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The first license agreement grants MabVax exclusive development andcommercialization rights to multiple vaccines against recurrent cancer for sixdifferent types of cancer. MSKCC plans to initiate Phase I clinical trials ineach of these types of cancer this year or early next year. Upon successfuldemonstration of immunogenicity and tolerability in the Phase I trials insarcoma and small cell lung cancer, MabVax will initiate Phase II trials inthese two cancer types. In addition to MabVax's efforts, MSKCC is planning toconduct Phase II trials with the licensed vaccines in ovarian and breastcancer. Pending successful outcomes, MabVax can assume responsibility forcontinued development and eventual commercialization of these vaccines.
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The second license agreement grants MabVax exclusive rights to the use ofthe licensed vaccines and lymphocytes from successfully vaccinated clinicaltrial participants. MabVax plans to rescue antibodies from these patientsamples to create a pipeline of fully human monoclonal antibody productsagainst each of the vaccine targets expressed on the surface of the cancercells. By rescuing antibodies from a selection of patients who generate auseful immune response, MabVax can select the optimal antibodies and developthem as either stand alone products or as combination products with thevaccines. MabVax has established a laboratory and office in the San Diegoarea to launch this effort.
"The completion of these two agreements establishes the scientificfoundation of the company and firmly set us on a research and developmentpathway that we hope will address a significant unmet medical need bypreventing recurrence in certain types of cancers and prolonging patientsurvival," said David Hansen, the company's President and Chief ExecutiveOfficer. Philip Livingston, M.D., the company's Chief Science Officer andco-founder of MabVax added, "Targeting residual circulating cancer cells andmicrometastasis with passively administered or vaccine induced antibodiesagainst multiple targets is an approach well suited to eradicating the cancercells that cause metastatic disease. Our clinical trials over the nextseveral years will tell us a great deal about the utility of this approach totreating cancer."
About MabVax Therapeutics, Inc.
MabVax was formed to commercialize the work of Dr. Phil Livingston andcolleagues at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) who over the last25 years have developed monovalent cancer vaccines against ten distinctantigenic targets on various types of cancer cells. These vaccines targetgangliosides and other carbohydrate antigens that are the most extensivelyexpressed antigenic targets on the cell surface of certain cancers. Vaccines,or passively administered antibodies developed from these vaccines, producedevidence demonstrating the prevention of tumor recurrence and prolongedsurvival in preclinical models and supporting data in early Phase I humanclinical trials. The company is initially focused on developing polyvalentvaccines and a pipeline of fully human monoclonal antibodies to address avariety of cancers including sarcoma, small cell lung cancer, and melanoma.MabVax closed a Series A venture financing with GBP Capital in late February2008.
SOURCE MabVax Therapeutics, Inc.
