Poniard Reports Preliminary Bioavailability Data With Picoplatin

Poniard Pharmaceuticals reported preliminary data from an ongoing Phase I  trial of oral picoplatin in patients with advanced cancer.

Picoplatin is the company’s lead product candidate and is a new generation platinum chemotherapy agent.

The randomized, open-label, dose-ranging study is comparing the bioavailability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and safety of picoplatin administered orally with picoplatin administered intravenously in patients with advanced solid tumor malignancies.

The results showed picoplatin can achieve oral bioavailability of 30 percent to 40 percent in doses tested, which is consistent with earlier pre-oral studies, Poniard said.

The company plans to present data from the trial in 2008.