Preclinical outpouring

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) meeting in Philadelphia resulted in an outpouring of preclinical data last week - 21 press releases from 19 companies. Given that the majority of these releases - 14 - represented preclinical data about compounds that are already in clinical trials, investors who received the announcements might have asked why they should care. What they really want are the clinical results.

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (PGNX, Tarrytown, N.Y.), for example, has more than 700 patients enrolled in an 850-patient Phase III trial of its GMK melanoma vaccine, with data expected in 2000 after an analysis of relapse rates is complete. In the meantime, PGNX Chairman and CEO Paul Maddon said the in vitro data presented at AACR using the serum from patients in the company's Phase II trial provide important follow-up on the generation of antibodies by the vaccine and the in vitro activity of those antibodies...