Nastech Pharmaceutical awarded new breast cancer patent

Nastech Pharmaceutical Company today announced that it has been awarded U.S. patent No. 6,894,026, entitled, "Long-acting Oxytocin Analogues for the Treatment and Prevention of Breast Cancer and Psychiatric Disorders."

The patent covers methods for the treatment of breast cancer by the administration of long-acting analogues of the peptide hormone oxytocin. The patent contains 11 claims and the inventor is Steven C. Quay.

"This patent provides Nastech with broad protection for methods to deliver oxytocin analogues for the treatment of breast cancer, with claims that include the intranasal delivery of these peptides through the application of Nastech's innovative nasal delivery technology," said Steven C. Quay, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer. "This demonstrates the continued successful application of our nasal delivery technologies for the delivery of a range of therapeutics, including peptides and other larger molecules, in a non-invasive, fast-acting and direct delivery route."

Research has demonstrated that the hormone peptide oxytocin inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells, suggesting its potential role as a preventative treatment for breast cancer. Carbetocin, a synthetic analog of oxytocin, has a longer half-life and apparent increased metabolic stability compared to oxytocin. The patent covers the application of carbetocin as well as other long-acting oxytocin analogues. Nastech will be examining the next steps for this opportunity.