Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: PPHM), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of cancer and viral infections, today reported interim data from an ongoing Phase II clinical trial of its novel brain cancer therapy Cotara(R). Interim median overall survival was 86 weeks for a cohort of 14 patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) treated at first relapse with a single infusion of Cotara. Cotara is a targeted monoclonal antibody linked to a radioisotope that is administered directly into the tumor, destroying the tumor from the inside out, with minimal exposure to healthy tissue.

via ir.peregrineinc.com

I thought this was an interesting announcement this morning from Peregrine. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a particularly nasty malignant cancer, with a tendency to aggressiveness and is generally difficult to treat.

Cotara is a novel experimental antibody based on tumour necrosis therapy (TNT). Although these are only early phase II results based on a portion of the full 40 patients expected in the trial, they look encouraging so far.

I suspect the reason for the press release is that the data is being presented at a neurosurgery meeting that's ongoing at the moment in San Francisco.

Definitely a development worth watching, but ultimately, a larger scale phase III trial will be needed before we can be sure whether or not it will be a valuable addition to the armamentarium.