- Phase I trials are scheduled to begin shortly on Pharma Mar's new anticancer agent, ecteinascidin-743, which is derived from a marine tunicate. This drug has a dissimilar structure to all other known cancer drugs and has shown broad activity against a wide range of tumor cell lines and animal xenografts, particularly ovarian and non-small cell lung cancers. The drug has a novel effect on the microtubule network in cells (unlike the effect seen with taxanes), and inhibits DNA, RNA and protein synthesis. The trials will be conducted in Europe and the USA, and an appropriate initial formulation (in 50mg vials) has been selected. Some hepatotoxicity has been observed, but this appears to be manageable with schedule modifications.
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