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פתחים סמויים מהעין
אפסיותי המרהיבה |
| 6/2004
ASCO
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Last Day of ASCO: Thousands of doctors, researchers, and Wall Street analysts are packing up and heading home today, with the last day of presentations at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's (ASCO) meeting wrapping up at noon. Unlike other years, ASCO did not produce one headline drug, but rather a hodge-podge of compounds that promise to extend lives in late-stage cancers.
This weekend's abstracts probably gave the most significant developments: news that ImClone (IMCL) and Bristol-Myers' (BMY) Erbitux improves survivability in head & neck cancers (rather than just shrinking tumors in colon cancer), that Telik's (TELK) Telcyta shows effectiveness against ovarian cancer, and that OSI Pharmaceuticals (OSIP), Genentech (DNA), and Roche Holdings' Tarceva extends survival rates by two months in non-small cell lung cancer.
The below table summarizes some of the more notable presentations from late Sunday to early today (for a list of early Saturday to mid-Sunday presentations, please visit the June 7 Story Stock archive). Briefing.com will be following up with a number of these drug candidates in future stories on Story Stocks. Please feel free to send suggestions to the author. -- Heather Smith, Briefing.com
Company |
Drug |
Conference News |
Side Note |
American Pharmaceutical (APPX) |
Abraxane |
Co announces positive Phase I data showing that Abraxane is well-tolerated at high doses in a weekly dosing schedule for a variety of non-hematologic tumor types; Earlier abstracts presented at ASCO indicate efficacy with robust activity in difficult-to-treat taxane failures |
Data supports Abraxane's claim as a safer taxane (which allows for higher dosages) versus BMY's Taxol; however, that still does not change the fact that the FDA denied Abraxane priority review status on May 10 - apt to keep shares under pressure |
AstraZeneca (AZN) |
Iressa |
Co gives survival rates for 21,000 non-small cell lung cancer patients a year after treatment - the largest set of data for an EGFR inhibitor drug; Survival totaled 29.9%; In a separate trial, Iressa plus Celebrex was found to be well tolerated in the early stages of head & neck cancer |
Co's news has been overshadowed by rival OSIP/DNA's Tarceva drug; The latter acheived a 43% increase in overall survival (Iressa has not shown statistical significance in extending survival) |
Human Genome (HGSI) |
HGS-ETR1 |
Co presented two Phase I trials yesterday of the drug in solid tumors or non-hodgkin's lymphoma; Data suggests the drug is well-tolerated and safe, and should continue into Phase II trials to evaluate its effectiveness in humans |
Nearly all of HGSI's pipeline is in early to mid-stage development, and thus a lot is riding on HGS-ETR1; So far, results look promising for the anitibody |
Medarex (MEDX) |
MDX-010 |
Co presented a Phase II study yesterday of the drug alone or in combination with chemotherapy for patients with late-stage melanoma; A response rate of 17.1% was achieved in the combination arm, versus an average rate of 6.5% for standard chemotherapy |
Data confirms an earlier Phase II study, signaling that MDX-010 should enter its first phase III trial later |
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