Pfizer's Newest Immunotherapy Deal Could Propel This Tiny Biotech to New Heights
September 28, 2016
By Mark Terry, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
On September 15, Pfizer (PFE) and Rockville, Maryland-based OncoImmune inked an exclusive option and license agreement for ONC-392, a differentiated preclinical anti-CTLA4 monoclonal antibody. The deal is worth up to $250 million in upfront and possible milestone payments. Maxx Chatsko, writing for The Motley Fool, breaks down why this might be a bigger deal for both companies than first appeared. It also has the potential to significantly impact another biotech company, Agenus .
ONC-392 targets CTLA-4, which is secreted by cancer cells and blocks the immune system’s T cells. This puts it squarely into the immune-oncology market. Bristol-Myers Squibb ’s melanoma drug Yervoy is a CTLA-4 antagonist.
If OncoImmune’s compound is successful, Pfizer has the option to other CTLA-4 antibodies in the company’s pipeline. Chatsko writes, “What’s funny is that Pfizer actually owned an immunotherapy candidate in the same class years ago, but it licensed most of the rights to AstraZeneca . Oops.”
As a ripple effect, Chatsko suggests that investors take a look at Agenus. Agenus, located in Lexington, Massachusetts, has a lead product which is also a CTLA-4 antagonist, which is currently in Phase I clinical trials. And, Chatsko points out, the drug isn’t partnered with any company at the moment, which is unusual since Agenus’s pipeline has drugs in 10 clinical trials, and six of them are partnered with Incyte and Merck .
Chatsko writes, “Although the company was due to receive royalties from sales of two GlaxoSmithKline vaccines that contained adjuvants it developed, Agenus opted to sell rights to the royalties to a capital firm for an up-front infusion of $115 million in cash. It was a clear signal that management is going all in on its most valuable asset—an antibody discovery platform that was integral to grabbing the attention of Incyte and Merck, and to finding the CTLA-4 antagonist in the first place.”
But Agenus is running out of cash, apparently having about 15-months of runway, and its early-stage pipeline is forcing it to bring in capital. So a deal for its anti-CTLA-4 candidate could be at least a partial solution, although Chatsko thinks if the drug could successfully wend its way through Phase II trials first, it would get a better deal, although Agenus may not have that kind of time or capital.
Bottom line?
Chatsko writes, “After selling its own CTLA-4 antagonist to AstraZeneca five years ago, Pfizer decided that it wanted back in on the potentially lucrative immunotherapy class of drugs. The deal with OncoImmune could signal renewed interest in the drug target, which could put Agenus in an advantageous position if other pharma leaders go on the prowl. Investors should definitely keep an eye on the company and its antibody discovery platform.”
And although Chatsko doesn’t mention it, it does raise the question of whether Pfizer might eye Agenus as a possible acquisition or deal. Pfizer clearly wants to boost its oncology presence, marked most notably with its recent $14 billion acquisition of Medivation .
“The proposed acquisition of Medivation will build upon Pfizer’s success with our Ibrance (palbociclib) launch in HR+/HER2-metastatic breast cancer and with our strong immune-oncology portfolio, and will transform Pfizer into a leading oncology company,” said Albert Bourla, group president, Pfizer Innovative Health, in a statement in August. “Ibrance and Xtandi are anchor brands in breast and prostate cancer respectively, giving Pfizer leadership in two hormone-driven cancers. Similar to Ibrance in the breast cancer setting, Xtandi is being explored for its potential to move from metastatic prostate cancer to treat earlier stage of non-metastatic prostate cancer. In addition, Medivation’s portfolio within prostate cancer and across diverse tumors will complement Pfizer’s broad IO portfolio.”
And perhaps another anti-CTLA-4 would as well.