Westwood Bioscience’s initial products will target pancreatic and colon cancer.
Westwood’s first clinical indication is anticipated to be an irinotecan carrier for pancreatic cancer, followed by a trial targeting colon cancer that can also be treated by the same drug.
The American Cancer Society’s estimates for pancreatic cancer in the United States for 2018 that about 55,400 people (29,200 men and 26,240 women) will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Pancreatic cancer accounts for about 3% of all cancers in the US and about 7% of all cancer deaths. Pancreatic cancer is generally a fatal disease, with a five-year survival rate of less than 6 percent.