( - Findings Published in Blood Highlight...)Millennium Discovers Biomarkers Potentially Predictive of Response,to Velcade (Bortezomib) for Injection,Health

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 17, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Findings published in the April 15th issue of Blood show that a team of researchers led by Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has discovered biomarkers which may lead to identifying multiple myeloma patients likely to respond to VELCADE. VELCADE is the U.S. market leading therapy for previously treated multiple myeloma patients with an unsurpassed median survival of 29.8 months as a single agent.

These findings add to the body of evidence that supports the role of VELCADE in the treatment of a broad range of multiple myeloma patients and highlight the applicability of genomics research. This research, in combination with similar ongoing studies, may ultimately lead to improved outcomes for patients.

The identification of these biomarkers was the result of a collaborative effort by researchers from Millennium and leading multiple myeloma academic centers. These centers included Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston; Myeloma Institute of Research and Therapy at the University of Arkansas for Medical Services, Little Rock; Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale; and Department of Hematology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam.

The combined team performed genomics analyses on tumor samples from multiple myeloma patients in VELCADE clinical trials. These trials included the APEX Phase III study, which demonstrated the superiority of VELCADE over standard-of-care dexamethasone in previously treated multiple myeloma patients and is one of the first and largest prospective randomized trials to include genomics analyses.

Findings from the analyses showed that patients with an increased expression of genes in the NFk-B and adhesion molecule pathways may be mo
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