Cabrellis Pharma makes its debut

San Diego, USA-based Cabrellis Pharmaceuticals has announced the formal launch of operations following a successful spinout from Conforma Therapeutics. The company was formed by members of the Conforma management team that executed the sale of the latter to xBiogen Idec for up to $250.0 million earlier this month (Marketletter May 15). Cabrellis is a specialty pharmaceutical company committed to the development of therapies for the treatment of cancer. Its lead product, Calsed (amrubicin HCl), is expected to enter Phase II clinical testing later this quarter.

"Conforma and its investors have always felt very strongly about the promise and potential of Calsed," said Thomas Estok, chief executive officer of Cabrellis. "Our enthusiasm led directly to this opportunity to create Cabrellis and to continue the development of Calsed ourselves. We plan to aggressively and broadly advance Calsed through clinical development and expand our anti-cancer portfolio via strategic licensing," he added.

Cabrellis' initial investors will be comprised of the former Conforma shareholders, including Domain Associates, Forward Ventures, Lilly Ventures, Novo A/S, ProQuest Investments, RBC Capital Partners, RiverVest Venture Partners, and SR One.