Clinical Trial STA 9090

[Guest guest]

March 19, 2009. In preclinical models, we have seen potent activity in cancers

that have become resistant to kinase inhibitors such as imatinib (Gleevec®),

erlotinib (Tarceva®), and sunitinib (Sutent®), and, importantly,

substantially improved safety and potency compared to the first-generation,

ansamycin family of Hsp90 inhibitors, including activity in models resistant to

17-AAG. The collected data suggest hematologic malignancies are a particularly

good choice for the clinical development of STA-9090. "

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com:80/articles/142786.php

A Phase I trial of STA-9090, a new inhibitor of heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90),

was begun in November 2007 at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The lead

investigator is Geoffrey Shapiro, MD PhD. This trial uses a twice-per-week

dosing schedule (trial NCT00688116).

In addition, in January 2008 Synta announced the initiation of a second Phase I

trial with a once-per-wek dosing schedule (trial NCT00687934), as described in

this news story. In March 2009 Synta announced an additional Phase I/II trial

for hematological cancers, with plans for opening an additional trial for solid

tumors later in 2009. A press release from manufacturer Synta Pharmaceuticals

included these statements: " In preclinical studies, STA-9090 has shown the

ability to inhibit multiple kinases with comparable potency to, and a broader

activity profile than specific kinase inhibitors such as imatinib (Gleevec®),

erlotinib (Tarceva®), and sunitinib (Sutent®). In addition, STA-9090 has

shown potency 10 to 100 times greater than the geldanamycin family of Hsp90

inhibitors, as well as activity against a wider range of kinases. In in vivo

models, STA-9090 has shown strong efficacy in a wide range of cancer types,

including cancers resistant to Gleevec, Tarceva, and Sutent. "

LINK HERE for the trial descriptions at clinicaltrials.gov.

Press release at manufacturer's website:

http://ir.syntapharma.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=274813

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News from Down Under. Small number of cases diagnosed.

Each year in Australia around 249 people are diagnosed with CML*. Overall, CML

is a rare disease, accounting for around 0.3 per cent of all cancers diagnosed.

Who gets it?

CML can occur at any age but it is more common in adults over the age of 50, who

account for nearly 70 per cent of all cases. CML occurs more frequently in men

than in women. It is rare in children (0-14 years) with around 4 cases per year

diagnosed in this age group.

Blessings,

Lottie