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 The drug, JCAR015, uses a technology known as CAR-T being pursued by
other companies as well. CAR-T therapy removes a key component of
the immune system called T cells from a patient's blood and
re-engineers them to more efficiently attack cancer before returning
them to the patient.
JCAR015 was being tested in adults with relapsed acute lymphoblastic
leukemia (ALL), a rare and deadly blood cancer.
The company's Phase II program was twice halted last year by the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration and remained on hold due to severe
neurotoxicity that led to five patient deaths from cerebral edema.
"Juno, in collaboration with partner Celgene, has made a strategic
decision to cease development of JCAR015 at this time," Juno said in
a statement, adding that it would redirect resources to development
of another product for relapsed or refractory ALL.
Juno said its internal investigation identified multiple factors
that increased the risk of severe toxic reactions, including
"factors related to the product."
The biotechnology company announced the decision in conjunction with
release of its fourth quarter financial results.
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Other companies developing CAR-T therapies against blood cancers
include Kite Pharma Inc and Swiss drugmaker Novartis. Kite this week
released highly promising early data for its CAR-T drug against
non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Juno shares fell about 2 percent to $24.64 in extended trading.
(Reporting by Bill Berkrot; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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