PALO ALTO, Calif., Sept. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Telik, Inc. (Nasdaq: TELK) today announced the publication in the journal Cancer of A Phase 2 Multicenter Study of Two Extended Dosing Schedules of Oral Ezatiostat in Low to Intermediate-1 Risk Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), Raza, A., et al., Cancer, doi: 10.1002/cncr.26469, September 1, 2011. The publication may be found at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cncr.26469/abstract.
A significant finding of the study was that Telintra® (ezatiostat) had important efficacy in a group of 19 patients that were transfusion-dependent and Dacogen® and Vidaza® naive. A 63% (12/19) Hematologic Improvement-Erythroid response rate was observed in this group, including clinically significant transfusion reductions (9 patients) or complete transfusion independence (3 patients). The median duration of response was 46 weeks. Of the 19 patients, 9 also had severely low white blood cell levels. Three of these 9 patients (33%) achieved a Hematologic Improvement-Neutrophil response.
Telintra is the first GST P1-1 inhibitor shown to cause clinically significant and sustained reduction in red blood cell transfusions, transfusion independence and multilineage responses in MDS patients. Telintra’s tolerability and activity profile may offer a new treatment option for MDS patients.
Background on MDS and Telintra
The myelodysplastic syndrome is a heterogeneous group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by ineffective hematopoiesis (blood cell production) involving one or more cell lineages (red blood cells, white blood cells or platelets) and a variable risk of transformation to acute myeloid leukemia. It is estimated that MDS affects approximately 300,000 people worldwide. According to the American Cancer Society, 10,00020,000 new cases of MDS are diagnosed each year in the United States, with survival rates ranging from six months to six years. MDS patients often require multiple blood transfusions to manage their disease.
Telintra has a novel mechanism of action that inhibits an enzyme called glutathione S-transferase P1-1, which leads to activation of Jun kinase, a key regulator of cellular growth and differentiation of blood precursor cells; and induces cancer cell death, or apoptosis, in human leukemia cell lines. Telintra is also being evaluated in a Phase 2 clinical study in Revlimid® refractory and resistant deletion 5q MDS patients. Additional information about Telintra is available at www.telik.com.
About Telik, Inc.
Telik, Inc. of Palo Alto, CA, is a clinical stage drug development company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat cancer. The company’s most advanced drug candidate is Telintra®, a modified glutathione analog intended for the treatment of hematologic disorders including myelodysplastic syndrome; followed by Telcyta®, a cancer activated prodrug for the treatment of a variety of cancers. Telik’s product candidates were discovered using its proprietary drug discovery technology, TRAP®, which enables the rapid and efficient discovery of small molecule drug candidates.
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements regarding the future development of Telintra, the safety and effectiveness of Telintra in treating MDS, whether Telintra treatment results in hematologic improvement in patients with MDS, and whether Telintra reduces the need for, or offers an alternative to, red blood cell transfusions in patients with MDS. These forward-looking statements are based upon Telik’s current expectations and there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements. Detailed information regarding factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by statements in this press release may be found in Telik’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the factors described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ending June 30, 2011. Telik does not undertake any obligation to update forward looking statements contained in this press release.
TELIK, the Telik logo, TELINTRA, TELCYTA and TRAP are trademarks or registered trademarks of Telik, Inc.
SOURCE Telik, Inc.
