|
 Cell Therapeutics said it could get as much as $172 million in
payments from Baxter, and the companies will split the profits on U.S. sales if
the drug is approved. The Seattle company will also receive royalty payments on
sales in other markets. Shares of Cell Therapeutics jumped 18 cents, or 10.3 percent, to $1.93 in
afternoon trading. Cell Therapeutics will get $60 million upfront, including a $30 million payment
and a $30 million investment by Baxter. It could get another $112 million in
milestone payments and said it could get $40 million of that total in 2014. The Seattle company is running one late-stage trial of pacritinib as a treatment
for myelofibrosis, a blood disorder. In October Cell Therapeutics Inc. said it
had reached an agreement with regulators about the design of a second trial of
pacritinib. The agreement makes it more likely the FDA will approve pacritinib
if it meets its goals in the trial.
 Myelofibrosis causes anemia, fatigue, pain and swelling of the spleen. It causes
abnormal blood cells to build up in bone marrow, forming thick scar tissue that
slows the production of healthy blood cells. To make up for the shortage, other
organs including the liver and the spleen begin producing blood cells.
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The companies will market the drug together in the U.S., and Baxter
will have the market rights in other countries. Cell Therapeutics' only approved drug is the lymphoma drug Pixuvri.
Revenue from Pixuvri totaled $362,000 in the third quarter. Top products for Baxter International Inc. include the hemophilia
drug Advate. The Deerfield, Ill., company also makes anesthetics and
chemotherapy drugs and medical products, and it expects more than
$15 billion in revenue this year. Earlier this year Baxter bought
dialysis product maker Gambro for $2.76 billion. Shares of Baxter rose 11 cents to $67.71 in afternoon trading.
[Associated
Press]
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