Biotech Calendar: Key Upcoming Trials

BOSTON (TheStreet) -- I've put together an updated list of phase III clinical trials with results expected through the first quarter 2010. The companies included here are listed in alphabetical order.

Unlike U.S. Food and Drug Administration drug approvals, which are more precisely timed, the release dates for data from clinical trials is a bit fuzzier, so the timelines here are culled from company guidance when possible.

This list was compiled using company reports, sell-side research and the BioMedTracker service from Sagient Research, a subscription-based tool for keeping track of biotech and drug catalysts.

Company: Alkermes(ALKS Quote)
Drug/indication: Vivitrol for opioid dependence
Clinical trial event: Phase III top-line results
Timing: Fourth quarter 2009

Alkermes is seeking to expand the commercial market for Vivitrol beyond its current use as a treatment for alcohol dependence.

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Company: Bristol-Myers Squibb(BMY Quote)
Drug/indication: ipilimumab for metastatic melanoma
Clinical trial event: Phase III top-line results
Timing: First quarter 2010

The phase III study enrolls patients with previously untreated metastatic melanoma and treats them with a combination of ipilimumab plus the chemotherapy dacarbazine or dacarbazine plus placebo.

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Company:Chelsea Therapeutics(CHTP Quote)
Drug/indication: Droxidopa for orthostatic hypotension
Timing: Fourth quarter 2009

Chelsea is hoping for better results from the second of two pivotal studies of droxidopa in patients with orthostatic hypotension, a condition in which blood pressure drops when a patient stands up, causing dizziness and other symptoms. The initial phase III study failed in September, although the drug did show some beneficial activity.

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Company:Genta(GETA.OB Quote)
Drug/indication: Genasense for metastatic melanoma
Timing: Fourth quarter 2009