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Biotech / Medical : Ligand (LGND) Breakout! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: David L. Hachey who wrote (15798)	2/24/1998 5:52:00 PM
From: Henry Niman	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 32384

The rat studies on chemoprevention were published in Cancer Research in Dec, 1996 (and the preliminary results were present at Bear Stearns when this thread was started). Targretin was as effective as Tamoxifen, but did not have the uterine stimulatory activity. In fact, Targretin could overcome the growth stimulation caused by Tamoxifen. The press release and abstract are linked under the Targretin Table (breast cancer section) at home.att.net

To: David L. Hachey who wrote (15798)	2/24/1998 7:17:00 PM
From: Torben Noerup Nielsen	Respond to of 32384

Dave, >No one has raised the issue of targretin use as a chemoprotective >agent to supress the induction of breast cancer. I think we have all noticed that possibility. However, before you can use it in that fashion, you need a very well established safety and side effect profile. It is one thing for a doctor to prescribe a drug to a woman who already has breast cancer. It is quite another for him to prescribe a drug with possible side effects for someone who doesn't have cancer and might never get it. A lot of this could change if simple and reliable genetic tests are available so that you can target people who are genetically susceptible to a certain type of cancer. I recall having a brief exchange with Henry on that when the mosue data came out. If it can be shown that the drug is particularly effective against cancers associated with a certain mutation and if a simple and very sensitive (so that detection is possible before the cancer is really established) test for the presence of that mutation exists, then I believe you could see the use of the drug as a preventive/protective agent. I am not sure if family history would be sufficient. The MDs can weigh in on this one. Another thing to be noted is that if the drug is effective against a certain type of cancer, it might not matter all that much exactly when it is given as long as it occurs before massive metastasis. MDs please correct me. Cheers, Torben

To: David L. Hachey who wrote (15798)	2/24/1998 9:24:00 PM
From: Robert Cohen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 32384

If my memory serves me, the rat studies for Tagretin as a chemoprotective against breast Cancer were completed in 1996. The results were very positive. Robert

To: David L. Hachey who wrote (15798)	2/25/1998 1:33:00 AM
From: Henry Niman	Respond to of 32384

Speaking of retinoid/rexinoids and breast cancer, here is a general description of the clinical trial of Panretn (9-cis retinoic acid) and Tamoxifen: 9-cis-Retinoic Acid and Tamoxifen for Advanced Breast Cancer The purpose of this phase I trial is to study 9-cis-retinoic acid and tamoxifen in the treatment of patients with stage III or metastatic breast cancer. Patients will take 9-cis-retinoic acid by mouth every day for up to 28 weeks. After the first 4 weeks patients also take tamoxifen by mouth every day. To be eligible, patients must be at least 18 years old, have no brain metastases, have recovered from previous therapy, and have no other serious medical problems. Premenopausal women with stage III breast cancer must have estrogen or progesterone receptor positive tumors to be eligible. PDQ IDs: NCI-96-C-0080, NCI-T95-0090N For more information, call Joanne Zujewski at 301-496-4916 The PDQ summary contains a detailed, more technical trial description and list of the physicians participating in this trial. The web site (with links to terms) for this trial is at: nabco.org

To: David L. Hachey who wrote (15798)	2/25/1998 11:24:00 AM
From: Peter Singleton	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 32384

Dave, thanks for your response. So, what you're saying is suppose LGND releases Targretin (tm) for cancer, and Lilly releases T-retin (tm) for diabetes ... identical product, different packaging, that oncologists will prescribe Targretin, but not T-retin, and endocrinologists will do the reverse. My thought was how do LGND and LLY trace whether the product they sell is going into the indications they have the primary marketing rights for ... and it seems like you're saying physicians prescribing behavior + separate packaging will take care of this. I'd be interested in hearing from anyone who's had experience with one of these deals ... but what you said makes sense to me. Peter