In the expanded partnership, OncoGenex will be solely responsible for the preclinical and clinical development of the added anticancer drugs. OncoGenex will pay Isis an upfront fee, milestone payments for key clinical and regulatory achievements, and royalties on product sales.
OncoGenex and Isis initiated a partnership in December 2001 to co-develop OGX-011, a drug currently in phase I/II development for the treatment of prostate, breast and lung cancers. In 2003, OncoGenex and Isis added a second drug to their collaboration, OGX-225, which is in the research phase of development.
OncoGenex has not yet selected the molecular targets for drug development under the new agreement and specific financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
“Our collaboration with OncoGenex has been very productive,” said Dr C Frank Bennett, vice president of Antisense Research at Isis. “We are pleased to expand this relationship and increase the number of second-generation antisense drugs being studied for the treatment of cancer.”