We are very excited by these GVAX Leukemia vaccine data, said Stephen M. Simes, BioSante ™s president & CEO. Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center work in leukemia using BioSante ™s GVAX is one of many different forms of cancer being investigated, including pancreatic cancer, breast cancer and multiple myeloma. We look forward to working with Johns Hopkins ™s investigators to bring better cancer therapies to patients in need. BioSante owns the commercial rights to all GVAX vaccines as a result of our acquisition in 2009 of Cell Genesys.

According to the investigators, most patients with CML will need to remain on Gleevec therapy for the rest of their lives. More than 90 percent of them will achieve remission, but about 10 to 15 percent of patients cannot tolerate the drug long term. Gleevec, one of the first targeted cancer therapies with wide success in CML patients, destroys most leukemic cells in the body, but in most patients, some cancerous cells remain and are measurable with sensitive molecular tests. These remaining cells are a source of relapse, according to the investigators, especially if Gleevec therapy is stopped.

In 2010, approximately 5,050 new cases will be diagnosed with CML and approximately 470 people will die. The average person's lifetime risk of getting CML is about 1 in 645. The average age at diagnosis of CML is around 66 years. Over half of cases are diagnosed in people 65 and older. This type of leukemia mainly affects adults, and is rarely seen in children.

SOURCE BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Inc.