Peplin to raise $10 million for skin cancer trial

Peplin (ASX:PEP) will raise AUD$10 million through a placement to fund phase IIb clinical trials of its lead product, PEP005 Topical, in actinic keratosis (AK), also known as solar keratosis, a skin condition which can develop into skin cancer.

The trial is expected to start in the first half of 2006 and will be conducted at sites in Australia and the US. The trial follows positive results from the phase IIa trial, which showed that PEP005 was well tolerated by patients and had a favourable safety profile, with the majority of local skin reactions mild to moderate.

Peplin currently has three phase IIa clinical trials of PEP005 Topical in progress. These include two clinical trials in basal cell carcinoma (BCC), the most common form of skin cancer. Results of the first of these trials is due to be reported in April 2006.

The company will complete a placement of 14.3 million shares to institutional investors at $0.70 per share. At time of writing Peplin shares were trading at $0.70.