Cel-Sci Corp. said Friday that it has closed a $1.275 millionprivate placement of common stock to institutions and privateindividuals. The company sold 1.275 million shares at $1 pershare. Cel-Sci stock (NASDAQ:CELI) closed at $2 on Friday,down 3 cents.

Geert Kersten, Cel-Sci's vice president of operations, said thecompany also has increased the amount it hopes to raise in apreviously announced unit offering from $5 million to between$9 million and $10 million. The company will offer 900,000units, each consisting of five shares and five warrants.

The Alexandria, Va., company last week released findings withits BC-IL lymphokine cocktail in two patients who are enrolledin the company's Phase II clinical trial. The patients, with headand neck cancers, have shown significant reduction in the sizeof their tumors with BC-IL after failing conventional therapy,the company said.

The first patient has maintained tumor reduction for threemonths. The second patient has so far shown the progress for amonth. Both patients had low levels of T cells and otherevidence of immune deficiency, which the company said is acharacteristic of head and neck cancer. After BC-IL, thepatients both showed doubling of T cell counts and infiltrationof lymphocytes into their tumors.

Cel-Sci said it expects to begin a Phase II trial of BC-IL inmalignant melanoma "shortly."

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