UK cancer charity launches "unique" drug plan (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) - A leading cancer charity launched a plan on Wednesday to develop new treatments from anti-cancer drugs that have been shelved by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Cancer Research UK said the initiative aims to increase the number of treatments available to cancer patients by "borrowing" compounds that have not been developed by a company and taking them into early clinical trials.

"There are literally hundreds of molecules at the pre-clinical or clinical stage sitting on the shelves of companies and not being developed," said Harpal Kumar, chief operating officer of the charity.

"Many of those compounds are anti-cancer drugs and some of those could, if developed, offer new treatment opportunities for cancer patients," he added.

The charity has already approached companies about the initiative. Under the terms of the Clinical Development Partnership (CDP), the charity would test the treatment in early trials at no cost to the company.

If it shows promise, the firm could retain the option to develop and market it and the charity would receive a share of the revenue it generates.

"It is about releasing the potential of deprioritised cancer drugs that are sitting on the shelves of companies," Kumar told reporters.

Developing a new drug can take a decade or more and cost as much as 500 million pounds. Only about 8 percent of molecules tested in Phase 1 safety trials make it to the market. For anti-cancer drugs the odds are even lower.

Progress in science, mergers in the pharmaceutical industry which have resulted in competing programs and hard choices about which compounds to develop have resulted in many molecules being shelved, according to Kumar.

The charity hopes the plan will double the number of compounds it puts into early clinical trials over the next five years. The expected cost is 2 million pounds a year.

"The drug companies have these potential treatments trapped in their pipelines and we have the expertise and capacity to release this potential," he added.

Dr Richard Tiner, medical director of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, described the initiative as a unique approach.

"This is a simple, rapid and cost-effective way in which pharmaceutical companies can boost their product lines," he said.

The drug or biotech company would retain the ownership of the molecule and have first option to view the results of the trial. If it chooses not to take a promising compound further, the charity will retain the option to fully develop it and the ability to partner it with another company.