Biotech, cancer, Cell Therapeutics

Zevalin Causes Long-Lasting Remissions, Researchers Say

Luke Timmerman 12/8/08

Follow-up data from a trial of 409 patients with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma shows that treatment with Zevalin is long lasting, said the drug’s marketer, Seattle-based Cell Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CTIC). Researchers found that patients who had their tumors completely wiped out after taking Zevalin remained in remission for at least 67 months, compared with 31 months for patients in a control group, the company said today in a statement at the American Society of Hematology meeting in San Francisco. Cell Therapeutics recently signed a partnership with Spectrum Pharmaceuticals to co-market the drug, and is seeking permission from the FDA to sell it to a broader group of lymphoma patients.

Luke Timmerman is the National Biotechnology Editor for Xconomy. You can e-mail him at ltimmerman@xconomy.com, call 206-624-2374, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ldtimmerman.