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" Drug developer Merck and Vertex Pharmaceuticals have announced the results of a clinical study of potential leukaemia treatment MK-0457.  Patients with chronic myelogenous leukaemia were found to respond to the investigational molecule, an aurora kinase inhibitor, in eight out of nine cases where the disease had mutated.  No response was found in patients where the illness had not undergone a specific recognised mutation.  Dr Stephen H Friend, executive vice president of oncology for Merck, said: &amp;quot;Many patients with leukaemia develop resistance to standard anti-cancer therapies.&amp;quot;  &amp;quot;MK-0457 is the first compound to show clinical activity in patients with these treatment-resistant forms of blood cancer,&amp;quot; he added.  A potent effect of MK-0457 was observed, leading Dr Friend to claim that it should be considered as an adjunctive therapy for leukaemia.  There was no observation of toxic effects in the trials, so no maximum dosage could be established as a result of the testing, Merck said.  Merck says it &amp;quot;devotes extensive efforts&amp;quot; to making medicines available through a series of outreach programmes to the disadvantaged. \u00A9 Adfero Ltd "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/news/a14613/merck-announces-clinical-trial-results-for-mk-0457/>