New Meso Drug in Clinical Trials

June 20, 2006 - On June 19, TopoTarget A/S and CuraGen Corporation announced the initiation of patient dosing in a Phase II clinical trial evaluating the activity of PXD101, a small molecule histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, for the treatment of mesothelioma. This trial is being sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) under a Clinical Trials Agreement.

According to press releases distributed by the drug companies, the study is being headed by Suresh Ramalingam, M.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, in Pittsburgh, and will involve 37 patients who have been diagnosed with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma.  Those participating in the trial will have already tried one form of conventional chemotherapy, with unsuccessful results. 

The trial drug, given by intravenous infusion every three weeks, will be administered at a number of different sites throughout the United States, making it available to a cross section of meso patients.

"A significant amount of preclinical research suggests that HDAC inhibitors, including PXD101, alter the regulation of many genes, resulting in growth inhibition of human mesothelioma cells. We are excited to begin evaluating PXD101 as a potential treatment for this type of cancer," stated Dr. Ramalingam. "There are no proven treatment options beyond the first-line chemotherapy regimen for mesothelioma, highlighting the importance of evaluating promising therapeutics like PXD101 for this patient population.”