November 3, 2010
AVEO Pharmaceuticals’ Tivozanib Recognized as One of Windhover’s 2011 Top 10 Oncology Projects to Watch
AVEO to Present at Windhover’s Annual Therapeutic Area Partnerships Meeting
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Nov 03, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVEO), a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing cancer therapeutics, today announced that its lead product candidate, tivozanib, has been selected as one of Windhover’s “2011 Top 10 Oncology Projects to Watch.” Tivozanib is a highly potent and selective inhibitor of VEGF receptors 1, 2, and 3, currently being evaluated in a global Phase 3 clinical trial, TIVO-1, comparing tivozanib versus sorafenib in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
“We are very pleased that Windhover and its committee of advisors have recognized tivozanib as one of the top 10 projects to watch in the field of oncology in 2011,” said Elan Ezickson, executive vice president and chief business officer at AVEO. “We believe tivozanib’s promising tolerability and efficacy profile supports the potential for broad applicability and combinability with chemotherapies and other targeted agents. Tivozanib is currently being evaluated in multiple ongoing clinical trials as a single-agent and in combination with approved agents for the treatment of kidney, gastrointestinal, metastatic breast, and lung cancers.”
In conjunction with AVEO’s recognition on the “2011 Top 10 Oncology Projects to Watch” list, Mr. Ezickson will present at 12:00 p.m. (EDT) today at Windhover’s Annual Therapeutic Area Partnerships meeting at the Westin Copley Place in Boston.
“Selected companies have been screened using a strict set of judging criteria for the Top 10 award and represent what our committees considered the most attractive oncology opportunities the industry has to offer,” said David Cassak, vice president, content, Windhover Conferences, a division of Elsevier Business Intelligence. “Winners have met rigorous criteria, including: unmet medical need, market potential, diversity of indications, strong science, multi-level partnering opportunities (biotech and pharma), potential for new opportunities beyond initial indications and corporate stability.”
About Tivozanib
Tivozanib, an investigational new drug, is a highly potent and selective inhibitor of VEGF receptors 1, 2 and 3, exhibiting picomolar inhibitory activity against all three receptors. Due to its potency and specificity, AVEO believes tivozanib may enable optimal inhibition of the VEGF pathway, while minimizing side effects associated with off-target activity. Such a profile may enable tivozanib to be more readily combined with standard chemotherapy as well as other targeted therapies, potentially increasing the breadth of its clinical utility. The EMA has granted AVEO orphan medicinal product designation for tivozanib for the treatment of RCC.
AVEO recently completed patient enrollment ahead of schedule in TIVO-1, a global, randomized (1:1), controlled Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating tivozanib compared to sorafenib (Nexavar(R)) in patients with RCC. The company has initiated a series of clinical trials evaluating tivozanib in combination with other agents in multiple solid tumor settings, including an ongoing Phase 1b trial in combination with temsirolimus (Torisel(R)), an approved mTOR inhibitor, in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma; a Phase 1b trial in combination with the FOLFOX6 chemotherapy regimen in patients with advanced colorectal cancer and other gastrointestinal cancers; and a Phase 1b trial in combination with paclitaxel (Taxol(R)) in patients with metastatic breast cancer. A Phase 1b trial evaluating tivozanib as monotherapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer is also being conducted.
AVEO is also utilizing its Human Response Platform(TM) in its efforts to help identify rational drug combinations and patient populations most likely to be responsive to these combination therapies.
About AVEO
AVEO Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AVEO) integrates a proprietary cancer biology platform with drug development and commercial expertise in its efforts to discover and develop targeted cancer therapeutics. The company’s lead product, tivozanib, is an oral, triple VEGF receptor inhibitor with a highly differentiated profile. Tivozanib is currently being investigated in a global, randomized Phase 3 clinical trial called TIVO-1 comparing tivozanib to sorafenib in advanced kidney cancer, as well as additional clinical studies in other solid tumor types. AVEO’s second product candidate, AV-299, is a potent, functional anti-HGF antibody that is currently in Phase 2 development. AVEO’s proprietary, integrated cancer biology platform offers the company a unique advantage in oncology drug development and has provided a discovery engine for high-value targets. This approach has resulted in a promising pipeline of monoclonal antibodies against novel targets including HGF, ErbB3, RON, Notch and FGFR. For more information, please visit the company’s website at www.aveopharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release about tivozanib’s tolerability and efficacy profile suggesting the potential for broad applicability and combinability with chemotherapies and other targeted agents, Windhover’s conclusions with respect to tivozanib being one of the most attractive oncology opportunities the industry has to offer, Windhover’s criteria for selection as a top 10 oncology to watch, including considerations related to tivozanib’s market potential, diversity of indications, multi-level partnering opportunities and potential for new opportunities beyond initial indications, tivozanib’s potential forenabling optimal inhibition of the VEGF pathway while minimizing side effects,and AVEO’s proprietary, integrated cancer biology platform offering AVEO a unique advantage in oncology drug development, and other statements containing the words “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “will,” and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including risks relating to: AVEO’s ability to successfully research, develop, obtain and maintain regulatory approvals for tivozanib and its other product candidates; AVEO’s inability to obtain and maintain adequate protection for intellectual property rights relating to AVEO’s product candidates and technologies; AVEO’s ability to consummate additional strategic partnerships on favorable terms; AVEO’s inability to raise substantial additional funds to achieve its goals; general economic and industry conditions; and other factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of AVEO’s most recent Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in other filings that AVEO periodically makes with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent AVEO’s views as of the date of this press release. AVEO anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause AVEO’s views to change. However, while AVEO may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, AVEO specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing AVEO’s views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.
SOURCE: AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
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