UPDATE 1-Cell Therapeutics starts late-stage Xyotax study

(Adds Milan share price)

NEW YORK, Sept 24 (Reuters) - U.S.-Italian drug firm Cell Therapeutics Inc CTIC.O (CTIC.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) has begun a late-stage clinical trial involving its Xyotax drug for women with an advanced form of lung cancer, the company said on Monday.

The Phase III trial, called PGT307, will focus on women with pre-menopausal estrogen levels and will enroll 450 patients. Xyotax links the cancer treatment paclitaxel with a polymer.

The trial involves Xyotax in combination with another cancer drug, carboplatin, in comparison to paclitaxel and carboplatin, the combination which is the most commonly used treatment for the estimated 200,000 Americans diagnosed with lung cancer each year, the company said.

Shares in Milan shot up 6.21 percent at 2.85 euros at 0955 GMT, after hitting a two-week high of 2.91 euros.

(Reporting by Lewis Krauskopf)