Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc., the biotechnology company that conducts research in various scientific areas and currently focuses on inflammation and oncology, announced on Friday it will get a $40 million payment from a unit of Johnson & Johnson for achieving certain sales targets for its cancer drug Velcade.

Velcade, a drug that treats patients suffering from relapsed multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma, is promoted in the U.S. by Ortho Biotech Inc., a Millennium and J&J unit.

Millennium said in its statement that the payment is for accomplishing a "material sales milestone" in 2007 for Velcade outside the United States.

Ortho Biotech and its associate, Janssen-Cilag, sell Velcade outside the United States, and Millennium receives royalties on those sales. In June 2003, Millennium reached the agreement with Ortho Biotech Products, L.P. to collaborate on the commercialization and continued clinical development of VELCADE.

"VELCADE is the market leader in the relapsed multiple myeloma setting with a pending approval in the front-line setting. This milestone payment represents the continued strong growth of the product worldwide." said Christophe Bianchi, M.D., Executive Vice President, Commercial, Millennium.

Shares of Millennium, the Cambridge, Mass.-based drug manufacturer, closed Thursday at $15.13.

About Velcade

Bortezomib (originally PS-341 and marketed as Velcade) is the first therapeutic proteasome inhibitor to be tested in humans. It is approved in the U.S. for treating relapsed multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma. In multiple myeloma, complete clinical responses have been obtained in patients with otherwise refractory or rapidly advancing disease.

Velcade is associated with peripheral neuropathy in 30% of patients; occasionally, it can be painful. This can be worse in patients with pre-existing neuropathy. In addition, myelosuppression as neutropenia and thrombocytopenia can also occur and be dose limiting.