The rumors started on Twitter this morning, but now it looks as if they might be the real thing: Reuters is now reporting that the FDA will not be seeking the advice of outside advisers in its evaluation of Provenge, Seattle-based Dendreon's prostate cancer therapy.
It's an administrative manuever, but one that will shave time off the regulatory cycle. Because the FDA will not convene an advisory committee, Provenge might be approved as early as May. If the FDA had sought more advisers, it would have racked up yet another delay in the approval process.
The reports have pushed up Dendreon's stock 7 percent to $34.85 at midday trading.
Seattle Business took a look inside Dendreon in the February issue.
UPDATE: Stock closed today at $33.26, still up 2.3 percent. Not a bad day, but perhaps some traders have itchy "buy" fingers whenever they see Dendreon mentioned. There's a lot of high expectations out there.