Mar. 31, 2011 (GlobeNewswire) --
NEW YORK, March 31, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vical Incorporated (Nasdaq:VICL) today announced that Vijay B. Samant, President and Chief Executive Officer, will participate in two events at the Leerink Swann Cancer Roundtable Conference (New York, April 7).
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8:00 a.m.: Panel on Immunotherapy with company representatives from Dendreon Corporation, Bavarian Nordic ImmunoTherapeutics, Inc., Jennerex Biotherapeutics, Inc., and Oncothyreon; with MEDACorp Opinion Leader Hy Levitsky, M.D., of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; moderated by Leerink Swann research analysts.
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9:05 a.m.: Vical Incorporated presentation and Q&A session focused on Allovectin-7®, Vical's immunotherapy for metastatic melanoma, which is completing a pivotal Phase 3 trial.
Allovectin-7® is a novel gene-based immunotherapeutic with a unique mechanism of action that is fundamentally different from currently approved treatments. The Phase 3 trial, initiated in January 2007, is evaluating Allovectin-7® as first-line therapy in patients with Stage III or IV recurrent metastatic melanoma. Vical completed enrollment in February 2010 of 390 chemo-naive patients randomized on a 2:1 basis: 260 for treatment with Allovectin-7® and 130 for treatment with either dacarbazine or temozolomide. The company expects to complete patient follow-up and lock the Phase 3 clinical trial database in the second half of 2011.
Published results from a completed Phase 2 trial of Allovectin-7® in 127 chemo-refractory or chemo-intolerant patients with metastatic melanoma compare favorably with historical controls from other studies. Among the 15 responders (11.8%), 4 had complete responses and 11 had partial responses. The median duration of response was 13.8 months, and all responses were durable, lasting at least 6 months. The median survival for all patients was 18.8 months.
Vical estimates that the worldwide market for Allovectin-7® as a treatment for metastatic melanoma could exceed $500 million annually. The novel mechanism of action of Allovectin-7® gives it the potential to be successfully used in other types of solid tumors, which could further expand its total use. Allovectin-7® has been granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of invasive and metastatic melanoma by the FDA's Office of Orphan Products Development. Orphan drug designation provides U.S.