In December 2003, Array partnered the oncology portion of its MEK program, including its lead compound, ARRY-886, for co-development and commercialization with AstraZeneca. The collaboration included development of additional clinical candidates, which resulted in the selection of ARRY-704 in December 2005. AstraZeneca is condcuting the study of the candidate ARRY-704 which triggered the payment to Array.
ARRY-704 blocks signal transduction pathways implicated in cancer cell proliferation and survival. ARRY-704 has shown tumor suppressive activity in multiple preclinical models of human cancer including melanoma, pancreatic, colon, lung, and breast cancers.
Array BioPharma believes that MEK inhibition is an attractive anticancer strategy as it has the potential to block inappropriate signal transduction regardless of the upstream position of the oncogenic aberration.