Belleville, Ontario – December 4, 2017 – NovaVive Inc., an animal health immunobiology company, today announced that its anticancer immunotherapeutic for horses will be evaluated in a clinical study at Iowa State University (ISU) College of Veterinary Medicine.

Immunocidin¨ Equine has regulatory approval in the U.S. and Canada for the treatment of equine sarcoid tumors. The study at ISU is focused on standardizing treatment protocols and assessing the product’s efficacy and safety in the treatment of both sarcoids and squamous cell carcinoma. Dr. Stephanie S. Caston, DVM, DACVS-LA, Associate Professor, Equine Surgery, Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, Iowa State University  is the Principal Investigator. Sarcoid and squamous cell carcinoma are two of the three most commonly diagnosed tumors in horses (the third is melanoma).

Sarcoids can occur in horses of any age. They are most common in adult Quarter Horses and other closely related breeds, but rare in Standardbreds. There are four different forms of sarcoids and these tumorrs are often found around the eyes, head/face, neck, chest, and shoulder, and at the site of old scars. It is estimated that sarcoids affect 1 in 100 horses in North America.

Squamous cell carcinoma is most commonly found in adult to geriatric horses of any breed. It can show up in the form of ulcerative or proliferative masses that look like proud flesh. It is common in un-pigmented (white or pink) areas, such as around the eye or third eyelid and urogenital structures