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Hutchison China MediTech enrols patients for Phase III testing

Published: 05:23 13 May 2016 EDT

Cancer cells
In 2012 there were 390,000 new cases of colorectal cancer.

Hutchison China MediTech Limited (LON:HCM NASDAQ:HCM) has enrolled 416 patients in a pivotal phase III trial to test the efficacy of its fruquintinib drug on metastatic colorectal cancer.

The healthcare group’s drug has been shown to inhibit vascular growth receptors to cut off blood supply to the tumour. The drug is active 24 hours a day without known toxicities or damage to non-healthy tissue.

It will carry out the trial in China, where an estimated 390,000 new cases of colorectal cancer were diagnosed in 2012.

The trial will evaluate the efficacy of the drug versus a placebo, with all patients receiving best supportive care. The primary endpoint is overall survival.

Christian Hogg, Chief Executive Officer of Chi-Med said the enrolment was an important milestone for the group.

"We believe fruquintinib has the potential to significantly improve outcomes in several types of solid tumours,” said Hogg.

"These patients really have no other alternative, all other treatments have failed, so if you can extend the lives of patients in these very difficult settings that's fantastic."

Once approved, the treatment would then be trialed on patients at earlier stages in treatment, possibly in conjunction with chemotherapy, he explained.

Results are expected by the end of the year, after which it will be submitting for approval in China.

The group is also focused on accelerating the on-going phase III pivotal trial in non-small cell lung cancer, as well as launching additional studies of fruquintinib, including a Phase II study in gastric cancer and certain exploratory studies in combination with other oncology agents.

The positive data from its double-blind phase II trial of fruquintinib resulted in a US$18mln payment to from its partner, Eli Lilly and Company.

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