Dendreon Corporation (DNDN), Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (CLDX): A Promising Platform for Cancer Immunotherapy

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Steinman’s Legacy

The approaches of both Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLDX) and Dendreon stem from Steinman’s work.  FDA approval of Provenge was very exciting and the clinical data is quite impressive, yet its sky-high cost has prevented it from meeting investor expectations.  Sales growth has stalled for the last five quarters at around $80 million, and the stock hasn’t fared well either.

Celldex, on the other hand, has soared 90% YTD on strong clinical trial data and a robust pipeline.  Celldex may face competition in the immunotherapy space from Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY)‘s PD-1 inhibitor Nivolumab, which Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) estimates will bring in a massive $7 billion annually.  It is also possible that any marketed treatment from Celldex could work synergistically with Nivolumab, as the two treatments target different biochemical pathways.

Celldex’ promise isn’t limited to cancer vaccines.  The proprietary APC targeting platform provides an abundance of possible treatment courses, and Celldex has only begun to scratch the surface.  Antibodies targeted to APCs can also be conjugated to immunomodulators for immunosuppression in allergic reaction, inflammation, organ transplant, or autoimmune disorders (including an HIV vaccine in Phase 1 trials).  Celldex also obtained rights from Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) for a potent immunostimulant, now called CDX-301.

Bottom line

With a $114 million capital raise and $16 million cash burn in the first quarter, Celldex has plenty of fuel to carry it through rindopepimut and CDX-011 trials and continue preclinical investigation of other immunotherapy applications.  I also anticipate some pretty lucrative partnerships, as Celldex is openly shopping for commercialization and R&D partners.

Seth Robey has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Dendreon.

The article A Promising Platform for Cancer Immunotherapy originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Seth Robey.

Seth is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network — entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.

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