PRINCETON, N.J., Feb. 18, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Advaxis, Inc. (Nasdaq:ADXS), a biotechnology company developing the next generation of cancer immunotherapies, announced that it will participate in the Canaccord Genuity Orphan Drug One-on-One Day, Monday, February 24, 2014 at the Omni Berkshire Place in New York.
The event will give Advaxis the opportunity to connect with key investors in the biotechnology industry who focus on companies developing drugs that have received Orphan Drug Designation. Advaxis' lead product candidate, ADXS-HPV, has been granted Orphan Drug Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Orphan Products Development (OOPD) for the treatment of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated anal cancer and head and neck cancer.
Orphan Drug Designation is granted to drug therapies intended to treat diseases or conditions that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States. Orphan Drug Designation entitles the sponsor to clinical protocol assistance with the FDA, as well as federal grants, tax credits, and potentially a seven year market exclusivity period.
If you are attending the conference and would like to meet with Advaxis, please contact us using the Advaxis contact listed at the end of this release.
About Orphan Drug Designation
Under the Orphan Drug Act (ODA), the FDA may grant orphan designation to a drug or biological product intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or more than 200,000 individuals in the United States and for which there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing and making a drug or biological product available in the United States for this type of disease or condition will be recovered from sales of the product. The benefits of orphan drug designation can be substantial and include federal grants, tax credits, and potentially a seven year market exclusivity period once the product is approved, provided that the product is first to market.
In order for a sponsor to obtain orphan designation for a drug or biological product, an application must be submitted to OOPD, and the designation approved. The approval of an application for orphan designation is based upon the information submitted by the sponsor. A drug that has obtained orphan designation is said to have "orphan status." Each designation request must stand on its own merit. Sponsors requesting designation of the same drug for the same indication as a previously designated product must submit their own data in support of their designation request. The approval of an orphan designation request does not alter the standard regulatory requirements and process for obtaining marketing approval. Safety and efficacy of a compound must be established through adequate and well-controlled studies.
About Advaxis, Inc.
Advaxis is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing the next generation of cancer immunotherapies. Advaxis' immunotherapies are based on a novel platform technology using live, attenuated bacteria to stimulate the immune system to selectively target cancer cells while reducing tumor defenses.
ADXS-HPV, Advaxis' lead immunotherapy for the treatment of HPV-associated cancers, has demonstrated improved survival and objective tumor responses in a Phase 2 trial in 110 patients with recurrent cervical cancer. Advaxis is now planning the registrational program for ADXS-HPV. ADXS-HPV is also being evaluated in other HPV-associated cancers including a Phase 2 in advanced cervical cancer, a Phase 1/2 in head and neck cancer, and a Phase 1/2 in anal cancer. ADXS-HPV has orphan drug status for both anal and head and neck cancers. As part of its global commercialization strategy to enter into regional licensing deals with other market dominant biopharmaceutical companies in territories where there is a high prevalence of HPV-associated cancers, Advaxis has granted exclusive licenses for the development and commercialization of ADXS-HPV in Asia and India.
ADXS-cHER2 is an immunotherapy for the treatment of HER2 overexpressing cancers (such as breast, gastric, esophageal, and other cancers in humans and for osteosarcoma in canines). Advaxis' lead animal-health immunotherapy, ADXS-cHER2, has demonstrated encouraging survival data in a Phase 1 trial in canine osteosarcoma. These data provide the rationale to advance this same immunotherapy into a Phase 1 clinical trial in women with HER2-positive breast cancer. The Company is preparing an IND submission for ADXS-cHER2 in breast cancer in 2014.
Advaxis has created more than 15 distinct immunotherapies based on its platform, either directly or through strategic collaborations with recognized cancer centers of excellence such as: the University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, the Georgia Regents University Cancer Center, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and others.
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Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: statements regarding Advaxis' ability to develop the next generation of cancer immunotherapies; the safety and efficacy of Advaxis' proprietary immunotherapy, ADXS-HPV; whether Advaxis immunotherapies can redirect the powerful immune response all human beings have to the bacterium to cancers. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, including the risk factors set forth from time to time in Advaxis' SEC filings, including but not limited to its report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2013, which is available at http://www.sec.gov. Advaxis undertakes no obligation to publicly release the result of any revision to these forward-looking statements, which may be made to reflect the events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements.