Oncothyreon to receive $5 million payment

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[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\nBELLEVUE, WA, Dec. 17 /CNW/ - Oncothyreon Inc. (Nasdaq: ONTY) (TSX:ONY)\ntoday announced that it has completed the transfer of certain assays and\nmethodology related to Stimuvax(R) (BLP25 liposome vaccine) to Merck KGaA of\nDarmstadt, Germany, triggering a payment to Oncothyreon of $5 million. The\npayment will be made under the terms of the amended and restated supply\nagreement signed in August 2007.\n\n\n"We are pleased with the progress of our collaboration with Merck KGaA\nfor Stimuvax," said Robert L. Kirkman, M.D., President and Chief Executive\nOfficer of Oncothyreon. "Stimuvax is an exciting product candidate with\npromising Phase 2 data supporting its development as a maintenance therapy\nafter first-line therapy for patients with Stage III non-small cell lung\ncancer (NSCLC). There are currently no products approved for this indication,\nwhich therefore represents both significant unmet medical need and a\npotentially large market opportunity."\n\n\nStimuvax is an innovative investigational therapeutic cancer vaccine\ndesigned to induce an immune response to cancer cells that express MUC1, a\nprotein antigen widely expressed on common cancers. Merck KGaA currently is\nconducting a global Phase 3 trial of Stimuvax in patients with unresectable\nStage III NSCLC. This global trial, known as START (Stimulating Targeted\nAntigenic Responses To NSCLC) is expected to enroll more than 1,300 patients\nin approximately 30 countries. The trial is designed to assess survival in\npatients receiving best supportive care and Stimuvax compared with patients\nreceiving best supportive care alone.\n\n\nAbout the START Trial\n\n\nThe START trial is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study\nthat will evaluate patients with documented unresectable stage III NSCLC who\nhave had a response or stable disease after at least two cycles of platinum\nbased chemo-radiotherapy. The study has been designed considering scientific\nadvice from the European Medicines Agency (EMEA/CHMP) and has been agreed upon\nwith the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) through a Special Protocol\nAssessment (SPA). Data from a randomized Phase IIb trial described below\nencouraged the initiation of the Phase III program.\n\n\nFor more information on the START trial, or to find a participating\ncenter and eligibility crite...

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