Abbott scientists and independent researchers will highlight the latest clinical trial data on four of Abbott's investigational oncology compounds at this year's American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, scheduled for June 4 to 8 in Chicago. The presentations include data on inhibitors of VEGFR and PDGFR, PARP and bcl-2, and a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against CS1. Abbott's oncology pipeline currently includes nine new molecular entities in the clinic, targeting more than 15 different cancers and tumour types.

"With more than 12 million cancer patients diagnosed globally each year, we are fighting one of the greatest battles in medicine," said John Leonard, senior vice president, pharmaceuticals, research and development, Abbott. "The varied nature of the disease requires a diverse approach that includes multiple disease targets in different tumour types, and this is exactly the development path that we have chosen."

Abbott's oncology pipeline consists of several different approaches for a broad range of cancers and, by focusing on some of the most promising areas of cancer research, including bcl-2 and PARP inhibition, Abbott scientists are targeting the processes cancers need to survive in order to advance new treatments.

Abbott data being presented includes two oral presentations on elotuzumab, an antibody designed to bind to the CS1 glycoprotein, a highly expressed cell surface protein in multiple myeloma. Four separate studies of linifanib (ABT-869), which is being studied as an inhibitor of the VEGFR and PDGFR kinase pathways, in advanced renal cell cancer (RCC), advanced solid tumours, advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), also will be presented.

Abbott will also present results from a phase-2 study of navitoclax (ABT-263) in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) and independent researchers will present five studies on veliparib (ABT-888), a PARP-inhibitor, including phase-2 data in breast cancer.

Elotuzumab (HuLuc63) is a humanized monoclonal antibody that binds to CS1, a cell-surface glycoprotein that is highly expressed on myeloma cells but minimally expressed on normal human cells.