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Malaysian firm seeks to commercialize cancer drug developed in Cuba

Xinhua, July 30, 2015 Adjust font size:

Malaysian biotech company Bioven will seek an IPO to help raise funds to market a promising cancer drug developed in Cuba worldwide.

Bioven, the drug's rights holder, first obtained the rights to the promising cancer drug after early trials revealed its potential.

The profitable relationship between Cuba and Bioven and the success of this drug at trials have now prompted the firm to confidently prepare its market release.

By being listed on London's junior AIM market in late 2015 or early 2016, Bioven hopes to raise between 30 million and 35 million U.S. dollars, Bioven Chief Executive Stephen Drew told the Financial Times.

The drug, first developed by the Cuban Center of Molecular Immunology, targets non-small cell lung cancer and is currently undergoing a broader Phase III trial to confirm its usefulness.

It works by zeroing in on EGF (epidermal growth factor) proteins which are far more present in cancerous cells.

According to Prensa Latina, the Phase III trial began in May with 419 patients enrolled across 10 countries.

A separate trial will take place in the United States under the guidance of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, after a deal was signed in April.

Alongside this, much of further clinical development on the drug is now taking place at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow. Endi