Kolon Life Science said Friday that it has presented its local phase 3 clinical trial results for Invossa-K, a cell gene therapy that treats osteoarthritis, at the 2018 International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) conference in Macau.

Invossa is a gene therapy that treats knee osteoarthritis by injecting chondrocytes derived from allograft and cells containing growth factor called TGF-β1. The treatment only needs a simple injection procedure without an incision of the knee.

The clinical trial result proved that the treatment had significant improvements in the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) survey, visual analog scale (VAS) survey and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) on patients with moderate osteoarthritis compared to the reference group.

In particular, 84 percent of the patient showed improvement after taking Invossa-K.

The company also confirmed the long-term efficacy of the drug compared to conventional therapies. Results of long-term follow up of Invossa showed an optimal enhancement in the VAS and WOMAC scale at 36 months.

Also, a biomarker analysis, which can predict the diagnosis and progression of osteoarthritis, confirmed the effectiveness to reduce the progression of osteoarthritis.

“We are pleased that we presented the effectiveness of Invossa-K in relieving pain and improving joint function at the ICRS, which is one of the most renowned orthopedics conferences,” Kolon Tissuegene President and CEO Lee Bum-sup said.

The company expects that the drug will change the paradigm of osteoarthritis treatment as it has effects in slowing the progression of osteoarthritis, Lee added.

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