Antisoma says lung cancer drug improves survival

September 5, 2007

LONDON (Reuters) - British cancer specialist Antisoma said on Wednesday that an intermediate phase II clinical trial confirmed that its biggest drug hope, ASA404, could help lung cancer patients to live for longer.

Antisoma said the median survival of patients using ASA404 in combination with chemotherapy in the trial was 14.9 months. A previous study produced a median survival of 14 months, compared with 8.8 months for patients receiving chemotherapy alone.

"These data add considerably to the strength of the evidence supporting ASA404 in its lead indication and give us extra confidence as the drug proceeds into phase III testing," Antisoma Chief Executive Glyn Edwards said in a statement.

Antisoma's partner, Novartis, plans to start enrollment of patients into a phase III trial in non-small-cell lung cancer in early 2008.