Under the terms of the collaboration, Millennium will pay a $4 million upfront fee for an exclusive antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) license to an initial antigen expressed on solid tumors. Millennium also can exercise options for exclusive licenses to two other antigens upon payment of additional fees to Seattle Genetics.
Millennium is responsible for research, product development, manufacturing and commercialization of all ADC products under the collaboration. Seattle Genetics will receive progress-dependent milestone payments and mid-single digit royalties from Millennium on worldwide net sales of any resulting ADC products. Seattle Genetics also will receive material supply and annual maintenance fees as well as research support payments for assistance provided to Millennium under the collaboration.
Seattle Genetics is advancing its own pipeline of ADC programs, including SGN-35, which is in a pivotal trial for Hodgkin lymphoma and a planned Phase II trial for systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma. The company is also developing a number of preclinical ADC programs, including SGN-75, which the company is advancing towards a planned 2009 investigational new drug submission for CD70-positive malignancies.
Deborah Dunsire, president and CEO of Millennium, said: “The collaboration with Seattle Genetics enhances our pipeline by utilizing a novel technology to enable the use of our antibodies to precisely target delivery of anticancer medicines to the cancer rather than the whole patient. Overall, this supports our commitment to developing quality cancer treatments.”