At the end of March, British Biotech (Oxford, UK) axed its pancreatitis drug Zacutex after it failed to produce statistical significance in phase III clinical trials. It was this trial that was prematurely unblinded in 1998 by the former head of R&D at the firm, Andrew Millar, who claimed that the drug did not work (Nature Biotechnol. 16, 609, 1998). As a result of dropping Zacutex (and 60 members of staff), British Biotech says it will save £10 million by mid-2000. However, press reports have suggested that £50 million would have been saved if the company had taken this action during the original furor. Nevertheless, the money saved will go to fund the firm's sole remaining technology focus, metalloenzymes, including matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor BB-3644 for the treatment of various cancers. According to British Biotech, BB-3644 produces fewer musculoskeletal side effects than marimastat, the company's lead drug. British Biotech shares are currently trading a sliver above the firm's cash value at £0.165.