BioSpecifics Technologies, a biopharmaceutical company developing first in class collagenase-based products marketed as XIAFLEX (collagenase clostridium histolyticum or CCH) in the U.S. and XIAPEX in the E.U., has injected the first patient in its placebo-controlled phase II clinical trial of CCH for the treatment of lipoma. The company expects to complete patient enrollment in this trial during the first quarter of 2015.

"Our initiation of this phase II placebo-controlled clinical trial of CCH in patients with lipoma represents another important development milestone for BioSpecifics as we further advance our pipeline and continue to uncover the vast potential of injectable collagenase," said Thomas L. Wegman, president of BioSpecifics. "Lipomas are common and affect 2% of the total human population. We hope to build upon the positive clinical data reported earlier this year, and to make progress toward potentially offering a nonsurgical therapy to patients with this condition."

The phase II clinical trial is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to assess the safety and efficacy of CCH for the treatment of lipoma. Lipomas are encapsulated benign fatty tumors often detected as bulges under the skin. The study will be conducted at two centers in the U.S. and is expected to enroll 20 adult men and women presenting with at least two benign lipomas of similar size. Subjects will be randomized to have two lipomas treated in immediate succession; one with CCH and one with placebo.

The primary endpoint of the phase II clinical trial is the reduction in the measureable surface area of the target lipomas, as determined by caliper, at six months post injection. The secondary efficacy endpoints include responders at six months post injection who show a >=50% decrease in lipoma surface area relative to baseline between CCH and placebo, the change in the length of the target lipoma, the relative change in lipoma surface area as measured by caliper at one month and three months, and the relative change in lipoma volume as measured by MRI. The study also will gather qualitative lipoma characteristics and an assessment of patient satisfaction through a questionnaire administered to each subject prior to injection and at each follow-up visit.

BioSpecifics' strategic partner Auxilium Pharmaceuticals has the option to license development and marketing rights to this indication based on a full analysis of the data from this phase II clinical trial, which would transfer responsibility for the future development costs to Auxilium and trigger an opt-in payment and potential future milestone and royalty payments from Auxilium to BioSpecifics.