A brief review of thursday's action; Markets closed today for Good Friday:
ImClone Systems and Bristol-Myers Squibb said Apr. 4 that their cancer drug Erbitux can improve the odds of survival in patients on chemotherapy whose head and neck cancers have spread. Investors bid up ImClone's stock nearly 5% to $42.49 on the Nasdaq, while Bristol-Myers Squibb, which is responsible for most of Erbitux's development and marketing costs, rose 0.9% to $27.78. What does this mean?
What is Erbitux and how does it work?
Erbitux is a humanized monoclonal antibody to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). The family of EGFRs include EGFR, HER2, HER3 and HER4. These receptors mediate and modulate the growth and differentiation of many cell types within the body. Specifically, [and in other cancers] it has been shown that in breast cancers, HER2 and EGFR are over-expressed and are a prognostic indicator of disease. Erbitux competitively inhibits the binding of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and other ligands, such as transforming growth factor alpha. Binding of ERBITUX to the EGFR blocks phosphorylation and activation of receptor-associated kinases, resulting in inhibition of cell growth, induction of apoptosis, and decreased matrix metalloproteinase and vascular endothelial growth factor production.
IMCL closed thursdays trading up 45 cents per share to 42.94.
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