TELINTRA® Named One of the 10 Most Interesting Oncology Projects to Watch

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Telik, Inc. (Nasdaq: TELK) announced today that Telintra (Ezatiostat HCl), the company's lead therapeutic product candidate, has been selected by Windhover Information and its advisors as one of "The Top 10 Most Interesting Oncology Projects to Watch."  Windhover is a leading provider of business information to senior executives in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries.  The company has been invited to present at Windhover's Therapeutic Area Partnerships conference on November 3, 2010 in Boston, MA.

Telintra is among the first therapeutic products in a novel class of small-molecule drug candidates which inhibit the enzyme glutathione S-transferase P1-1 for the treatment of malignancies, including myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and hematologic diseases characterized by cytopenias.  Telintra may induce apoptosis, or cellular death, in leukemia cells and cause differentiation and proliferation of normal bone marrow blood cell precursors, leading to an increase in platelets, red cells, and white cells.

Telintra has recently completed a positive Phase 2 study in patients with Low to Intermediate Risk-1 MDS and has shown evidence of clinical activity and tolerability in multiple Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical studies.

About MDS and Telintra

The myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by ineffective hematopoiesis (blood cell production) involving one or more cell lineages (red blood cells, white blood cells, or platelets) and a variable risk of transformation to acute myeloid leukemia (AML).  MDS becomes more common with age.  It is estimated that MDS affects approximately 300,000 people worldwide.  According to the American Cancer Society, 10,000–20,000 new cases of MDS are diagnosed each year in the United States, with survival rates ranging from six months to six years.  MDS patients often require blood transfusions to manage their disease.

There remains a critical need for effective, well tolerated therapies for MDS.  Telintra has a novel mechanism of action that inhibits an enzyme called glutathione S-transferase P11 which may activate JNK kinase, a key regulator of cellular growth and differentiation of blood precursor cells.  Telintra has been shown to stimulate normal multilineage differentiation of blood stem cell precursors and induce cancer cell death, or apoptosis, in human leukemia cell lines.  Telintra is currently being evaluated in Phase 2 studies alone and in combination in patients with Low to Intermediate-1 Risk Myelodysplastic Syndrome and in Severe Chronic Neutropenia.

About Telik

Telik, Inc. of Palo Alto, CA, is a clinical stage drug development company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat cancer.  The company's most advanced drug candidates in clinical development are Telintra, a modified glutathione analog for the treatment of MDS and Severe Chronic Neutropenia (SCN), and Telcyta®, a cancer activated prodrug for the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer and ovarian cancer.  Telik's product candidates were discovered using its proprietary drug discovery technology, TRAP®, which enables the rapid and efficient discovery of small molecule drug candidates.

This press release contains "forward looking" statements regarding the future development of Telintra, the effectiveness of Telintra in treating MDS alone and in combination with other drugs, the effectiveness of Telintra in treating Severe Chronic Neutropenia and other hematologic diseases, the effect of Telintra on leukemia cells and blood cell growth and differentiation, and the use of Telcyta for the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer and ovarian cancer.  These forward looking statements are based upon Telik's current expectations.  Detailed information regarding factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by statements in this press release may be found in Telik's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the factors described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2010.  Telik does not undertake any obligation to update forward looking statements contained in this press release.

Telik, the Telik logo, TELINTRA, TELCYTA and TRAP are trademarks or registered trademarks of Telik, Inc.

SOURCE Telik, Inc.