AVA6000, assigned the nonproprietary name faridoxorubicin in 2026, is Avacta Therapeutics' lead peptide-drug conjugate. The drug links doxorubicin to a peptide substrate that is cleaved by fibroblast activation protein (FAP), an enzyme overexpressed on cancer-associated fibroblasts and present in tumor stroma but largely absent in healthy tissue. The result is tumor-restricted payload release rather than systemic delivery.
At ASCO 2026 on June 1, Avacta presented updated Phase 1a/1b data for AVA6000 in salivary gland cancer, a rare subset with no approved targeted therapies. At the recommended expansion dose of 310 mg/m², nearly three times conventional doxorubicin's maximum tolerated dose of 75 mg/m², toxicity stayed below historical doxorubicin rates and the salivary gland cohort held four partial and nine minor responses among 38 evaluable patients. The pre|CISION platform behind AVA6000 also seeds AVA6103, a follow-on FAP-activated exatecan conjugate now in Phase 1.
Stories here cover AVA6000 trial readouts and the FAP-activated conjugate landscape. See #avacta, #peptide-drug-conjugate, and #salivary-gland-cancer for adjacent threads.
On June 1 Avacta reported updated Phase 1a/1b data for faridoxorubicin (AVA6000), a pre|CISION-enabled, FAP-activated doxorubicin peptide-drug conjugate that releases its payload inside the tumor microenvironment. At the recommended expansion dose of 310 mg/m², nearly three times conventional doxorubicin's 75 mg/m² maximum tolerated dose, toxicity stayed below historical doxorubicin rates, and the salivary gland cancer cohort held multiple confirmed responses: four partial and nine minor responses among 38 evaluable patients.
Avacta's AVA6000 — a fibroblast activation protein (FAP)-activated peptide-drug conjugate releasing doxorubicin selectively in the tumor microenvironment — released Phase 1a/1b data at ASCO 2026 in salivary gland cancers. Of 30 patients in the Phase 1b cohort treated at 250 mg/m² and above, two experienced confirmed partial responses (>30% tumor shrinkage) and seven experienced minor responses (10-30% shrinkage). The combined Phase 1a + 1b disease control rate reached 90%. Phase 1a data in 11 patients at the same dose range showed 1 confirmed partial response, 4 minor responses, 1 progression, and 5 stable disease — a 91% disease control rate. The favorable safety profile continued versus conventional doxorubicin, with no severe cardiac toxicity events. The data anchors Avacta's planned Phase 2/3 expansion in adenoid cystic carcinoma — the most common salivary gland cancer subtype, with no FDA-approved systemic therapy.
Avacta Therapeutics's AVA6000, a fibroblast activation protein (FAP)-activated peptide-drug conjugate releasing doxorubicin selectively in the tumor microenvironment, will be presented at ASCO 2026 (Chicago, May 29-June 2) covering Phase Ia/Ib data in FAP-positive solid tumors with activity against salivary gland cancers — a rare cancer subset with no approved targeted therapies. The pre|CISION platform attaches a peptide tetrazolyl moiety that is cleaved by FAP, an enzyme overexpressed in cancer-associated fibroblasts and selectively present in the tumor stroma, allowing systemic dosing without the cardiotoxicity that limits free doxorubicin. AVA6000 joins Bicycle's nuzefatide pevedotin and Lilly's CRN09682 in the broader peptide-drug conjugate Phase 2/3 cohort.