Celgene's cancer drug Revlimid succeeds in trial

Celgene Corp said on Friday that initial results from a clinical trial showed multiple myeloma patients who took its drug Revlimid following a stem cell transplant had a 58 per cent reduction in risk of their disease progressing. The company's shares rose nearly 10 per cent to $55.60 in afternoon trading on Nasdaq. "We anticipated Revlimid would likely be effective in this setting, but these results come sooner than expected and indicate robust Revlimid benefits," said Brian Abrahams, an analyst at Oppenheimer & Co. "We believe this news provides important momentum for Celgene entering 2010." Revlimid is already approved in combination with dexamethasone to treat patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior treatment. The latest study was led by the Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB).