Scancell approved to raise dose on cancer vaccine trials

AIM-listed Scancell, the developer of therapeutic cancer vaccines, has announced that two key medical regulation bodies have given approval for a higher dose to be allowed in the company's latest trials on a vaccine to treat melanoma.

The Gene Therapy Advisory Committee and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's (MHRA) Medicines Division gave their approval for Scancell to dose an extra group of patients with a higher, 8 mg, dose of SCIB1, its DNA ImmunoBody vaccine being developed for the treatment of melanoma.

Scancell is planning to start treating patients with the 8mg dose in the new year.

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This update follows the announcement made by Scancell on December 6th 2012, of preliminary results from Part 1 of the Phase 1/2 clinical trial of SCIB1 in patients with Stage III/IV malignant melanoma.

In view of the encouraging results and minimal side effects seen with the 4mg dose, the company stated that it intended to evaluate an 8mg dose in parallel with Part 2 of the Phase1/2 study.

Part 2 of the study continues to be on track to be completed by the end of 2013. A successful outcome, if achieved, would confirm the potential of SCIB1 as a new cancer treatment as well as validating the Immunobody platform technology.

Professor Lindy Durrant, Joint Chief Executive Officer of Scancell, commented: "This approval from GTAC and MHRA provides Scancell with the opportunity to determine whether a higher dose of SCIB1 would be even more effective in inducing immune response and clinical benefit in late stage melanoma patients."

Scancell's share price was up 2.06% to 49.50p at 12:26 on Wednesday afternoon.

MF