I like the Merck agreement too. They're peerless, IMO, and they are very selective about partnerships.
By the way, note the date of the following press release and the expected duration of the trials. We ought to be hearing something in the next few months, then right? I would imagine good news here could be a major catalyst for the stock. Does anybody know when we can expect the trial to finish and/or an announcement to be made?
"Carlsbad, CA -- August 25, 1997 -- Isis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ISIP) announces the initiation of Phase II clinical trials of ISIS 3521/CGP64128A, an antisense anticancer compound that has demonstrated encouraging results in Phase I trials in patients with solid tumors.
ISIS 3521/CGP64128A is being developed as part of the antisense research and development collaboration between Isis and Novartis. Under the terms of the collaboration, the initiation of the Phase II clinical trials triggers a milestone payment from Novartis for the initiation of the Phase II clinical program.
In the Phase II trials, ISIS 3521/CGP64128A will be evaluated in both single-agent and combination studies in patients with a variety of solid tumors, including ovarian, prostate, breast, brain, colon and lung cancers and melanoma. The trials will be conducted at about 20 sites in North America and Europe and will enroll over 200 patients. The first study to begin enrollment is being conducted in patients with ovarian cancer and will take place at Stanford University Medical Center. Studies in patients with other types of tumors will begin enrolling patients over the coming weeks. The Phase II trials should take about one year to complete." |
