We are a precision oncology company pioneering the discovery and development of small molecule, tumor-agnostic therapies targeting p53 mutations. p53 is a well-defined tumor suppressor protein known as the “guardian of the genome,” and normal, or wild-type, p53 has the ability to eliminate cancer cells. However, mutant p53 proteins can be misfolded and lose their wild-type tumor-suppressing function. These p53 mutations are found in approximately half of all cancers.

The field of p53 biology was established by our co-founder, Dr. Arnold Levine, when he discovered the p53 protein in 1979. We have leveraged more than four decades of research experience and developed unique insights into p53 to create a precision oncology platform designed to generate selective, small molecule, tumor-agnostic therapies that structurally correct specific mutant p53 proteins to restore their wild-type function. We are deploying our precision oncology platform to target the top 10 most frequent, or hotspot, p53 mutations that are collectively associated with approximately 10% to 15% of all cancers.

We believe that we have designed our lead product candidate, PC14586, to potently and selectively correct p53 misfolding caused by a specific p53 mutation, Y220C, while sparing wild-type p53. The Y220C mutation is associated with 1.0%  to 1.5% of all cancers, including breast, non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, colorectal, pancreatic and ovarian cancers.