Edinburgh, UK. 1 March 2016. BigDNA Ltd, parent organisation of oncology drug development company Iceni Pharmaceuticals announced today that it has completed a £0.5M investment round from internal shareholders, including London-based Imprimatur Capital and the Scottish Investment Bank. BigDNA is transitioning away from its roots as a DNA vaccine development company into the field of small molecule cancer therapies, and is now moving forward with development of its first product Cilcane®, a repositioning of the ex-Merck Serono drug cilengitide. This was dropped by Merck Serono in 2013 following disappointing Phase III clinical trial results investigating its use as a treatment for glioblastoma. Iceni Pharmaceuticals is now looking to take the drug forward into human clinical trials during 2017 for the treatment of multiple myeloma, an incurable bone marrow cancer, followed by transition into other forms of cancer, including breast cancer, based upon the Company’s proprietary IP position.
Said Dr John March, CEO of Iceni Pharmaceuticals ‘We are extremely excited about the unfulfilled potential of Cilcane® as an oncology treatment, coming in part from the exciting work undertaken by our scientific team. This initial investment validates our approach and provides the first step in the process to taking this drug back into clinical trials once again.’
Recent Comments