Boeh Ingelheim Option To License Prostate Cancer Drug

Boehringer Ingelheim has signed an agreement with British Technology Group, granting BI an option to an exclusive license to develop and market a new compound, CB7360, for treating androgen-dependent diseases such as prostate cancer.

CB7360 was discovered at the Cancer Research Council's Institute of Cancer Research in Sutton, UK. It is a potent and selective steroidal inhibitor of the 17-alpha-hydroxylase-C17,20 lyase enzyme complex, and as such is expected to cause a rapid and profound suppression of serum testosterone levels.

BTG funded much of the early development work on CB7630, and has filed patent applications in most major territories worldwide. The CRC says it plans to conduct a Phase I trial of the drug at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London in the near future. On the basis of these and possibly other clinical trial results, BI may choose to exercise its option and would then take full responsibility for subsequent development of CB7630.