Safety Study of Hemospan® in Prostatectomy Patients

Donor (allogeneic) blood transfusions are often required during and/or after elective surgery to maintain adequate hemoglobin concentration, prevent tissue ischemia (inadequate perfusion), treat hypotension (low blood pressure), and compensate for fluid shifts. Hemospan is a novel hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier and plasma expander specifically developed to perfuse and oxygenate tissue at risk for ischemia and hypoxia (insufficient oxygenation). As a result of the molecular size and oxygen dissociation characteristics, Hemospan selectively off-loads oxygen in tissues predisposed to low oxygen tension. In preclinical studies Hemospan has been found to be free of significant toxicity in a variety of animal species. These studies have also demonstrated that Hemospan may be ideally suited for this application, and may even perform better than blood in certain situations. Hemospan has been evaluated in three clinical studies, including a 90-patient multi-center Phase II orthopedic surgery trial completed in Sweden in 2005. No serious adverse events attributable to Hemospan have been noted in any of these trials. Sangart is developing Hemospan as an oxygen-carrying plasma expander and hemodiluent for patients undergoing elective surgical procedures. In the current Phase II study in prostatectomy patients, the administration of Hemospan (Treatment) or Ringer's lactate (Controls) occurs after approximately 250 mL of surgical blood loss has occurred. Study evaluations include clinical observations, subjective symptoms, vital signs, ECG, pulmonary hemodynamics (by TEE), serum chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, renal function, and oxygenation measurements, as well as a safety follow-up assessment at 4-6 weeks after surgery. An independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) will review the safety data following completion of each dosing cohort.