Promising Ph I data for Boehringer's early cancer drug

German drug major Boehringer Ingelheim's new cell cycle kinase inhibitor and potential first-in-class compound, BI 6727, has shown encouraging results in a Phase I trial in patients with advanced tumors who have failed to respond to other treatments.

Presented at a recent cancer conference in Geneva, Switzerland, the 50-patient study showed that 32% of subjects had stable disease and two people with advanced bladder and ovarian cancers showed confirmed responses, both of whom had previously failed other standard and experimental treatments. The clear anti-tumor activity demonstrated, not typically seen in a Phase I trial, illustrates the significance of these findings, said the privately-held firm, noting that it was also well-tolerated with no serious side effects detected.

Unlike established anti-cancer agents, the compound works by selectively blocking a part of the cell's make-up that is crucial for cell division. BI 6727 is one in a series of compounds being developed by Boehringer in this field. By inhibiting the activity of Polo-like kinase 1, which is highly expressed in proliferating cells and most tumors, the agent disrupts the cell division and induces cell death, thereby inhibiting cancer growth.