REFILE-UPDATE 1-Cell Genesys prostate cancer drug shows promise

(Corrects spelling of prostate in headline)

(Recasts, adds analyst comments, details)

BANGALORE, April 3 (Reuters) - Cell Genesys Inc. CEGE.O on Tuesday reported promising data from its second mid-stage trial of its treatment for prostate cancer.

The biotechnology company said its GVAX Immunotherapy for metastatic hormone-refractory prostate cancer showed a better-than-expected median survival in the trial.

Hormone-refractory prostate cancers are those that have the ability to grow even in the absence of male sex hormones.

"The company has two independent phase 2 studies, both of which outperformed the current standard of care Taxotere," Canaccord Adams analyst Joseph Pantginis said by phone.

Taxotere is a cancer drug made by Sanofi-Aventis (SASY.PA).

Cell Genesys shares rose more than 13 percent to $4.88 in afternoon trade on the Nasdaq.

The overall median survival in the second mid-stage trial of GVAX immunotherapy was 35 months, compared with a predicted median survival of 22 months.

In the first phase-II trial the overall median survival was 26.2 months, the company said.

Last week, shares of cancer vaccine makers, including Cell Genesys, jumped after an advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended approval of a therapeutic cancer vaccine made by Dendreon Corp. (DNDN.O).

Pantginis, who has a "buy" rating on Cell Genesys, said the company's data outperforms Dendreon's data. "... We believe they (Cell Genesys) have a much better product not only from a survival standpoint, but also from an ease-of-use standpoint."

Cell Genesys' product is non patient-specific, while Dendreon's product is patient-specific and requires much more in-depth manufacturing, Pantginis added.

Patient-specific vaccines use a patient's own tumor cells to generate a vaccine intended to stimulate a strong immune response against an individual patient's malignant cells.

Cell Genesys is currently studying GVAX immunotherapy as a single agent and in combination with docetaxel chemotherapy in two late-stage clinical trials.

It received Special Protocol Assessments (SPA) from the FDA for each of the Phase 3 studies trial designs and has also received Fast Track designation for the product, the company said in a statement. (Reporting by Jennifer Robin Raj, Pratish Narayanan in Bangalore)