Sally James

Seattle Science Writer

Published Article

Seattle Genetics aims to put drug on front line of cancer

Jamie Mitchell, a research associate at Seattle Genetics, uses a pipette while purifying antibodies at the company’s lab in Bothell. (Mike Siegel/The Seattle Times

Seattle Genetics hides its big ambitions in a modest-looking set of beige Bothell office-park buildings, while some of its cousins in the local biotech world crowd together in the brainy-hood of Seattle’s South Lake Union. But there is nothing modest about this 18-year-old company, which is plowing forward patiently and aims to make a major splash in the cancer-drug market in 2017.Investors have driven SGEN stock up more than 50 percent this year, largely on the strength of its flagship drug known as Adcetris, which treats Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system that can spread to the lungs, liver or bone marrow. The company employs around 900 full-time staff and will add perhaps 200 next year, said CEO Clay Siegall, who co-founded Seattle Genetics in 1998. For original story https://www.seattletimes.com/business/technology/seattle-genetics-aims-to-put-drug-on-the-front-line-of-battling-cancer/