Acceleron Pharma initiates dalantercept phase 2 study in advanced ovarian cancer

Acceleron Pharma, a biopharmaceutical company developing protein therapeutics for cancer and orphan disease, today announced that the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) initiated a phase 2 study of dalantercept in patients with persistent or recurrent ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer. Dalantercept is a novel protein therapeutic that targets the activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1) pathway and inhibits angiogenesis through a mechanism distinct from that of anti-angiogenic therapies currently used to treat various cancers. The phase 2, open-label study is chaired by Robert Burger, M.D., Director of the Women's Cancer Center and Professor at the Department of Surgical Oncology at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pa. Acceleron, its partners, and collaborators have now initiated seven phase 2 studies across three of Acceleron's programs - dalantercept (ACE-041), sotatercept (ACE-011), and ACE-536 - since November of 2012.

"Resistance to current therapies remains a significant challenge in treating patients with advanced ovarian cancer," said Dr. Burger. "Dalantercept could offer a new therapeutic option for patients and we are excited to explore the potential benefits in this phase 2 study."

"We are pleased to collaborate with Dr. Burger and the GOG," said Matthew Sherman, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Acceleron. "The GOG has a long history of excellence in designing and running clinical trials in the field of gynecological malignancies. In addition to this clinical trial, dalantercept is now being studied in several phase 2 trials in patients with endometrial cancer, head and neck cancer, and renal cell carcinoma."

This is the second clinical trial of dalantercept sponsored by the GOG; a phase 2 study in patients with endometrial cancer began in November, 2012. This study will treat patients with recurrent or persistent ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer and determine the safety and efficacy as measured by the rate of progression-free survival at six months as well as the proportion of patients who have an objective tumor response. Ovarian cancer causes approximately 15,000 deaths and over 22,000 new cases are diagnosed in the United States each year, as estimated by the National Cancer Institute. For additional information on this clinical trial, please visit clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT01720173.

Source: Acceleron Pharma