When is CEPH going to finish this phase I study ?
Wednesday October 9 8:03 AM EDT
Cephalon And Tap Launch Phase I Cancer Study
WEST CHESTER, Pa., Oct. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Cephalon Inc announced today that its
collaborator, TAP Holdings Inc., has begun a Phase I clinical trial of CEP-2563, a novel
compound discovered by Cephalon and being developed by both companies for the treatment of
various cancers, including prostate cancer. The objective of the multi-center study is to
examine the drug's pharmacokinetic and safety profile in patients with advanced cancer.
CEP-2563 belongs to a family of tyrosine kinase (enzyme) inhibitors that have been shown
in preclinical studies to slow the growth of malignant cells. Animal studies suggest that
these inhibitors induce programmed cell death of prostatic cancer cells and may cause
regression of certain prostate tumors.
"The challenge in cancer research is to develop an agent that will induce cell death,
independent of cell proliferation rate," said John T. Isaacs, Ph.D., professor of oncology
and urology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and a preclinical investigator
for CEP-2563. "Cephalon's efforts with CEP-2563 represent real progress in the development
of drug therapies for prostate cancer, and an important advance for the field. We hope
that human clinical trials will confirm the potential for this compound, and bring us
closer to a cure for this disease."
"We are excited about the potential of this new class of receptor tyrosine kinase
inhibitors to treat prostate cancer, and are pleased to see application of our technology
beyond the field of neurology," said Frank Baldino, Jr., Ph.D., Cephalon's president and
chief executive officer. "The launch of human clinical studies of CEP-2563 is an important
milestone for our collaboration with TAP and for our tyrosine kinase inhibitor development
program."
Cephalon and TAP recently renewed their collaboration to include a new class of compounds,
discovered by Cephalon, that may have potential in treating a variety of cancers. The
expanded agreement also provides for additional research and development compensation to
Cephalon, as well as milestone payments for each product, and royalties on product sales.
Cephalon, Inc., headquartered in West Chester, PA, is an international biopharmaceutical
company that discovers, develops and markets products to treat neurological disorders. The
company is developing products for the treatment of ALS, narcolepsy, peripheral
neuropathies, Alzheimer's disease, head and spinal injury, and stroke, and currently
copromotes two products in the United States for the treatment of neurological conditions.
This news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties. A full discussion of Cephalon's operations and financial condition,
including factors that may affect the company's business and future prospects, is
contained in documents the company files with the SEC, such as form 10-Q and 10-K reports.
These documents identify important factors that could cause the company's actual
performance to differ from current expectations. SOURCE Cephalon, Inc. |
