AMGEN KILLS DEAL FOR LYMPHOMA DRUG.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer THOUSAND OAKS Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. - Officials at Amgen Inc. said Tuesday that the biotechnology giant will no longer develop a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma non-Hodg·kin's lymphoma n. Any of various malignant lymphomas characterized by the absence of Reed-Sternberg cells. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma drug, ending a three-year licensing pact with Immunomedics Inc. The companies have agreed to seek another party for the development and commercialization of epratuzumab, a product that has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Trish Hawkins, a spokeswoman for Thousand Oaks-based Amgen, said the decision was based on a general assessment of Amgen's portfolio and other available opportunities. ``We're in the process of exploring alternatives (for epratuzumab). One of them is to return the rights back to Immunomedics,'' Hawkins said. Amgen and Immunomedics, based in Morris Plains, N.J., entered a licensing agreement in December 2000. Terms of the partnership were not disclosed. More recently, the companies attempted to negotiate an extended license agreement that would give Amgen global development rights to epratuzumab. However, negotiators apparently were unable to agree on terms. ``It's not definite, but its possible Immunomedics may be regaining re·gain tr.v. re·gained, re·gain·ing, re·gains 1. To recover possession of; get back again: regain one's strength. See Synonyms at recover. 2. the rights to epratuzumab in North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. and Australia,'' said Cynthia Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of Immunomedics. ``With regards to expanding the licensing rights, we could not reach an agreement on terms, and then Amgen re-evaluated ... saying that they would not be moving this agent forward.'' Shares of Immunomedics declined by $3.87, or 54 percent, to close at $3.38, while Amgen declined by 16 cents to close at $58.98 on the Nasdaq market. Analysts said Amgen simply lacked interest in epratuzumab, especially after another product, rituximab rituximab /ri·tux·i·mab/ (ri-tuk´si-mab) a monoclonal antibody that binds the antigen CD20; used as an antineoplastic in the treatment of CD20-positive, B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. ri·tux·i·mab n. , gained popularity. Genentech Inc. is developing the drug under the name Rituxan Ri·tux·an A trademark for the drug rituximab. rituximab Warning - Hazardous drug! MabThera (UK), Rituxan Pharmacologic class: . ``The potential market size for epratuzumab wasn't there after Rituxan surfaced,'' said Sena Lund, analyst with Cathay Financial in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . ``I think Amgen is making the right decision.'' In a report issued by Bear Stearns The Bear Stearns Companies, Inc. (NYSE: BSC) is the parent company of Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., one of the largest global investment banks and securities trading and brokerage firms in the world. , the brokerage classified the move as a negative for Immunomedics. The note said if Immunomedics regains the rights to epratuzumab, it could thwart the drug's progress. But Sullivan said she did not anticipate that the change would affect the ongoing trials being pursued by the National Cancer Institute. ``The primary objective is to continue development,'' she said. Evan Pondel, (818) 713-3662 evan.pondel(at)dailynews.com |
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