24 May 2013 - 24 May 2013 - Japanese Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd (TYO:4502) said Thursday it had started a Phase III study of its investigational oral proteasome inhibitor, MLN9708, in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma who are not candidates for transplant.

The multi-centre, randomised, double-blind trial, named TOURMALINE-MM2, will examine weekly MLN9708 plus lenalidomide and dexamethasone versus placebo. The primary goal is progression-free survival (PFS), while the secondary ones are safety, rate of complete response (CR), pain response and overall survival (OS).

In 2012, Takede launched two Phase III studies of MLN9708, one in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone in relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma and the other -- plus dexamethasone in relapsed or refractory light chain AL amyloidosis.