Melanoma Treatment Using Selective Electrochemical Tumor Ablation Therapy

Main Category: Melanoma / Skin Cancer
Article Date: 11 Sep 2005 - 9:00 PDT

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Inovio Biomedical Corporation a late stage developer of oncology and other therapies using electroporation to deliver drugs and nucleic acids, announced today that a presentation highlighting the applicability of the company's novel MedPulserR selective electrochemical tumor ablation system to treat melanoma will take place at the 6th World Congress on Melanoma, September 6th - 9th, 2005 in Vancouver, Canada. The poster presentation, entitled "Local disease management of melanoma metastases with electroporation plus intralesional bleomycin," is authored by Dr. Peter Radny, a dermatologist with the Dermatology Department, University of Freiburg , and Dr. Thomas Eigentler and Professor Claus Garbe, dermatologists with the Dermatology Department, University of Tubingen, in Germany. Professor Garbe is the lead investigator in Germany for Inovio's pre-marketing study for skin cancers and oversees seven trial sites in Germany.

The presentation concludes: "Treatment with electroporation with intralesionally administered Bleomycin appears to have been an effective and practical therapy option for our patient and potentially for cutaneous and subcutaneous tumours in general. Electroporation is reported to be an effective therapeutic tool for a number of tumour types, e.g. epithelial, non-epithelial and metastases or primary tumours of the skin." This therapeutic tool is currently under evaluation in a multi-center trial in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK, with plans to expand to Austria, France, Italy and Spain.

"Electroporation with bleomycin is a novel method for treating patients with recurrent skin metastases of malignant melanoma. Inovio's MedPulserR selective electrochemical tumor ablation system seems to be a promising therapy that may well become an important tool for treating this difficult-to-treat disease," stated Dr. Peter Radny.

"As we progress in our European pre-marketing study for skin cancers using our MedPulserR therapy, which is designed to improve patient quality of life and pharmacoeconomic outcomes, we are pleased to see participating physicians continue to apply the therapy to a range of cancers, including melanoma," said Avtar Dhillon, MD, Inovio's president and CEO. "We are excited about this opportunity to present our technology to an audience of internationally renowned physicians who are keenly interested in new therapeutic approaches."

The MedPulserR Selective Electrochemical Tumor Ablation System

Inovio's electroporation technology significantly enhances local cellular uptake of useful biopharmaceuticals. Inovio is commercializing a cancer therapy that uses its MedPulserR selective electrochemical tumor ablation system in conjunction with bleomycin, an approved anti-cancer drug, to locally treat solid tumors. The therapy is designed to improve quality of life by avoiding disfigurement and function loss that can result from surgery, a common method for treating solid tumors, while also reducing treatment costs. This novel therapy is highly selective in killing cancerous cells while preserving healthy cells and tissue surrounding a tumor.

The MedPulserR has received the European CE Mark and Inovio is conducting multi-center, pre-marketing observational studies treating newly diagnosed and recurrent head and neck cancers as well as skin cancers in preparation for a planned European product launch. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) completed a Special Protocol Assessment and approved clinical studies with a non-survival primary endpoint. Inovio is conducting two pivotal Phase III trials for recurrent and second primary squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck. The FDA granted these trials fast track status.

About Inovio Biomedical Corporation

Inovio Biomedical Corporation is a late stage biomedical company focused on building an oncology franchise based on its proprietary electrochemical tumor ablation system. The therapy targets a significant unmet clinical need: the selective killing of cancer cells and local ablation of solid tumors while preserving healthy tissue. Inovio is moving its lead product, the MedPulserR, through pre-marketing studies for head and neck cancer and skin cancers in Europe, where it has CE Mark accreditation, a U.S. Phase III pivotal study for recurrent head and neck cancer, and a Phase I pancreatic cancer trial. Merck, Vical, University of Southampton, and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center are using Inovio's gene delivery technology in the first-ever clinical studies of novel DNA vaccines delivered using electroporation, which enhances local delivery and cellular uptake of useful biopharmaceuticals. Inovio is a leader in electroporation, with 57 U.S. and 125 corresponding foreign issued patents, plus numerous pending patents in the U.S. and abroad. More information can be obtained at http://www.inovio.com.

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This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to Inovio's plans to develop its electroporation drug and gene delivery technology and to maximize shareholder value. Actual events or results may differ from Inovio's expectations as a result of a number of factors, including the uncertainties inherent in clinical trials and product development programs, evaluation of potential opportunities, the level of corporate expenditures, the assessment of Inovio's technology by potential corporate partners, capital market conditions, and other factors set forth in Inovio's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended June 30, 2005, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There can be no assurance that any product in the Inovio product pipeline will be successfully developed or manufactured, or that final results of clinical studies will be supportive of regulatory approvals required to market licensed products.

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