OncoGenex Announces Publication of OGX-427 Pre-Clinical Data in Pancreatic Cancer

BOTHELL, Wash. and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: OGXI) announced today that pre-clinical data evaluating its investigational compound, OGX-427, in pancreatic cancer was published online in Cell Death and Disease.  

OGX-427 is designed to reduce levels of heat shock protein 27, or Hsp27, a protein that is highly expressed in many types of cancer. Overexpression of Hsp27 is believed to be an important factor leading to the development of treatment resistance and is associated with negative clinical outcomes in various tumor types.

As reported by the authors, OGX-427 data in pancreatic cancer are consistent with previously published studies in bladder, prostate and lung cancers, where expression of Hsp27 was correlated with the promotion of tumor cell growth and treatment resistance. In addition, the study demonstrated that treatment with OGX-427 monotherapy decreased levels of Hsp27 in tumor cells and reduced tumor volume by approximately 50 percent. Importantly, when OGX-427 was added to gemcitabine, a commonly used chemotherapy in pancreatic and other cancers, greater decreases in tumor volume, when compared to gemcitabine alone, were reported.

"This data further supports the potential broad utility of OGX-427 in a vast array of tumors," said Scott Cormack, President and CEO of OncoGenex. "The unique ability of OGX-427 to augment various treatments, including chemotherapeutic agents such as gemcitabine as demonstrated in this study, offers promise in a number of difficult-to-treat cancers where treatment resistance is a critical issue for patients and health-care providers."

Currently, three trials evaluating OGX-427 are on-going: a Phase 1, investigator-initiated trial in superficial or muscle-invasive bladder cancer; a randomized, Phase 2, investigator-initiated trial in chemotherapy-naive, castrate-resistant prostate cancer; and an international, Phase 2, OncoGenex-sponsored trial in metastatic bladder cancer. Clinical data on OGX-427 has been submitted to the 2012 ASCO Genitourinary Symposium, to be held in February.

More information on OGX-427 and OncoGenex can be found at www.oncogenex.com

The OGX-427 abstract on pancreatic cancer can be found at the following link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22012255

About OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals
OncoGenex is a biopharmaceutical company committed to the development and commercialization of new cancer therapies that address treatment resistance in cancer patients. OncoGenex has a diverse oncology pipeline, with each product candidate having a distinct mechanism of action and representing a unique opportunity for cancer drug development. OncoGenex and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) have entered a global collaboration and license agreement to develop and commercialize OncoGenex' lead drug candidate, custirsen. Custirsen is currently in Phase III clinical development as a treatment in men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer. The companies plan to begin Phase III development of custirsen in first-line treatment of advanced, unresectable non-small cell lung cancer. OGX-427 is in Phase II clinical development; CSP-9222 and OGX-225 are currently in pre-clinical development. More information is available at www.OncoGenex.com.

OncoGenex' Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements concerning our anticipated product development activities and the potential benefits of our product candidates. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including, among others, the risk the risk that our product candidates do not obtain the requisite regulatory approvals to commercialize, the risk that our product candidates ultimately do not demonstrate the potential benefits identified in preclinical studies or early clinical trials and the other factors described in our risk factors set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for second quarter ended June 30, 2011. The Company undertakes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained herein or to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date hereof, other than as may be required by applicable law.

SOURCE OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.