Cancer imaging company NeoRx Corp. announced today thedetails of its strategic alliance with the internationalpharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbHfor nearly $22 million.

Boehringer has already purchased 2 million shares of NeoRxcommon stock (NASDAQ:NERX) for $8 million, and will payNeoRx another $3.6 million when it files with the FDAequivalency data to qualify Boehringer as the manufacturer ofits OncoTrac products. NeoRx shares closed Monday at $2.67, up3 cents a share.

Boehringer is also investing $10 million in developing themanufacturing process, Paul Abrams, NeoRx's president andchief executive officer, told BioWorld.

NeoRx's imaging agent for small cell lung cancer has apparentlypassed muster with the FDA. The Seattle company said, "FDAhad no questions on the clinical utility of the product."

What NeoRx needs to get to market, however, is amanufacturer, and this is where Boehringer steps in. NeoRxbelieves that "the only outstanding issue regarding the productis to qualify Boehringer as the manufacturer."

NeoRx has long been plagued with finding a company toreliably manufacture its monoclonal antibody-based cancerdiagnostics. In the agreement with Boehringer, the Germancompany will garner manufacturing and marketing rights forNeoRx's products outside the U.S., while NeoRx maintains U.S.rights.

-- Jennifer Van Brunt BioWorld Staff

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