PROLX: Beneficiary of a $6 Million Grant to Fund Anticancer Drug Discovery Research.Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers BIOWIRE2K PITTSBURGH--(BW HealthWire)--Nov. 2, 2000 PROLX Pharmaceuticals has been appointed Corporate Partner of a trio of the leading research institutions in the country that has received a $6 million Novel Cancer Drug Discovery Grant (NCDDG NCDDG National Cooperative Drug Discovery Groups ) from the National Cancer Institute. The research sites include the Arizona Cancer Center in Tucson, AZ, Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC, and the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA. The five-year grant will support the discovery of effective new agents against cancer by targeting the unique pathways that cancer cells cells once believed to be peculiar to cancers, but now know to be epithelial cells differing in no respect from those found elsewhere in the body, and distinguished only by peculiarity of location and grouping. See also: Cancer utilize to grow and communicate with other cells and avoid natural cell death. "We are entering an era where technology has opened the door for us to identify anticancer drugs Anticancer Drugs Definition Anticancer, or antineoplastic, drugs are used to treat malignancies, or cancerous growths. Drug therapy may be used alone, or in combination with other treatments such as surgery or radiation therapy. that specifically target cancer cells, leaving healthy cells untouched," explains Dr. Garth Powis, Director of Basic Research at the Arizona Cancer Center, and the NCDDG grant's Project Leader. "This grant will specifically focus on our efforts to identify, screen and develop a series of diverse compounds that target the unique characteristics of cancer cells with the ultimate goal of bringing these new agents into clinical trials." "This new approach to cancer drug discovery will result in compounds that minimize or even eliminate treatment-related side effects Side effects Effects of a proposed project on other parts of the firm. because only the cancer cell will be impacted," Powis says. PROLX Pharmaceuticals will provide drug development support and facilitate bringing these novel cancer therapies into clinical trials. As the corporate sponsor, PROLX retains the option to develop all of the technologies discovered under this grant by the trio of academic institutions over the five-year period. PROLX Pharmaceuticals' CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. , Dr. Lynn Kirkpatrick emphasizes, "PROLX is pleased to support this novel cancer drug development program that should provide cancer patients with extremely novel therapies and new choices for treatment in the next decade." PROLX Pharmaceuticals is a privately held biotechnology company focusing on redox redox (rē`dŏks): see oxidation and reduction. regulation of cancer cell growth. The company's first drug, PX-12, is poised to enter a Phase I clinical trial Noun 1. phase I clinical trial - a clinical trial on a few persons to determine the safety of a new drug or invasive medical device; for drugs, dosage or toxicity limits should be obtained phase I in the next few months. |
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