Latest Sickle-cell disease Stories

SAN DIEGO, May 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2013. Brian M. Culley, Chief Executive Officer, said: "We have opened more than a dozen clinical sites in EPIC, our pivotal phase 3 study in sickle cell disease, and are on track to meet our goal of opening approximately 40 U.S. sites by year-end. We also plan to support U.S. enrollment by opening roughly 30 sites outside the U.S.,...

Emmaus in Process of Completing Phase 3 Study For First Widely Available Treatment for Sickle Cell Disease TORRANCE, Calif., May 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Timothy Cote, M.D., MPH, former director of the Office of Orphan Product Development of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has joined Emmaus Medical, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical and regenerative medicine company, in an advisory capacity, the company announced today. Dr. Cote will advise Emmaus on the regulatory pathway for...

SAN DIEGO, April 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today announced that two posters for its lead product candidate, MST-188, were presented at the 7(th) Annual Sickle Cell Disease Research & Educational Symposium, currently underway in Miami. Brian M. Culley, Chief Executive Officer, said: "Increasing evidence suggests that transfusion of 'older' red blood cells (RBC) impairs clinical outcomes as a result of defects resulting from storage or age....

Biopsychosocial-spiritual perspectives Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) sought to shed light on the biopsychosocial and spiritual effects of taking prescribed opioids to treat noncancer pain. Such questions have received little examination and impact the challenging decision of when and how to use opioids, the study authors wrote in a scientific poster presented today at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. They found that taking opioids...

SAN DIEGO, March 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today announced that it has engaged ESC Advisors, a division of the investment banking firm KEMA Partners LLC, to serve as its exclusive financial advisor to identify potential partners for MST-188 and advise the Company in transaction discussions. Brian M. Culley, Chief Executive Officer, said: "Given the high unmet need and limited treatment options, sickle cell disease is experiencing significant...

SAN DIEGO, March 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today announced that the European Commission (EC) has designated MST-188 as an orphan medicinal product for the treatment of sickle cell disease. This decision follows a positive opinion adopted by the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) recommending such designation. Brian M. Culley, Chief Executive Officer, said: "Now that we actively are recruiting patients in EPIC, our pivotal phase 3...

- Platform includes over 100 pharmacology studies, 15 clinical studies and 2,500 patient exposures SAN DIEGO, Feb. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ADVENTRX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE MKT: ANX) today reviewed the platform of data and know-how that supports development of ANX-188 in multiple indications, including those outside of sickle cell disease. This platform has been derived from over 100 pharmacology studies, more than 15 clinical studies in multiple indications in which over...

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ADVENTRX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE MKT: ANX) today announced that it has initiated patient recruitment in its pivotal phase 3 clinical study of ANX-188 (purified poloxamer 188) in sickle cell disease. Santosh Vetticaden, Chief Medical Officer, said: "The substantial effort that went into the design of this study is reflected by the enthusiasm that we have heard from thought leaders and clinical sites who wish to participate. In...

By harnessing the very qualities that make sickle cell disease a lethal blood disorder, a research team led by Duke Medicine and Jenomic, a private cancer research company in Carmel, Calif., has developed a way to deploy the misshapen red blood cells to fight cancer tumors. Reporting in the Jan. 9, 2013, edition of the on-line journal, PLOS ONE, the researchers describe a process of exploiting sickle-shaped red blood cells to selectively target oxygen deprived cancer tumors in mice and...

Sickle-shaped red blood cells target and destroy tumor cells and blood vessels The genetic mutation that causes sickle cell anemia also turns red blood cells into potent tumor killers and may offer a new way to treat some cancers that are resistant to existing treatments, according to research published January 9 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by David S. Terman of Jenomic Research Institute and colleagues from Duke University and other institutions. The mutation that causes sickle...