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news.Gilead Sciences has agreed to acquire Immunomedics, a US biopharma company engaged in the development of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) for cancer, in a deal worth around $21bn.
Gilead Sciences to acquire Immunomedics. (Credit: Tumisu from Pixabay)
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As per the terms of the deal, Gilead Sciences has offered to acquired 100% of Immunomedics for $88 per share in cash.
Through the acquisition, Gilead Sciences gets access to Trodelvy (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy), a Trop-2 directed ADC that was given accelerated approval in April 2020 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The approval for the ADC is for the treatment of metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) in adults who have received two or more prior therapies for metastatic disease.
During the fourth quarter of this year, Immunomedics is expected to submit a supplemental biologics license application (BLA) to the FDA for seeking the full approval of Trodelvy.
The company also plans to seek regulatory approval for the ADC in Europe in the first half of next year.
Gilead Sciences chairman and CEO Daniel O’Day said: “This acquisition represents significant progress in Gilead’s work to build a strong and diverse oncology portfolio. Trodelvy is an approved, transformational medicine for a form of cancer that is particularly challenging to treat.
“We will now continue to explore its potential to treat many other types of cancer, both as a monotherapy and in combination with other treatments.”
Apart from mTNBC, Trodelvy is being evaluated in an ongoing phase 3 trial in third line HR+/HER2- breast cancer and a phase 2 trial in bladder cancer patients.
Studies are also going on for the ADC to assess its potential as a treatment for non-small cell lung cancer and other forms of solid tumours.
Immunomedics executive chairman Behzad Aghazadeh said: “We are very pleased that Gilead recognized the value of Trodelvy – both for the important role it has already begun to play for patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer and for its potential to help many other patients with cancer in the future.
“We are excited for the opportunities ahead of us as we join with Gilead to advance our shared mission in defeating cancer. By working with Gilead, we have the opportunity to accelerate our progress and improve care for patients in need of new therapies.”
The deal is expected to close during the fourth quarter of this year.
Recently, Gilead Sciences signed an exclusive licensing deal worth up to $805m with Jounce Therapeutics for the latter’s immunotherapy candidate JTX-1811.
