TetraLogic Pharmaceuticsls And The Chatter About A Cure For Cancer

On January 15, 2014, TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals (TLOG) stock jumped 23% in mid-day trading. Nobody really knows why, but some suspect the jump was a reaction to media reports such as "Cancer Cure Found For Metastasizing Cells? TRAIL Treatment 100 Percent Effective In Mice," "Scientists Discover Cancer-Killing Protein," and "Big Scientific Breakthrough Could Prevent 90% of Cancer-Related Deaths."

• According to Seeking Alpha, "Market chatter suggests the move is attributable to optimism surrounding the company's research on "targeted cancer therapeutics designed to specifically induce cancer cell death," which traders are apparently linking to a study from researchers at Cornell who have reportedly developed a way to prevent metastasis (see here and here) - the research is being billed (by some) as somewhat of a "cure" for cancer."

Amidst the flurry, over 1.3 million shares of TetraLogic stock were traded. The stock rocketed from $11.21 to an all time high of $14.75. Then the stock started descending. By market close, the stock was at $12.07. The stock kept falling, By the end of January, TetraLogic stock was falling below $9. Still not bad for a company that had its initial public offering (IPO) on December 12, 2013 with its stock priced at $7 per share.
Malvern, Pennsylvania-based TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals is a $140M market cap company pioneering the discovery and development of small molecules called "SMAC (second mitochondriaderived activator of caspase) Mimetics" for the treatment of cancers. SMAC Mimetics are a new class of targeted cancer therapeutics. SMAC Mimetics are designed to specifically induce cancer cell death and inhibit fundamental mechanisms of cancer cell survival and resistance, forcing tumors to die.