VIENNA, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSE MKT: CVM) today announced that the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, Michigan is the latest U.S. clinical center to join the Company’s Phase III head and neck cancer clinical trial of its investigational cancer immunotherapy treatment Multikine* (Leukocyte Interleukin, Injection). CEL-SCI is currently expanding and accelerating patient enrollment in its trial. The Company expects to rapidly expand the number of clinical sites active in the U.S. As the world’s largest Phase III trial for head and neck cancer, CEL-SCI’s study is already active in dozens of clinical centers in 12 countries and is expected to expand to a total of 20 countries by the end of 2015.
CEL-SCI’s Multikine investigational cancer immunotherapy is intended to create an anti-tumor immune response to reduce local/regional tumor recurrence and thereby increase the survival rate of patients. If approved for use following completion of CEL-SCI’s clinical development program for head and neck cancer, Multikine would be a different type of therapy in the fight against cancer; one that appears to have the potential to work with the body’s natural immune system in the fight against tumors.
According to a report published by the Metropolitan Detroit Cancer Surveillance System in 2010, there were 24,651 new invasive and in situ cancers diagnosed in residents of the metropolitan Detroit area of Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb Counties. In a national study researchers estimated that more than 52,000 men and women would be diagnosed in the U.S. with head and neck cancers in 2012, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Founded in 1915 by auto pioneer Henry Ford and now one of the nation’s leading health care providers, Detroit’s Henry Ford Health System is comprised of hospitals, medical centers and one of the nation’s largest group practices, which includes more than 1,200 physicians practicing in over 40 specialties.
The Josephine Ford Cancer Institute at Henry Ford is a leader in groundbreaking techniques, offering the most advanced diagnostic testing, and multiple treatment approaches including surgery and radiation therapy. Dr. Haythem Ali, a medical oncologist, is the Principal Investigator for CEL-SCI’s study at Henry Ford. His specialties include head and neck cancer and he has published several articles in peer reviewed journals.
“This is our first U.S. clinical center to open in the Midwest. Our intention is to rapidly add more clinical research centers located across North America so that patients seeking to enroll in our immunotherapy trial may have the opportunity to access a site. We are pleased that Dr. Haythem and one of the leading healthcare providers in the country, Henry Ford Health System, have chosen to participate in our groundbreaking study,” stated CEL-SCI Chief Executive Officer Geert Kersten.
