Clinical trial results of VELCADE based combinations for MM to be presented at the ASH meeting

Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company today reported the presentation of results from a double randomized Phase III clinical trial of VELCADE based combinations for the treatment of patients with previously untreated multiple myeloma (MM). The VELCADE based combinations evaluated in the study demonstrated two-year overall survival rates ranging between 81 and 88 percent. The results showed a notable increase in the rate of complete remissions (CR), which nearly doubled from 23 percent after six cycles of induction to 42 percent after VELCADE based maintenance treatment. The rigor of double randomization isolates the impact of VELCADE based maintenance therapy, independent of the induction regimen. These cooperative group data were generated by the Spanish Myeloma Group PETHEMA/GEM and presented by Maria-Victoria Mateos, M.D., Ph.D., Hospital Universitario de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. This presentation was selected for the distinguished plenary session at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), held December 5-8, 2009 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

“In this study, VELCADE based combinations delivered impressive two-year survival rates of up to 88 percent and showed that maintenance regimens with VELCADE can further improve on the efficacy of VELCADE based induction therapy after an initial treatment phase of 31 weeks,” said Dr. Mateos.

“Prolonging overall survival is the primary goal of therapy. We are extremely pleased by the depth of complete response, the increased efficacy seen with VELCADE based maintenance, and the impressive overall survival rates demonstrated in this study,” said Nancy Simonian, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, Millennium.