Yeah, right...
WATERTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 24, 2001-- OXiGENE, Inc. (Nasdaq: OXGN, SSE: OXGN), The Vascular Targeting Company, announced today that it has regained full development and licensing rights to its Combretastatin family of vascular targeting agents, following a decision by the Company and Bristol-Myers Squibb to conclude their research collaboration and licensing agreement. OXiGENE also announced that it would end further clinical development of its benzamide-based product, Declopramide, to focus its resources exclusively on vascular targeting.
OXiGENE and BMS signed their research collaboration and licensing agreement in December 1999. The agreement gave BMS worldwide rights to develop Combretastatin compounds, including OXiGENE's lead compound Combretastatin A4 Prodrug (CA4P) as a new class of anti-cancer agents.
Bjorn Nordenvall, M.D., Ph.D., OXiGENE's chairman and chief executive officer, said, ``Our two-year collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb has been valuable for OXiGENE, enabling us to complete three of our own Phase I clinical trials and allowing us to advance the development of our lead vascular targeting agent, CA4P. However, it recently became clear that CA4P was no longer consistent with BMS' strategic profile for drug development.
``We are delighted about taking over responsibility for the Combretastatin compounds, including CA4P, because we believe control over the Combretastatin compounds is in the best interest of our shareholders and the entire Company,'' Nordenvall continued. ``It not only allows OXiGENE to put CA4P on a far more aggressive development path, but also to explore other business and licensing opportunities and the development of next generation Combretastatin compounds. We are fully committed to the further development of CA4P in the United States and Europe, including a Phase IB study in combination with chemotherapy or radiation, and a Phase II clinical trial as a monotherapy.''
OXiGENE plans to present final Phase I data from its U.S. clinical trial conducted in Cleveland, Ohio. That data is scheduled to be presented on October 31 by the study's lead investigator, Dr. Scot Remick, at the 2001 AACR-NCI-EORTC (American Association for Cancer Research/National Cancer Institute/European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer) International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Miami, Florida.
CA4P selectively targets existing tumor blood vessels, inhibiting the tumor's blood supply and depriving it of oxygen and nutrients necessary for its survival and growth. CA4P is being developed for potential use either as a stand-alone therapy for solid tumors that require blood vessels for survival, or in combination with chemotherapy or radiation to enhance the effectiveness of these traditional cancer treatments.
``Our Phase I data clearly demonstrates CA4P's ability to be administered safely at doses that reduce the blood flow that feeds malignant tumors and, additionally, we have observed clinical responses in several patients,'' Nordenvall said. ``Having demonstrated the drug's proof of principle and preliminary safety profile, we are now ready to take the compound to the next stage of clinical development.
``We see strong potential for our vascular targeting technology as a front-line therapy in the fight against cancer and other diseases, and we are committing the scientific and financial resources of the Company to this effort,'' Nordenvall said. ``As a result, we have made the business decision to stop further clinical development of our benzamide compounds and to make vascular targeting the centerpiece of the Company.''
OXiGENE will hold a conference call at 10 a.m. (ET) Thursday, October 25 to discuss this news release and its 2001 third quarter financial results. Domestic callers may dial 1-888-214-7569 and international callers may dial 1-415-537-1938 to listen to the call. To access a live audio webcast of the conference call, please visit the following URL on the Internet: corporate-ir.net |
