GlobeNewswire Inc | Aug 11, 2021 07:00AM EDT

August 11, 2021

EMERYVILLE, Calif., Aug. 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gritstone bio, Inc. (Nasdaq: GRTS), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next generation cancer and infectious disease immunotherapies, today announced that it will host a key opinion leader (KOL) webinar on its neoantigen oncology programs for colorectal cancer on Wednesday, August 18, 2021 at 11am Eastern Time.

The webinar will feature a presentation by KOL Michael J. Overman, M.D., University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, who will discuss the treatment paradigm and substantial unmet medical need of patients with colorectal cancer and the value of novel biomarkers such as ctDNA in both the design of clinical trials and the assessment of clinical benefit with cancer immunotherapy.

Gritstones Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Andrew Allen, will also speak on the company's approach to oncology through the use of tumor-specific neoantigens. These critical targets are unique to tumor cells and can be recognized and targeted for destruction by the patients own immune system. Dr. Allen will then preview the near-term comprehensive data update being presented in September during the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) from the Phase 1/2 GRANITE program which has completed enrollment. Long-term follow-up data on patients presented in July 2020 plus new patient data will be presented that address the key question of whether GRANITE-elicited robust CD8+ T cell responses confer clinical benefit in challenging, end-stage patients.

To register for the webinar, please click here.

Michael J. Overman, M.D., is currently both a professor and the Committee Vice Chair of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in the department of Gastrointestinal (GI) Medical Oncology. Dr. Overman received his M.D. from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA in 2000. He is board certified in Medical Oncology, Hematology, and Internal Medicine. Prior to this position, he served as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Gastrointestinal (GI) Medical Oncology, division of Cancer Medicine at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from 2007 to 2013. Additionally, he served as the Committee Chair of the Pharmacy and Therapeutic Committee from 2012-2018, as well as the Site Director of Hematology/Oncology for Internal Medicine Residency Program at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from 2008 to 2017. Dr. Overman was chief resident at Harbor-UCLA from 2003 to 2004l; subsequently, he served as a clinical specialist at the MD Anderson Cancer Center-Ambulatory Treatment and Emergency Care from 2004 to 2007. Dr. Overmans institutional committee activities include serving as a utilization review subcommittee of the Chair P&T committee from 2015 2017, a member of the Credentials Committee of the Medical Staff, MDACC from 2010 2013, a member of the Staffing & Policy/Procedure Subcommittee, MDACC, 2010 2011, and a member of the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Steering Committee, MDACC from 2009 2016. Dr. Overman received the Johns Hopkins Deans Research Award in 1997, after which he received the GI Symposium American Society of Clinical Oncology Merit Award in 2007, as well as being a nominee for the Melvin L. Samuels Award for Excellence in Patient Care at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, Division of Cancer Medicine.

About Gritstone Gritstone bio, Inc. (Nasdaq: GRTS), a clinical-stage biotechnology company, is developing the next generation of immunotherapies against multiple cancer types and infectious diseases. Gritstone develops its products by leveraging two key pillarsfirst, a proprietary machine learning-based platform, Gritstone EDGETM, which is designed to predict antigens that are presented on the surface of cells, such as tumor or virally-infected cells, that can be seen by the immune system; and, second, the ability to develop and manufacture potent immunotherapies utilizing these antigens to potentially drive the patients immune system to specifically attack and destroy disease-causing cells. The companys lead oncology programs include an individualized neoantigen-based immunotherapy, GRANITE, and an off-the-shelf shared neoantigen-based immunotherapy, SLATE, which are being evaluated in clinical studies. Within its infectious disease pipeline, Gritstone is advancing CORAL, a COVID-19 program to develop a second-generation vaccine, with support from departments within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and through a license agreement with La Jolla Institute for Immunology. Additionally, the company has a global collaboration for the development of a therapeutic HIV vaccine with Gilead Sciences. For more information, please visit gritstone.com.

Gritstone Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements related to the potential of Gritstones therapeutic programs; the advancements in the companys ongoing clinical trials; the timing of data announcements related to ongoing clinical trials and the initiation of future clinical trials. Such forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause Gritstones research and clinical development programs, future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the uncertainties inherent in the drug development process, including Gritstones programs early stage of development, the process of designing and conducting preclinical and clinical trials, the regulatory approval processes, the timing of regulatory filings, the challenges associated with manufacturing drug products, Gritstones ability to successfully establish, protect and defend its intellectual property and other matters that could affect the sufficiency of existing cash to fund operations. Gritstone undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. For a further description of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of the company in general, see Gritstones most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 5, 2021 and any current and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

ContactsMedia:Dan Budwick1AB(973) 271-6085dan@1abmedia.com

Investors:Celia EconomidesChief Financial Officercelia@gritstone.com