OncoGenex CEO seeks prostate cancer drug partner

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals Inc, having demonstrated that its experimental prostate cancer drug extends survival by nearly seven months, is now focused on finding a partner to develop the drug, the company's chief executive said on Sunday.

The tiny biotech company reported at a meeting here of the American Society of Clinical Oncology results from a mid-stage trial of OGX-011 in 82 men with advanced prostate cancer not yet treated with chemotherapy.

The trial found that patients treated with OGX-011 plus the chemotherapy drug Taxotere, also known as docetaxel, lived a median 23.8 months, compared to 16.9 months for patients treated with Taxotere alone.

Shares of OncoGenex have nearly tripled since mid-May when early results from the study were published by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, which is holding its annual meeting here.

"The 6.9 month survival number is a very good number," said OncoGenex CEO Steven Cormack, adding that Taxotere was approved in 2004 based on data showing that it improved survival by 2.4 months.

He said the next step for OncoGenex is a pivotal-stage trial program, but the company will need to seek outside financing in order to pay for it.

Since OGX-011 has the potential for treating a range of cancers, the preference is for a global partnering deal, Cormack said.

He also acknowledged that partnering discussions often morph into merger deals.

"We have five products in development -- two are in the clinic," the CEO said, explaining that an M&A deal would need to demonstrate value for the company's entire pipeline.

Cormack said OncoGenex could also seek funding in the capital markets for the Phase 3 program, but acknowledged that plan could be "somewhat optimistic."

OncoGenex went public last August through a reverse merger with Sonus Pharmaceuticals Inc.

"We were born into the nuclear winter of the capital markets collapse," Cormack said.