Micromet Presents Interim Update on Phase 1 Study of MT110 in Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors
BETHESDA, Md., June 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Micromet, Inc. (Nasdaq: MITI), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of next-generation antibodies for the treatment of cancer, today announced the presentation of updated interim results from a Phase 1 trial of the Company's BiTE antibody MT110 in patients with advanced solid tumors. MT110 is designed to direct a patient's T cells, the immune system's most potent killer cells, against cancer cells that express the epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM). Professor Walter Fiedler, University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany and the study's principal investigator, presented the data today at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL.
As of May 2010, 28 patients with locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic colorectal, gastric, and lung cancer have been treated with MT110 at dose levels ranging from 1 to 24 micrograms per day, in four week treatment cycles. 62% of the enrolled patients had received more than three prior lines of chemotherapy.
Out of 22 patients evaluable for response, disease stabilization was observed in nine patients, with a median duration of 91 days. Consistent with the BiTE mode of action, investigators observed redistribution and expansion of T cells in blood, and infiltration of T cells into tumor tissue. The majority of adverse events were Grade 1 and 2, including fever and nausea. Transient increases in liver laboratory parameters have been observed in the majority of patients at the start of treatment. A new dosing schedule was implemented to reduce the liver enzyme levels at the onset of treatment. To date, no maximum tolerated dose has been reached and dose escalation continues.
"We look forward to continuing dose escalation in the on-going study and exploring the activity of MT110 in an expanded patient population that includes additional solid tumor indications with a high level of EpCAM expression, such as breast, prostate and ovarian cancer," said Christian Itin, Ph.D., Micromet's President and Chief Executive Officer.
A copy of the poster presentation will be available today from the Company's website: www.micromet-inc.com
About BiTE Antibodies
BiTE® antibodies are designed to direct the body's cytotoxic, or cell-destroying, T cells against tumor cells, and represent a new therapeutic approach to cancer therapy. Typically, antibodies cannot engage T cells because T cells lack the appropriate receptors for binding antibodies. BiTE antibodies have been shown to bind T cells to tumor cells, ultimately inducing a self-destruction process in the tumor cells referred to as apoptosis, or programmed cell death. In the presence of BiTE antibodies, T cells have been demonstrated to serially eliminate tumor cells, which explains the activity of BiTE antibodies at very low concentrations. Through the killing process, T cells start to proliferate, which leads to an increased number of T cells at the site of attack.
About Micromet, Inc.
Micromet, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative antibody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer. Its product development pipeline includes novel antibodies generated with its proprietary BiTE® technology, as well as conventional monoclonal antibodies. Two of Micromet's BiTE antibodies and three of its conventional antibodies are currently in clinical trials. Micromet has collaborations with a number of leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including sanofi-aventis, Bayer Schering Pharma, Merck Serono, Boehringer Ingelheim, MedImmune and Nycomed. Additional information can be found at www.micromet-inc.com
Safe Harbor
This press release contains forward looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. Any statements contained herein which do not describe historical facts are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding the development of MT110 and its use in the treatment of cancer. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "ongoing," "may," "will," "believes," "potential," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," or the negative of those words or other similar words to be uncertain and forward-looking. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements include the risk that our preclinical data is not confirmed in clinical trials with our product candidates. This factor and others are more fully discussed in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. We disclaim any obligation to publicly update or revise any such statements to reflect any change in expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Micromet, Inc.
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