MedCI Announces Strategic Alliance With Genta Incorporated to Secure Tesetaxel Licensing Partner
Oncology Focused Companies Targeted for Tesetaxel and Oral Gallium Partnerships
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Jan 27, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- MedCI LLC, a life-science business consulting services company, announced the formation of a new strategic alliance with Genta Incorporated /quotes/comstock/11k!geta (GETA 0.09, +0.00, +2.31%) to secure licensing partners for Genta's small molecule oncology compound, tesetaxel. Tesetaxel is the leading oral taxane in clinical development and is a core component of Genta's investigational drug portfolio. Under the agreement, MedCI will continue and extend current discussions with leading pharmaceutical companies in South Korea that focus on oncology.
With this agreement, MedCI joins an existing three-party alliance that complements Genta's Business Development initiatives in East Asia (Japan, China and Korea) for oral tesetaxel, as well as a global licensing program for oral gallium. The goal of this alliance is to evaluate partners and terms for co-development and commercialization and to rapidly close a transaction.
Tesetaxel has demonstrated anticancer activity in several Phase 2 clinical trials. The drug has not caused severe infusion reactions that are associated with other taxanes. Moreover, unlike other taxanes, nerve damage has not been a prominent side effect of tesetaxel. Thus, the drug may offer substantial opportunities to improve patient convenience, safety, and anticancer activity. More than 280 patients worldwide have been treated with oral tesetaxel in Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials. Genta plans to rapidly expand its clinical development program for tesetaxel into a number of new indications and is seeking partners for both territorial and global development.
"We are delighted that MedCI has been selected by Genta to lead the tesetaxel licensing discussions in South Korea," said Manish Singhal, M.D., MedCI's lead partner. "Our existing relationships within the Korean pharmaceutical industry and expert knowledge of best business practices, combined with the significant business potential of tesetaxel, positions MedCI and Genta for success in this endeavor."
"Gastric cancer is the most commonly diagnosed neoplastic disease in East Asia and the basis for our targeted partnership efforts in Japan, Korea and China. It is a lead indication in our global clinical development program for tesetaxel," noted Lloyd Sanders, Genta's Chief Operating Officer. "While we continue productive discussions with a number of potential partners in Korea, we look forward to the expertise of the MedCI team in optimizing, closing, and managing a productive development and commercial relationship on this core initiative."
About MedCI
MedCI is a consulting services company facilitating cross-border business transactions with biotech and pharmaceutical companies in East Asia. With on the ground presence in the rapidly growing markets of South Korea and China as well as USA and Japan, MedCI integrates local market intelligence with comprehensive support services to ensure maximum strategic and financial returns for its clients. Services include in-depth market research, full business and corporate development activities, and post-deal alliance management. For information about MedCI, please email: info@medci.com.
About Genta
Genta Incorporated is a biopharmaceutical company with a diversified product portfolio that is focused on delivering innovative products for the treatment of patients with cancer. Two major programs anchor the Company's research platform: DNA/RNA-based Medicines and Small Molecules. Genasense(R) (oblimersen sodium) Injection is the Company's lead compound from its DNA/RNA Medicines program. Genasense(R) is being developed as an agent that may enhance the effectiveness of current anticancer therapy. The Company is currently collecting long-term followup data on durable response and overall survival from its recently completed randomized Phase 3 trial of Genasense(R) in patients with advanced melanoma. The leading drug in Genta's Small Molecule program is Ganite(R) (gallium nitrate injection), which the Company is exclusively marketing in the U.S. for treatment of symptomatic patients with cancer related hypercalcemia that is resistant to hydration. The Company has developed proprietary oral formulations of the active ingredient in Ganite(R), which have completed preliminary clinical trials, as a potential treatment for diseases associated with accelerated bone loss. The Company is developing tesetaxel, a novel, orally absorbed, semi-synthetic taxane that is in the same class of drugs as paclitaxel and docetaxel. Genta intends to evaluate the clinical activity of tesetaxel in a range of human cancers. Ganite(R) and Genasense(R) are available on a "named-patient" basis in countries outside the United States. For more information about Genta, please visit: www.genta.com.
