SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF
THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report: February 16, 1999
(Date of earliest event reported)
OXiGENE, INC.
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(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware 000-21990 13-3679168
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(State or other jurisdiction (Commission File (IRS Employer
of incorporation) Number) Identification Number)
One Copley Place, Suite 602, Boston, Massachusetts 02116
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (617) 536-9500
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Item 5. Other Materially Important Events
On February 16, 1999, the Registrant issued a press release, a copy of
which is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1, announcing its discontinuation of the
development of Neu-Sensamide(TM) to focus its resources on three other products
in development.
Item 7. Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial Information and Exhibits
(c) Exhibits.
99.1 Press release of the Registrant, dated February 16, 1999.
<PAGE>
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned herewith duly authorized.
Date: February 17, 1999 OXiGENE, INC.
(Registrant)
By: /s/ Bo Haglund
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Bo Haglund
Chief Financial Officer
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EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit
99.1 Press release of the Registrant, dated February 16, 1999.
OXiGENE DISCONTINUES NEU-SENSAMIDE(TM) PROJECT; FOCUSING
RESOURCES ON THREE OTHER PRODUCTS IN DEVELOPMENT
Boston, MA, and Stockholm, Sweden, February 16, 1999 -- OXiGENE, Inc. (Nasdaq:
OXGN, SSE: OXGN), announced today the decision to discontinue the development of
Neu-Sensamide(TM) in order to focus its resources on products with greater
commercial promise. Neu-Sensamide(TM), a project within the Company's DNA repair
inhibitor program, was being developed for use in conjunction with radiation
therapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer and in patients with
glioblastoma. The Company believes that its recent clinical studies lead to the
conclusion that the drug's profile limits its commercial potential.
The financial resources that had been designated for the further development of
the Neu-Sensamide(TM) project will be used to fund product development across
the Company's three small molecule compound technology platforms. Clinical
studies ongoing include: three Phase I clinical trials in the US and the UK for
OXiGENE's anti-tumor vascular targeting agent, Combretastatin A-4 Prodrug in
patients with advanced stage cancer; two Phase I/II studies of Declopramide, a
DNA repair inhibitor designed to minimize the central nervous system side
effects seen in previous generations of this platform; and a Phase I trial of
the nucleoside analog, Cordycepin, in patients with acute lymphoblastic
leukemia.
"We are very excited about the prospects for our ongoing products and believe
that it is in the best interest of the Company and our shareholders to
discontinue the Neu-Sensamide(TM) project so that we can reallocate resources to
those products in the pipeline that we believe will have substantially greater
chances of commercial success," said Bjorn Nordenvall, Ph.D., M.D., President
and CEO of OXiGENE. "To date, the ongoing product candidates within each of the
Company's three technology platforms have demonstrated promising progress. We
look forward to their continued advancement in the clinic."
OXiGENE is an international biopharmaceutical company developing a diverse
portfolio of innovative products to combat cancer and other major diseases. The
Company's mission is to develop new therapeutics that will enhance the
effectiveness of traditional cancer treatments and to introduce innovative
therapies that attack cancer in new ways.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties that may cause the Company's (OXiGENE's) actual results or
outcomes to be materially different from those anticipated and discussed in this
press release. Factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not
limited to, those risks and uncertainties associated with the regulatory
approval of the Company's proprietary drugs, and other risks included in the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and in the Company's other filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission during the past 12 months.
