, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Galectin Therapeutics. “In liver cirrhosis, the early recognition of portal hypertension is essential and allows to potentially address the cirrhotic disease process when it is still potentially reversible, and before liver transplant becomes the only curative option. Our results are not surprising when you consider that a liver biopsy provides tissue representing only 0.0002% of the hepatic gland and thus cannot fully reflect the health of this large organ1. It is also important to understand that liver biopsies present more risk in patients with portal hypertension. On the other hand, we have shown in our belapectin program that endoscopies are generally well tolerated and safe.”
1 Colloredo G, Guido M, Sonzogni A, Leandro G. Impact of liver biopsy size on histological evaluation of chronic viral hepatitis: the smaller the sample, the milder the disease. J Hepatol 2003;39:239-44.
Poster Presentation Details
Title: Evaluating the correlation between portal pressure, collagen proportional area, and α-smooth muscle actin in patients with portal hypertension due to MASH cirrhosis Abstract Number: 2250, SAT-089 Session: Poster, Complication of Cirrhosis, Portal Hypertension Authors: Pol Boudes, Michael Inkmann, Seth Zuckerman Date, time & location: Saturday, June 8, 2024: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, CET Allianz MiCo, Milan Convention Center
The presentation will be available for viewing by EASL attendees and will be posted on our website under the “Events & Presentations” page shortly after the congress.
About Galectin Therapeutics
Galectin Therapeutics is dedicated to developing novel therapies to improve the lives of patients with chronic liver disease and cancer. Galectin’s lead drug belapectin is a carbohydrate-based drug that inhibits the galectin-3 protein, which is directly involved in multiple inflammatory, fibrotic, and malignant diseases, for which it has Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The lead development program is in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH, formerly known as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH) with cirrhosis, the most advanced form of MASH-related fibrosis. Liver cirrhosis is one of the most pressing medical needs and a significant drug development opportunity. Additional development programs are in treatment of combination immunotherapy for advanced head and neck cancers and other malignancies. Advancement of these additional clinical programs is largely dependent on finding a suitable partner. Galectin seeks to leverage extensive scientific and development expertise as well as established relationships with external sources to achieve cost-effective and efficient development. Additional information is available at www.galectintherapeutics.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to future events or future financial performance, and use words such as “may,” “estimate,” “could,” “expect,” “look forward,” “believe,” “hope” and others. They are based on management’s current expectations and are subject to factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the statements. These statements include those regarding the hope that Galectin’s development program for belapectin will lead to the first therapy for the treatment of MASH, formerly known as NASH, with cirrhosis and those regarding the hope that our lead compounds will be successful in cancer immunotherapy and in other therapeutic indications. Factors that could cause actual performance to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include, among others, that trial endpoints required by the FDA may not be achieved; Galectin may not be successful in developing effective treatments and/or obtaining the requisite approvals for the use of belapectin or any of its other drugs in development; the Company may not be successful in scaling up manufacturing and meeting requirements related to chemistry, manufacturing and control matters; the Company’s current clinical trial and any future clinical studies may not produce positive results in a timely fashion, if at all, and could require larger and longer trials, which would be time consuming and costly; plans regarding development, approval and marketing of any of Galectin’s drugs are subject to change at any time based on the changing needs of the Company as determined by management and regulatory agencies; regardless of the results of any of its development programs, Galectin may be unsuccessful in developing partnerships with other companies or raising additional capital that would allow it to further develop and/or fund any studies or trials. Galectin has incurred operating losses since inception, and its ability to successfully develop and market drugs may be impacted by its ability to manage costs and finance continuing operations. For a discussion of additional factors impacting Galectin’s business, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and subsequent filings with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Although subsequent events may cause its views to change, management disclaims any obligation to update forward-looking statements.
Galectin Therapeutics and its associated logo is a registered trademark of Galectin Therapeutics Inc. Belapectin is the USAN assigned name for Galectin Therapeutics’ galectin-3 inhibitor belapectin.
