GeoVax announces first patients vaccinated in Phase 2 trial of GEO-CM04S1

GeoVax Labs announced that vaccinations have begun in an investigator-initiated clinical trial of GEO-CM04S1 in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, CLL, being conducted at City of Hope National Medical Center. Despite a high vaccination rate, CLL patients may be at high risk for lethal COVID-19 infection due to poor immune response to currently available vaccines. The study is examining the use of two injections of GEO-CM04S1, three months apart, to assess immune responses in these vulnerable patients, with an mRNA vaccine as the control arm. Participants will be randomized 1:1 to receive two boosters with either the GEO-CM04S1 or the control vaccine. The primary immune response outcome will be assessed at 56 days following the first booster injection. David Dodd, GeoVax President and CEO, stated, “We are very pleased with the rapid start for this third important study for GEO-CM04S1, which we expect will achieve full patient enrollment within six months. We believe the GEO-CM04S1 vaccine, containing the two antigens, S and N, along with the recognized antibody and cellular immune responses resulting from the MVA approach, has the potential to offer greater booster protection than that from the current vaccines in use, as well as provide a greater degree of protection within immunocompromised patients. We expect the CLL trial will add to the data coming from our other ongoing trials, confirming the potential benefit of GEO-CM04S1 in another population of immunocompromised individuals. We look forward to sharing progress reports as we advance.”