March 30, 2023: “AstraZeneca has completed an exclusive global license agreement with KYM Biosciences Inc.i for CMG901, a potential first-in-class antibody drug conjugate (ADC) targeting Claudin 18.2, a promising therapeutic target in gastric cancers.
CMG901 is currently being evaluated in a Phase I trial for the treatment of Claudin 18.2-positive solid tumours, including gastric cancer. Preliminary results from the trial have shown an encouraging profile for CMG901, with early signs of anti-tumour activity across the dose levels tested.
Financial considerations
AstraZeneca has entered into an exclusive global license for the research, development, manufacture and commercialisation of CMG901 for an upfront payment of $63m, with potential development and sales-related milestone payments of up to $1.1bn and tiered royalties up to low double digits.
The transaction does not impact AstraZeneca’s financial guidance for 2023.
i. KYM Biosciences is a joint venture established by affiliates of Keymed Biosciences and Lepu Biopharma.
Notes
CMG901
CMG901 is a novel antibody drug conjugate targeting Claudin 18.2, and consists of an anti-Claudin 18.2 monoclonal antibody, a protease-degradable linker, and a cytotoxic small molecule monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE).
CMG901 is being developed for the treatment of solid tumours that express the cell surface protein Claudin 18.2, including gastric cancers.
CMG901 is owned by KYM Biosciences Inc. (KYM), a joint venture established by affiliates of Keymed Biosciences (70% of KYM ownership) and Lepu Biopharma (30% of KYM ownership).
AstraZeneca in gastrointestinal cancers
AstraZeneca has a broad development programme for the treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers across several medicines and a variety of tumour types and stages of disease.
In 2020, GI cancers collectively represented approximately 5.1 million new cancer cases leading to approximately 3.6 million deaths.1
Within this programme, the Company is committed to improving outcomes in gastric, liver, biliary tract, oesophageal, pancreatic and colorectal cancers.
Imfinzi (durvalumab) is approved in the US in combination with chemotherapy (gemcitabine plus cisplatin) for advanced biliary tract cancer and in combination with Imjudo in unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma.Â
Imfinzi is being assessed in combinations, including with Imjudo in liver, oesophageal and gastric cancers in an extensive development programme spanning early to late-stage disease across settings.
Enhertu (trastuzumab deruxtecan), a HER2-directed antibody drug conjugate, is approved in HER2-positive advanced gastric cancer and is being assessed in colorectal cancer. Enhertu is jointly developed and commercialised by AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo.”
