doch noch ne gute Meldung zum Jahresende!
MISSISSAUGA, Canada ? December 21, 2006 ? YM BioSciences Inc. (AMEX:YMI, TSX:YM, AIM:YMBA), an oncology company that identifies, develops and commercializes differentiated products for patients worldwide, today announced that it has partnered with TTY Biopharm Ltd. of Taipei, Taiwan to expand the development program for its lead drug, tesmilifene, into hepatic cancer.
"This agreement continues and affirms our strategy to expand tesmilifene's market potential geographically and seeks to demonstrate its benefit in additional cancer indications beyond metastatic breast, hormone-refractory prostate and gastric cancer,? said David Allan, Chairman and CEO of YM BioSciences. "Unfortunately, the incidence rate of hepatic cancer in the Taiwanese population is high. A clinical study evaluating tesmilifene in this patient population may prove very useful in Taiwan and potentially other Asian populations. "
YM and TTY will form a Joint Development Team to design a clinical trial in this initial indication and to oversee the development of tesmilifene in additional indications. TTY will fully fund development costs and provide an undisclosed amount of up-front, milestone and royalty payments. In addition, TTY has agreed to conduct a bridging study in the local population in 2007 to support approval in Taiwan for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, should the current pivotal study being conducted by YM be successful in this indication.
About Hepatic Cancer
More than half a million new cases of primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma or HCC) are diagnosed worldwide each year, making it the fifth most common cancer and the third major cause of mortality due to cancer worldwide. The most common cause of HCC is progression of liver cirrhosis brought about by chronic infections such as HBV, HCV and other variant hepatitis infections. HCC is one of the most frequently occurring malignancies in Asia and was the leading cause of cancer related deaths in Taiwan in 2002. Due to late disease diagnosis only 10% to 20% of patients are eligible for surgery. This results in poor survival statistics; inoperable HCC can prove fatal within three to six months.
About TTY Biopharm
TTY BioPharm, established in 1960, is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in Taiwan and is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (symbol: 4105). Its headquarters are in Taipei, Taiwan and the company has offices in Beijing China. TTY established an oncology business unit in 2000 and since then has mainly focused in this area. TTY positions itself as anti-cancer house with comprehensive product portfolio with specialized development expertise in Asian-Pacific regions.
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