Significant Progress Achieved At Cantab

The establishment of a pilot scale manufacturing facility to supply material for preclinical and early-stage clinical trials this month by Cantab Pharmaceuticals is further evidence of the significant progress the company has made since its flotation in October last year. The company has also made senior management appointments in the areas of quality assurance, intellectual property and medical affairs.

Guy Wood-Gush and Frazer Hall of Barclays de Zoete Wedd Research say that these moves show the greater maturity of its operation and underpin the superior prospects which will fuel above-average returns to investors over the medium term.

Cantab should have at least three highly innovative proprietary products with significant market potential in clinical trials by the end of next year, according to the analysts. They point out that this has been achieved in a short period of time - only six years. Furthermore, they estimate that Cantab will have spent around L21 million ($33.8 million) in total in that time. They suggest that "this performance is striking," when compared with large established pharmaceutical companies that spend hundreds of millions on R&D - "frequently to less effect."