Curis Receives Approval to Start Phase 1 Clinical Trial of Cur-61414
for Treatment of Sporadic Basal Cell Carcinoma
-New Therapeutic Approach Offers Patients an Alternative to Surgery-
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Sept. 5, 2001--Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS) today
announced a Phase 1 Open-Label, Sequential Dose-Escalation Study of
Intralesional Injection (inside the tumor itself) of Cur-61414 in
Patients with Sporadic Basal Cell Carcinoma, the most common form of
skin cancer.
Cancer of the skin (including melanoma and non-melanoma) accounts
for nearly half of all cancers in the United States. Approximately 1.3
million patients are diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancer annually,
with Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) accounting for 75 percent of cases.
BCC is a slow-growing tumor that rarely metastasizes, and the relative
5-year survival rate is greater than 99%. BCC occurs primarily in
Caucasians, frequently in individuals 40 years or older, with slightly
higher frequency in males.
According to Doros Platika, MD, Curis, Inc. President and CEO,
"Although surgical treatment is essentially curative, significant
scarring and even disfigurement may occur with the removal of large
lesions, multiple lesions and lesions in cosmetically sensitive areas
such as the face. Therefore, a therapy with a similar cure rate that
provides a tissue-sparing alternative to surgery is highly desirable."
Dr. Platika added, "Recent molecular and genetic studies have
demonstrated that virtually all human BCC tumors carry mutations in
genes involved in the Hedgehog pathway, resulting in the aberrant
activation of this pathway and abnormal cell growth. Cur-61414 is a
small molecule that inhibits the Hedgehog pathway, which is being
developed as a locally-administered therapy and tissue-sparing
alternative to surgery for BCC."
About Curis, Inc.
Curis, Inc. is developing products that sustain health through
regenerative medicine. The Company utilizes technologies and insights
gained through the study of developmental biology to facilitate the
discovery and development of new approaches to repair and regeneration
of tissues and organs damaged by disease and/or trauma. Through these
discoveries, the Company has developed a pipeline of promising new
therapies for the treatment of major diseases, including neurological
disorders, diabetes, oncology, cardiovascular and renal disease.
The Curis technology platform and product development pipeline is
based on developmental biology signaling pathways, adult stem cells,
and cell-based therapies. Curis Research is conducted both internally
and through alliances, partnerships and joint ventures with companies
and organizations including Aegera Therapeutics and McGill University,
Montreal, Canada; Micromet AG, Munich, Germany; and Elan Corporation,
Dublin, Ireland.
For more information, please visit the Curis web site at
www.curis.com.
The statements in this news release that are not historical facts
are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties
including, without limitation, risks associated with the inherent
uncertainty of pharmaceutical research, product development,
regulatory approval and commercialization, the impact of competitive
products, patents, patent litigation, product liability, third party
reimbursement, and other risks and uncertainties associated with the
biotechnology industry. For additional factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially, please refer to the risk factors section
of the Curis Annual Report on Form 10-k for the year ended December
31,2000 with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 30, 2001.
The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgment
of Curis, as of the date of this release, and Curis disclaims any
intent or obligation to update such forward-looking statements to
reflect any change in Curis' expectations with regard thereto or any
change in events, conditions, circumstances on which such statements
are based.
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CONTACT: Curis, Inc.
Henry W. McCusker
(617) 503-6641
or
Dan Passeri
(617) 503-6680
or
Noonan/Russo Communications
(212) 696-4455
Renee Connolly (media), x 227
Sharon Weinstein (investor), x334 |
