Celator Pharmaceuticals

Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc. operated as an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company, directing its efforts toward developing improved therapies for cancer patients. The company was founded in 1999 by Drs. Lawrence Mayer and Marcel Bally, spinning out of Dr. Mayer's laboratory at the British Columbia Cancer Agency. Dr. Mayer, who served as President and Chief Scientific Officer, has an extensive background in nanomedicines and the development of anticancer drugs, with over 250 publications and numerous patents. Scott Jackson, who possesses over two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries at companies like Eli Lilly and ImClone Systems, joined as CEO in 2008.

The core of Celator's strategy was its proprietary CombiPlex® technology platform. This platform enables the rational design and rapid evaluation of drug combinations to identify synergistic ratios that maximize anti-cancer activity. The business model centered on using this technology to reformulate existing chemotherapy drugs, aiming to enhance efficacy and deliver better patient outcomes. By encapsulating drugs in nano-scale liposomes, CombiPlex ensures the optimal ratio of the combined drugs is delivered directly to cancer cells.

Celator's lead product developed through this platform was VYXEOS™ (also known as CPX-351), a nano-scale liposomal formulation of the chemotherapy drugs cytarabine and daunorubicin. It was developed for patients with high-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a blood cancer with historically poor survival rates, particularly in older adults. A pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial demonstrated that VYXEOS provided a statistically significant improvement in overall survival compared to the standard of care, with a median survival of 9.56 months versus 5.95 months. This achievement, the first significant survival improvement in decades for this patient group, led to the FDA granting VYXEOS Breakthrough Therapy, Orphan Drug, and Fast Track designations. In May 2016, following these promising results, Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc announced its acquisition of Celator for approximately $1.5 billion, a deal finalized in July 2016.

Keywords: Celator Pharmaceuticals, VYXEOS, CPX-351, CombiPlex, acute myeloid leukemia, AML, oncology, biopharmaceutical, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Lawrence Mayer, Scott Jackson, nanomedicine, liposomal formulation, chemotherapy combination, cytarabine, daunorubicin, cancer therapy, clinical trials, drug delivery, hematology, orphan drug, Breakthrough Therapy