Exelixis says it will report noteworthy amount of clinical data in next 12 months

By Jennifer Lanning Drey

Eugene, Ore., June 20 - Exelixis, Inc. plans to report a significant amount of clinical data within the next six to 12 months, according to Frank Karbe, chief financial officer of Exelixis.

By mid-2007, the company expects to report phase 2 data from trials of at least three of its compounds that are currently in clinical development, Karbe said Tuesday at the Wachovia Securities 16th Annual Nantucket Equity Conference.

Exelixis also expects to have phase 1 data from trials of another three compounds around the same time, Karbe said.

"I believe our company has a very balanced risk profile," said Karbe.

"The success of any one of these compounds will advance the company, but the failure of one will not be devastating."

Exelixis plans to begin the first of three phase 2 clinical trials of XL647 this summer. The trial will evaluate the compound as a single agent in non-small cell lung cancer and breast cancer and is expected to take about 12 months, Karbe said.

In addition, the company has begun phase 2 clinical trials of XL999, a study that will evaluate single agent activity of the compound in four solid tumors and two liquid tumors.

Exelixis expects to see the first phase 2 data from that trial as early as the end of the year, Karbe said.

The company is also preparing to finish phase 1 clinical trials of XL880 and has started a phase 2 trial of XL784.

At the same time that Exelixis is advancing its current pipeline, Karbe said the company will continue to work on the discovery side of the business.

"We want to be a leader in our industry with a promising pipeline, not just today but also 10 years down the road," Karbe said.

Exelixis currently has a set of compounds in preclinical development that will be candidates for Investigational New Drug filings later this year.

Another three compounds, in earlier pre-clinical development, will be candidates for IND filings in 2007, he said.

Exelixis is a biotechnology company located in South San Francisco, Calif.

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