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Underlying Science to Be Presented at American Association for Cancer Research 2003 Annual Meeting
SOURCE: Salmedix Inc.
Salmedix Initiates Phase II Trial For SDX-102, A New Targeted Oncology Agent
SAN DIEGO, April 2, 2003 -- Salmedix Inc. announced today that it has initiated a new multi-center Phase II clinical trial for its second drug, SDX-102 (L-alanosine), in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, mesothelioma, pancreatic cancer, osteosarcoma and soft tissue sarcoma.
Salmedix scientists and scientific collaborators will present three abstracts describing a new laboratory test, which is being used to identify patients for the trial, at the 2003 Annual Meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research which begins April 5 in Toronto.
SDX-102 was previously investigated in clinical trials sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). The original trials were useful to establish the safety and tolerability of SDX-102. Based on recently discovered differences in metabolic pathways in normal cells and certain types of cancer cells, scientists at UCSD proposed and patented a new approach to use the compound. Building on these discoveries, Salmedix has developed a unique and simple laboratory test, which can be conducted on tumor biopsy specimens, to identify patients who are predicted to be selectively sensitive to SDX-102 and, therefore, most likely to respond to the drug.
Laboratory research studies on a broad range of tumors have shown that about 30 percent to 60 percent of patients with selected tumor types, including non-small cell lung cancer, mesothelioma, pancreatic cancer, osteosarcoma and soft tissue sarcoma may be candidates for therapy with SDX-102. The new Salmedix trial will be conducted at more than 15 cancer centers throughout the U.S. and will enroll only those patients identified by the proprietary test developed by Salmedix.
Data on the development of the simple predictive laboratory test, which is the unique basis for the new Salmedix trial, will be presented in three posters at the 2003 Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research by Salmedix scientists and collaborators.
"Cells use two principal pathways to produce adenosine, the building block of ATP, a key source of cellular energy. UCSD scientists discovered that certain tumors lack one of these pathways. In cell culture and animal tumor models, SDX-102 has been shown to be a potent and selective anti-cancer agent in cancers that have only one of the two pathways. This new clinical trial of SDX-102 is an excellent example of translating a research advance from bench to bedside, said Linda Paradiso, D.V.M., senior vice president, clinical and regulatory affairs at Salmedix.
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