SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - February 15, 2008) - Novacea, Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVC) today announced that Clinical Cancer Research, a peer-reviewed publication by the American Association of Cancer Research, has published a proof-of-principle Phase 1 study evaluating AQ4N (banoxantrone) in patients with advanced solid tumors. A novel investigational anti-cancer prodrug, AQ4N is converted selectively to the drug’s active form, AQ4, a potent topoisomerase II inhibitor, within hypoxic, or oxygen-starved, tumor cells. Hypoxia is an important distinguishing characteristic of tumors that limits the effectiveness of radiation and chemotherapy treatments. AQ4N is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1b/2a clinical trial in patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM).
