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Biotech / Medical : Cell Genesys (CEGE) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Londo who wrote (1156)	10/23/2001 10:01:15 AM
From: tuck	Respond to of 1298

Londo, You must be following these folks more closely than I was aware, if you're that fast to split .1% hair with me. OK. >>FOSTER CITY, Calif., Oct. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Cell Genesys, Inc. (Nasdaq: CEGE - news) today reported that a Phase I/II clinical trial of CG7870 (formerly CV787), an oncolytic virus engineered to target and destroy prostate cancer cells, demonstrated antitumor activity after only a single intravenous injection in patients with advanced hormone refractory prostate cancer. The Phase I/II trial was conducted at three medical centers under the direction of Eric Small, M.D., clinical professor of medicine and urology at the University of California, San Francisco, Comprehensive Cancer Center. These data were reported at the European Cancer Conference (ECCO) currently being held in Lisbon, Portugal. The Phase I/II study was a dose trial study designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CG7870 in the treatment of patients with advanced hormone refractory prostate cancer. The 23 patients enrolled to date were divided into eight treatment groups, each of which received one intravenous administration of CG7870 at a progressively higher dose level. Six of the 23 patients demonstrated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) stabilization for at least three months, and three additional patients had PSA reductions of approximately 20 percent or greater from baseline. No serious or unexpected drug-related toxicities have been observed, and a maximum tolerated dose has not yet been defined. A final analysis of the study, including data relating to both safety and antitumor activity, is expected to be presented at a future scientific meeting. ``We are encouraged by the data we have observed in this initial clinical trial of CG7870, particularly since the study involved only a single injection of the product. Since preclinical studies indicate that CG7870 is synergistic with taxotere, a chemotherapy drug currently used to treat advanced prostate cancer, we plan to initiate a Phase I/II trial of CG7870 plus taxotere therapy during the second half of 2002,'' stated Joseph J. Vallner, Ph.D., president and chief operating officer of Cell Genesys. ``We are pleased with the positive clinical data from both our oncolytic virus and GVAX® cancer vaccine programs and hope that in the future, Cell Genesys will be able to deliver effective new treatment options for multiple types of cancer.'' CG7870 is currently one of five products based on Cell Genesys' proprietary oncolytic virus technology platform which employs cancer cell killing adenoviruses engineered to selectively replicate in and kill targeted cancer cells. Adenovirus is a commonly occurring virus responsible for the common cold. The engineered viruses are delivered either by direct injection into tumors or by intravenous administration and are thousands of times more specific for killing cancer cells than standard chemotherapeutic drugs. Once the therapy is delivered to the cancer cells, the virus replicates within the cell until it bursts, thereby destroying the cell and spreading the newly created viruses throughout the tumor repeating the cycle in the neighboring cancer cells. The virus, which specifically targets cancer cells and not the surrounding tissue, is cleared by the body's immune system after destroying the cancer cells. In addition to CG7870, other products utilizing this technology are CG7060 (formerly CV706), currently in clinical trials for early stage prostate cancer; and CG8900 (formerly CV890), CG7980 (formerly CV798) and CG8840 (formerly CV884), preclinical product candidates for liver cancer, colon cancer and bladder cancer, respectively. CG7870 is one of three products targeting prostate cancer currently in clinical development at Cell Genesys. CG7870 and GVAX® prostate cancer vaccine are being evaluated in advanced prostate cancer, whereas CG7060 is being evaluated in patients with early stage disease. According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 198,100 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in the United States in the year 2001, and about 31,500 men will die of this disease. Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men, exceeded only by lung cancer.<< snip Cheers, Tuck