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Biotech / Medical : XOMA. Bull or Bear? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: aknahow who wrote (6559)	6/23/1998 3:52:00 PM
From: E.J. Neitz Jr	Respond to of 17367

George-Thank You--I agree with your Comments Think this is the validation the company badly needed--and now they achieved it.

To: aknahow who wrote (6559)	6/23/1998 7:37:00 PM
From: Tharos	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17367

George, Orphan status is given to drugs that help with life threatening diseases whose markets are small. Neuprex as applied to the meningitis problem clearly fits that category. While approval could not be assumed, it was pretty clear that Neuprex fit into the category. Orphan Drug status gives Xoma tax advantages, so once they thought there was a good chance Neuprex would be approved, it would be stupid of Xoma not to apply. Now that we have it, what does this Orphan Drug status really mean? It means that IF, IF, IF, IF Neuprex gets approved Xoma will have a tax advantage. In that sense it was a non-event. I did; however, like the way they put together the news release. Says a lot for the PR department. Speaking of PR, or IM, or whatever you want to call it, do you really think a large firm does not restrict news release approval to the front office? A SR VP at least. The Orphan Drug status was released by Castello. I urge you to check other press releases and see whose name appears on them. So contrary to popular thinking, the front office is very involved in press releases. As for the new adult meningitis trial; in 1994, Mr. Castello told us Xoma was taking a new strategic direction, focusing attention and resources on clinical development, especially for Neuprex. A lot of other projects were put on the back-burner as a result. Some other company actions have been justified by this "new strategic direction." The new adult meningitis trial; however small, fits into that strategic direction. It's hard for me to believe they knew nothing about it. It's also hard for me to understand why this part of Xoma's long range strategic plan was considered insignificant. If Castello is going to use "strategic direction" to justify company position and actions, then I feel I should be kept aware of that position and resultant actions. The start of adult trials is not insignificant: 1. Is Neuprex going to fail in child meningitis? Meaning is Xoma going to try and save itself once again by attacking a different indication? 2. Is the company so confident about Neuprex that it wants some adult data to present anyone who is considering off-label use for sepsis? 3. Are, as George said, the Brits so pleased with Neuprex that they wanted some adult data? A new clinical trial is important information to shareholders, and the easiest way to ensure all shareholders have equal opportunity to receive the information is via a press release. Let's be honest, Xoma is a black-sheep in the industry, working on a black-sheep product (as far as Wall Street is concerned) that failed approval once before. It is a highly speculative investment, no matter how much some of us believe in the science (that in itself is revealing, note that no one says they believe in the company, only the science). As long as our money is at high risk, as long as we are helping support the company's capitalized value (we don't trade our shares or short the stock), we do deserve information, even on things as TRIVIAL as a new clinical test for Neuprex. All IMHO.