Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that it has received the official minutes from the Type C meeting held with the FDA's Division of Oncology Products 2 on December 16, 2013. The purpose of the meeting was to determine which of the available paths that Provectus's novel investigational oncology drug PV-10 will take in pursuit of initial FDA approval and commercialization. PV-10, a 10% solution of rose bengal disodium, is designed to selectively target and destroy cancer cells without harming surrounding healthy tissue, while inducing a secondary tumor-specific immune response.

As a result of this meeting, Provectus will submit data from its Phase 2 study in a formal breakthrough therapy designation (BTD) request this quarter, and should receive a decision within 60 days of receipt of that request. With the passage of the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA) in July 2012, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was given powerful expedited tools to speed patient access to innovative medicines for serious or life-threatening conditions (Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA)). FDASIA initiatives such as breakthrough therapy designation are designed to accelerate approval for new drugs that show preliminary clinical evidence of a large treatment effect.

A key feature of BTD authorizes the Agency to take steps to ensure that the design of the clinical trials are as efficient as practicable, when scientifically appropriate, such as by minimizing the number of patients exposed to a potentially less efficacious treatment. Requests for BTD are reviewed and granted or rejected within 60 days of receipt. As Provectus has previously reported, based on rapid tumor destruction in a positive Phase 2 trial in melanoma patients receiving PV-10 (protocol PV-10-MM-02), input from the Agency regarding the current development plan was sought.

Agency guidance (Frequently Asked Questions: Breakthrough Therapies) encourages sponsors to seek such advice prior to formal request for designation.