Oncology treatment developer cCam Medical Ltd. has raised $3 million from Pontifax Ltd. and Mori Arkin's Arkin Holdings Ltd. $2.5 million will be transferred at the signing and the balance in milestone payments.
The start up has also received a $2.5 million grant from the Chief Scientist.
cCam is a portfolio of Meytag Technology Incubator, held by Gefen Biomed Investements Ltd. (TASE: GEFEN). The company was established under a strategic collaboration between Pontifax and Switzerland's Hoffmann-La Roche AG (SWX ROG). It is developing monoclonal antibodies for cancer, with melanoma as its lead indication. cCAM’s approach involves generating a cancer specific immune response in patients.
cCam also extended its cooperation agreement with Hoffmann-La Roche, which has the right to negotiation to commercialize the company's technology in exchange for a $1 million payment. Half of this payment will be transferred at the closing of the investment, and the other half in a milestone payment.
cCAM’s lead agent is CM-10, an immune-modulating antibody, whose anticancer effect has been demonstrated in multiple preclinical tests, including in vivo studies in tumor bearing mice. There is no general immune activation, but a cancer-specific one.
cCam is based on research of Dr. Gal Markel, Chief Scientist of The Ella Institute of Melanoma, Cancer Research Center at the Sheba Medical Center.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 9, 2012
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