Eli Lilly to collaborate with Germany's CureVac on cancer vaccines

U.S. drugmaker Eli Lilly and Co said on Wednesday it will collaborate with CureVac AG on development of up to five immunotherapy cancer vaccines using the German company's messenger RNA (mRNA) technology.
Under terms of the deal, CureVac will receive $50 million up front and Lilly will take an equity stake in CureVac worth about $53 million (45 million euros).
Once the deal clears regulatory scrutiny, Lilly said it will take a charge to earnings of about 3 cents per share.
The collaboration calls for Lilly to be responsible for identifying cancer targets, clinical development and commercialization, while CureVac will handle mRNA design, formulation and manufacture of vaccine for clinical supply, the companies said.
CureVac retains an option to co-promote any approved vaccine products in Germany. It will also be eligible to receive more than $1.7 billion in development and commercialization milestones should all five vaccines prove successful, and royalty payments on sales if any are approved.
Therapeutic cancer vaccines have had a very disappointing track record with numerous clinical failures. But treatments that help a patient's own immune system fight cancer are all the rage, with a handful on the market targeting several cancer types and scores more in development.
Messenger RNA carries the recipe to produce desired therapeutic proteins inside a patient's body. The CureVac mRNA technology will employ specific tumor neonantigens designed to help mount a selective immune system assault against cancer cells.
"We now have the opportunity to combine forces to further expand the exciting space of immuno-oncology with the next generation of cancer therapies," 

Source:https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/international-business/eli-lilly-to-collaborate-with-germanys-curevac-on-cancer-vaccines/articleshow/61132573.cms

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

EMA validates Incyte’s MAA for retifanlimab to treat metastatic squamous cell anal carcinoma

Incyte, global biopharmaceutical company, announced the validation of the Company’s Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for retifanlimab, an intravenous PD-1 inhibitor, as a potential treatment for adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic squamous cell anal carcinoma (SCAC) who have progressed on, or who are intolerant of, platinum-based chemotherapy. The European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) validation of the MAA confirms that the submission is sufficiently complete to begin the formal review process. “While the incidence of SCAC is increasing in Europe, treatment options for advanced disease are limited in their effectiveness, and there are no approved options once patients have progressed on standard therapy,” said Lance Leopold, M.D., Group vice president, Immuno-Oncology Clinical Development, Incyte. “The EMA validation of the MAA for retifanlimab – which follows the recent US Food & Drug Administration acceptance of our Biologics License Application for Priority R
Read more

Merck’s Keytruda plus platinum- and fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy receives US FDA nod to treat certain patients with locally advanced/metastatic esophageal or GEJ carcinoma

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Keytruda, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic esophageal or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) (tumors with epicenter 1 to 5 centimeters above the GEJ) carcinoma that is not amenable to surgical resection or definitive chemoradiation in combination with platinum- and fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy. The approval is based on results from the phase 3 KEYNOTE-590 trial, which demonstrated significant improvements in overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and objective response rate (ORR) for Keytruda plus fluorouracil (FU) and cisplatin versus FU and cisplatin alone, regardless of histology or PD-L1 expression status. For OS and PFS, Keytruda plus FU and cisplatin reduced the risk of death by 27% (HR=0.73 [95% CI, 0.62-0.86]; p<0.0001) and reduced the risk of disease progression or death
Read more

Tumour-targeting drug paves way for bone cancer treatment

 The treatment of osteosarcoma, the most common tumour of bone, is challenging, but a new study is offering hope to the patients with this disease. The study led by The University of  Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre  found that a drug, known as bone metastasis-targeting peptidomimetic (BMTP-11), has potential as a new therapeutic strategy for this devastating illness. Results from the preclinical study looked at BMTP-11 alone and in combination with the chemotherapy agent gemcitabine. Although osteosarcoma is a relatively rare cancer, it is a leading disease-related cause of death in children and young adults ages 10 to 20. However, over the last 25 years, the five-year survival rate has remained unchanged, and the treatment options for these patients are few. In addition, the side effects of available treatment options often are significant and cumulative, and may cause other health problems and damage to major organs. "What's novel about this treatment is that BMTP
Read more