Isis' Anti-PKC-alpha Promising In Phase I

Isis Pharmaceuticals' antisense drug ISIS 3521, which binds with themessenger RNA for protein kinase C alpha, has shown early activity in patients with a variety of solid tumors, according to researchers from Stanford University.

17 patients with refractory tumors received a range of doses of the drug over 21 days by a portable infusion pump. After a one-week break, a second 21-day regimen was given. This cycle was then repeated several times. One patient with ovarian cancer has gone into remission for more than eight months, while two others have shown evidence of activity. The drug was generally well-tolerated; three of five patients on the highest dose (3mg/kg/day) had significant side effects, including fatigue and thrombocytopenia.. Phase II trials are scheduled to start in the second half of 1997.