Phio Pharmaceuticals (PHIO) said Wednesday the Safety Monitoring Committee has recommended dose escalation in its phase 1b clinical trial of PH-762 as a potential neoadjuvant treatment for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma or Merkel cell carcinoma.

The recommendation came after seven patients in the study with cutaneous carcinoma showed at least 90% tumor clearance after 36 days, the company said.

Shares of the biotech firm were up more than 20% in recent premarket activity Wednesday.

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