Share prices for Northwest Biotherapeutics Inc. (OTCBB: NWBO) dropped another 16 percent today, continuing the stock’s week-long drop ever since the company unveiled its new DCVax brain cancer vaccine. In fact, shares have dropped so much over the past week that the company tried to assuage shareholders today regarding “certain media reports” as well as the company’s “absence” of stock sales activity.”Certain media reports have erroneously stated that company shareholders Toucan Capital and/or Toucan Partners have sold shares in the company at the time of the PIPE financing in April 2006, at the time of the recent AIM financing, or at other times,” the statement read. “Such reports are incorrect.”
According to the statement, neither Toucan Capital nor Toucan Partners have sold or plan on selling any shares of Northwest Biotherapeutics stock. The statement also claimed that the company has not received a marketing authorization for its vaccine yet.
“Certain reports have … erroneously indicated that the company has received a marketing authorization from the Swiss authorities,” the statement read. “Such reports are incorrect.”
Northwest also reiterated its July 9 statement, in which it said that the company received authorization for use for its vaccine. Under this authorization, the company may export patients’ immune cells and tumor tissue for vaccine manufacturing in the U.S., and import the patients’ vaccine into Switzerland.
According to a recent Northwest statement, the company’s DCVax-Brain platform technology has is under review for commercial use in Switzerland. If approved, this would make it the first commercially available therapeutic vaccine for brain cancer victims. Northwest Biotherapeutics claims that both newly diagnosed and recurrent brain cancer patients treated with DCVax-Brain had “more than double” the survival time than patients who weren’t treated. Plus, the company claims that DCVax-Brain has none of the debilitating effects that come with chemotherapy.
As of now, Northwest Biotherapeutics plans to apply for the marketing authorization for the vaccine by the end of 2007, which will allow the company full marketing and commercialization of the vaccine in Switzerland.
