Good Morning All,
thought the following may be of some use.
Subject: Vasogen in new clinicl trial for leukemia
TORONTO--(BW HealthWire)--March 22, -
Vasogen Inc. (TSE:VAS.) (AMEX:MEW) today announced that it has received
Health Canada approval to proceed with a clinical trial in leukemia
patients
undergoing bone marrow transplantation. The trial is designed to
investigate
the safety and efficacy of Vasogen's VAS981 cell-processing technology
in
preventing graft-versus-host disease (GvHD)-a potentially
life-threatening
complication of bone marrow transplantation.
Treatments for leukemia often involve the use of powerful
chemotherapeutic
drugs or radiotherapy. These treatments result in the destruction of
bone
marrow, the site of production of immune system cells. The destroyed
bone
marrow is then replaced by bone marrow from a donor that is matched as
closely as possible to that of the patient. GvHD is a potentially fatal
complication of bone marrow transplantation resulting from an immune
response that occurs when T cells in the donated bone marrow (graft),
identify cells and tissues in the recipient's body (host) as foreign and
mount an inflammatory response against them. GvHD causes symptoms
related
predominantly to the skin, bowel, and liver of the recipient.
The VAS981 trial will be carried out at the Princess Margaret Hospital,
under the direction of Dr. Hans Messner, Director of the Bone Marrow
Transplant Program, with results expected in the second half of 2000.
The
Princess Margaret Hospital, a teaching hospital of the University of
Toronto
and a member of the University Health Network, has achieved an
international
reputation as a global leader in the fight against cancer. The trial
will
initially enroll up to six leukemia patients who require a life-saving
bone
marrow transplant. For these cancer patients, the available donor bone
marrow may not be perfectly matched to their tissues, which puts them at
increased risk of developing severe GvHD.
"Although drugs that suppress the immune system can help decrease the
severity of GvHD, it remains a major cause of death in cancer patients
undergoing bone marrow transplantation," said Dr. Messner. "A technology
to
address this serious medical problem would make life-saving bone marrow
transplants more effective and may facilitate their use in patients with
less than an ideal match."
Previously announced results from research conducted at the Division of
Cancer Biology Research, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University
of
Toronto, under the direction of Dr. David Spaner, demonstrated that the
treatment of donor immune cells with VAS981 prior to transplantation
prevented GvHD in pre-clinical models. The effects of VAS981 on human
immune
cells that are administered in bone marrow grafts and that cause GvHD
have
also been investigated. The results demonstrate that VAS981-treated
cells
produced much lower levels of the inflammatory cytokines that are
associated
with GvHD. The in vitro changes seen in these laboratory studies on
human
cells closely mirrored those seen in vivo in the pre-clinical models,
where
they were associated with a dramatic reduction in GvHD.
Complications associated with GvHD cost health care systems in excess of
$500 million annually and severely limit the number of donor bone marrow
transplant procedures that can be performed. Overcoming this problem
would
make it possible to extend life-saving bone marrow transplantation to
thousands more cancer patients each year.
Vasogen is focused on developing immune modulation therapies to advance
the
treatment of cardiovascular, autoimmune and related inflammatory
diseases.
These therapies are designed to target fundamental disease-causing
events,
providing safe, effective treatment.
Statements contained in this press release, including those pertaining
to
scientific and clinical research, commercialization plans, strategic
alliances, and intellectual property protection, other than statements
of
historical fact, are forward-looking statements subject to a number of
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
statements made.
CONTACT: Vasogen Inc. | http://www.vasogen.com | INVESTOR CONTACT:
Trevor
Burns | Investor Relations | tel: (905) 569-9065 | e-mail:
investor@vasogen.com
God Bless You All,
marty auslander
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