Replies to post #15350 on GTC Biotherapeutics (fka GTCB)

[n4807g]

Some companies in the field have managed to get "one drug" approved in a more timely fashion.

"A failure? Not sure that is any more than just your persective"

You're right there.....it is a matter of perspective. How anyone would consider a company that has expended as much money and time as GTC has to gain approval for one drug (a job well done) is a fairly hard sell.

I don't necessarily condemn GTC for their situation; look around the biotech village and they have plenty of company. The real difference today is the money train is off the tracks. The endless river of easy cash is kaput. Since enormous amounts of cash are the Mother's Milk of the industry it appears the children are about to starve.

Pray for FDA approval or GTC will end up a small footnote in biotech history along with many of it's peers.

[biopearl]

makarios, Thanks for picking up the torch and thanks to OB for a much needed laugh. Makarios I remember that your wife is a carrier of the hemophillia gene and your interest in this company is more than just passing. There is a great deal of anger on the board and a lot of back and forth about whether to vote for or against the proposal. Everyone who is angry at gtcb (who have done their best in my opinion--I know many don't agree) might consider how they would feel about the CEO of Goldman, Ford, Citi etc. Its really about the market and timing. Its unfortunate that we face dilution to stay alive. This is a small company and I maintain we need to see what happens after approval and so I agree with many here that we should vote yes. Its a moot point in that the top ten posters here have what maybe 2-3 million share between them (excepting Rustyboy) so I don't think our votes will make a material difference. I look forward to the time when we can resume discussions about the science again and to the time you, makarios won't have to worry about the effects of the hemophellia gene on loved ones. bp

[croumagnon]

"It will be a success or failure based on approval...there is no other way and to say it's a failure because it's come down to that is either naive or just irrational."

It all depends what you mean by success. Yes, approval would be success from a technological and patient point of view but that does not necessarilly translate into success from a shareholder point of view, especially given the fact that the future of GTCB may be swallowed by LFB if this proxy passes...

I have previously mentioned Imatron (IMAT) as an example of the above and it is worth repeating the story. IMAT had developped the e-beam driven fast CT scan and was using it (with FDA approval) to scan calcium scores in coronary arteries to determine coronary artery disease. However, at the time, the medical community and the insurance companies did not jump on the bandwagon and the company was having serious financial difficulties. GE stepped in and started loaning them money through GE capital with many strings attached and then managed to eventually takeover the company for no premium whatsoever. Soon after, GE and Siemens started promoting the fast CT scan as the best invention for diagnosing coronary artery disease and now it is an extremely successful technique that is routinely used by cardiologists. The sciences succeeded and so did GE and Siemens in this venture but the shareholders of IMAT got the shaft. If this proxy vote passes, I suspect that the LFB deal would be setting us up for the same sort of fate as what happened to the IMAT sharehoders...