Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (MNTA)

[jbog]

Timing of the CA19 tests? I would imagine is standard to measure at baseline (before treatment) and at various readout points. What could be so complicated on the timing of the test?

Many if not most patients will see a CA19 decrease right from the initial dose, but the longer the CA19 marker is down the better the patient is doing. A 4-8 week CA19 test means very little if the CA19 levels increase soon afterwards. CA19 and OS go hand in hand in pancreatic cancer. The CA19-9 marker is a direct reading of the tumor burden.

Without necuparanib administration - would there be a benefit in CA19 results....?

There is a very important benefit when using the chemo agents only showing the CA19 results correspond to OS results.

The purpose of this trial is to improve OS above and beyond the standard treatment and that's why the CA19 data is important. The DURATION of the marker is also critical.