Antisoma and Novartis have a worldwide development and commercialization agreement for ASA404. Trials in breast cancer will be in addition to two ongoing pivotal Phase III trials in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, one (Attract-1) testing ASA404 as a first-line treatment and the other (Attract-2) evaluating ASA404 as a second-line treatment.
Because ASA404 acts by disrupting tumor blood vessels, it has potential application against a variety of solid tumors, all of which depend on tumor blood vessels to survive and grow, the two companies said.
Glyn Edwards, CEO of Antisoma, said: “We are very pleased that Novartis is extending the development of ASA404 to metastatic breast cancer. This represents a significant additional opportunity for ASA404. While there have been many advances in the treatment of breast cancer, there remains a great need for new and innovative approaches, especially for patients with metastatic cancer.”