Kazia Therapeutics directors show confidence in oncology strategy with on-market purchases

Kazia Therapeutics Ltd (ASX:KZA) directors Dr James Garner and Iain Ross have demonstrated their confidence in the company’s oncology strategy with the purchase of shares on-market. Chief executive officer Dr James Garner acquired 25,000 ordinary shares on August 27, increasing the total amount of securities held after the change to 300,000 shares. Chairman and non-executive director Iain Ross purchased 20,000 shares, increasing the number of securities held after the change to 820,001 shares. US FDA orphan drug designation to paxalisib The company’s paxalisib treatment for malignant glioma has been recently granted Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The treatment includes Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a rare and highly aggressive childhood brain cancer. ODD is a special status accorded to drugs which are considered promising potential treatments for rare (orphan) diseases, generally defined as those which affect less than 200,000 cases per annum in the United States. It can provide drug developers with up to seven years of Orphan Drug Exclusivity (ODE), extending the effective life of a commercial product.