Reuters: Global Markets: Vical drops cancer therapy after trial failure, shares plunge

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Vical drops cancer therapy after trial failure, shares plunge Aug 12th 2013, 11:10 Mon Aug 12, 2013 7:10am EDT (Reuters) - Vical Inc said it would stop developing its most advanced product, cancer therapy Allovectin, after a late-stage trial failed to show that the treatment was significantly better than chemotherapy. Vical shares sank 53 percent in premarket trade. They closed at $3.58 on Friday on the Nasdaq. "In the coming weeks, we will make the necessary changes to focus resources on our infectious disease vaccine programs and reduce expenses to conserve cash," Chief Executive Vijay Samant said in a statement. The 390-patient trial tested Allovectin for the treatment of advanced melanoma - the deadliest form of skin cancer. Allovectin failed to significantly reduce the size of tumors or increase the overall survival of patients, as compared to chemotherapy. The company has several independent and collaborative programs for infectious disease vaccines. The two independent vaccine programs - for herpes simplex virus (HSV) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) - have not entered clinical trials yet. Vical said it planned to initiate an early-mid stage trial of its HSV vaccine before the end of 2013 and was seeking a partner for further development of the CMV vaccine. The company had cash and investments of $70 million as of June 30, which it said would be adequate for its expected needs at least through the end of 2014. (Reporting by Esha Dey in Bangalore; Editing by Ted Kerr and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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