The study will be conducted at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. MKC-1 is also being evaluated currently in a phase II clinical study in patients with metastatic breast cancer.
Patients with relapsed or refractory leukemias will be enrolled. MKC-1 has shown good activity against a variety of blood cell lines leading to interest in a clinical trial in patients with leukemias.
MKC-1 is an orally active cell cycle inhibitor with efficacy against a wide range of human solid tumor cell lines. MKC-1 has demonstrated broad-acting anti tumor effects. In addition to the strong preclinical activity of MKC-1 towards solid tumor lines, the lack of neuropathy and cardiotoxicity seen in clinical trials suggests that MKC-1 may also be valuable in the treatment of hematological cancers.
“Initiation of this clinical trial represents continued progress on our clinical development plan for MKC-1. This is the first clinical study where MKC-1 will be given to patients with hematological cancers. These patients may be particularly suited for MKC-1 treatment based on MKC-1’s mechanisms of action,” commented Carolyn Sidor EntreMed’s vice president.