diffusion pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage company focused on improving the effectiveness of standard-of-care therapies for life-threatening treatment-resistant solid cancerous tumors, without adding harmful side effects. the company is developing its lead drug, trans sodium crocetinate (tsc), which has received orphan drug designation from the fda for use in a number of cancers in which tumor hypoxia (oxygen deprivation) diminishes the efficacy of current treatments. tsc targets the cancer’s hypoxic micro-environment, re-oxygenating treatment-resistant tissue and making the cancerous cells more vulnerable to the therapeutic effects of conventional radiation and chemotherapy. the company is poised to begin a pivotal phase 3 trial in glioblastoma (gbm) in 2016. other programs include planned phase 2/3 trials in pancreatic cancer and brain metastases. because tsc’s novel mechanism safely re-oxygenates a wide range of tumor types, its use is not limited to a specific tumor tissue, but