• Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cheshire, Conn., reported that patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) experienced a 92 percent reduction in the incidence of life-threatening blood clots following treatment with its FDA-approved drug Soliris (eculizumab). Results from 195 patients studied in Phase II and Phase III trials showed that Soliris reduced hemolysis in all treated patients. Three thromboses occurred during treatment with Soliris, compared to 39 events during the same period of time prior to treatment. Data were published online in Blood.

• Biogen Idec Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., and Elan Corp. plc, of Dublin, Ireland, reported results demonstrating that patients treated with Tysabri (natalizumab) showed a significant improvement in health-related quality-of-life measures compared to placebo. Data came from two Phase III studies in patients with relapsing forms of MS, with health-related quality-of-life measures assessed at weeks 24, 52 and 104, and indicated that patients had sustained improvement from baseline quality-of-life measures and not just a slowing down of quality-of-life deterioration. Results were published in Annals of Neurology.

• Dendreon Corp., of Seattle, said results from a Phase I study of Neuvenge, an investigational active cellular immunotherapy, demonstrated the drug's safety profile, immune response and clinical activity in women with HER2/neu-positive breast cancer who have failed standard therapy. The study enrolled 19 patients, with 18 receiving three infusions of Neuvenge at weeks zero, two and four. Treatment generally was well tolerated and stimulated significant immune responses, which were shown to be enhanced following booster infusions. Twenty-two percent of patients had evidence of anticancer activity, including one patient who experienced a partial response lasting about six months and three patients who had stable disease for more than a year without the addition of any other cancer therapy other than the continuation of bisphonates. Data were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.