National Cancer Institute Selects SRI International to Qualify Cancer Drug Candidates for Clinical Studies

Long-Term Contracts Totaling $12.3M Continue 50-Plus Years of Service to the NCI

MENLO PARK, Calif.– June 28, 2004 – Under two long-term contracts, totaling approximately $12.3 million over seven years, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has selected SRI International to evaluate the preclinical safety and pharmacology of potential therapeutic cancer treatments and chemopreventive agents. NCI will use SRI's preclinical studies to support Investigational New Drug (IND) applications to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical studies.

Carol Green, Ph.D., associate director of SRI's Toxicology and Pharmacology Laboratory and director of SRI's Pharmacokinetics and Metabolism Department, is the principal investigator for one of the two NCI contracts. The contract involves the testing of chemopreventive agents that are used to prevent the formation of cancer in at-risk populations rather than treating patients that already have the disease. The chemopreventive contract is funded at about $5 million from 2004 to 2009.

“A unique challenge in the identification, testing and development of chemopreventive agents is that, unlike traditional cancer therapeutics given to individuals with cancer, chemopreventive agents are given to healthy patients who do not yet have the disease, and these individuals are much less tolerant of adverse side effects,” explained Dr. Green. “Our hope and vision is that people at risk for developing cancer will be able to use chemopreventive agents over a long lifetime, safely and effectively. Our work with NCI is taking us closer to that goal.”

Jon Mirsalis, Ph.D., acting vice president of SRI's Biosciences Division and director of SRI's Toxicology and Pharmacology Laboratory, is the principal investigator for the second of the two programs, which encompasses research on new cancer chemotherapy drugs. The therapeutics development contract is funded at about $7.3 million from 2004 to 2011.

“For more than 50 years, SRI has performed a variety of studies for NCI to develop new drugs and vaccines for the prevention and treatment of cancer. Through this work, SRI has assisted in successfully delivering more than 25 drugs and vaccines into clinical use,” said Dr. Mirsalis. “These two new contracts continue our legacy of collaboration with NCI in preclinical development of life-saving drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics.”

About SRI International Biosciences Division

SRI's Biosciences Division (http://www.sri.com/pharma) works with government agencies and commercial pharmaceutical companies to provide a broad range of preclinical drug discovery and development services, including medicinal chemistry, custom synthesis, regulatory support, efficacy and safety evaluations, pharmacokinetics and metabolism studies, analytical chemistry and formulation design and production in GLP and cGMP environments. The division specializes in cancer, infectious disease and neurobiological research.

SRI's Biosciences Division is awarded nearly $30 million in research each year by its government and commercial clients. In addition to the NCI, SRI serves several major branches of the National Institutes of Health with preclinical toxicology and pharmacology research.

About SRI International

Silicon Valley-based SRI International (http://www.sri.com) is one of the world's leading independent research and technology development organizations. Founded as Stanford Research Institute in 1946, SRI has been meeting the strategic needs of clients for more than 55 years. The nonprofit research institute performs contract research and development for government agencies, commercial businesses and private foundations. In addition to conducting contract R&D, SRI licenses its technologies, forms strategic partnerships and creates spin-off companies.

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