ImmunoGen, Inc. Initiates Phase I Trial in Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma with Its Novel IMGN529 Anticancer Compound

ImmunoGen, Inc.

today announced the start of clinical testing with its IMGN529 product candidate. The Phase I trial initiated evaluates the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetic profile and anticancer activity of escalating doses of IMGN529 in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) to establish the dose for future clinical trials. Today NHL is frequently treated with the anticancer antibody, rituximab (Rituxan®), and/or with chemotherapy. The novel agent IMGN529, a TAP compound, contains a B-cell-targeting antibody that has demonstrated marked anticancer activity in preclinical testing.1 Attached to this antibody is a potent ImmunoGen cell-killing agent, DM1. The antibody serves: (1) to kill the cancer cells through multiple antibody-mediated mechanisms; and (2) to deliver the DM1 specifically to the cancer cells for additional, targeted anticancer potency.