Gavocabtagene autoleucel

Genentech is severing ties with Adaptimmune, backing out of a 2021 deal the Roche company had paid $150 million cash for. In the same week that Genentech confirmed it's cutting 3% of its staff, the Roche subsidiary has terminated a cell therapy partnership with Adaptimmune Therapeutics worth up to $3 billion biobucks. The collaboration, inked in 2021, was a licensing deal focused on the development of two types of allogeneic T-cell therapies: off-the-shelf therapies directed to up to five targets and personalized therapies using αβ T-cell receptors isolated from a patient, with these therapies being administered to the same patient. At the time, Genentech paid out $150 million in cash. Since then, Adaptimmune has earned $35 million in milestone payments. The deal termination will set in 180 days after notice of the decision was received, meaning the terms of the pact are effective until then, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Adaptimmune received word of the termination on Wednesday, according to the filing. The Adaptimmune news comes shortly after Genentech confirmed to Fierce Biotech that it would be trimming roughly 3% of its workforce across "several departments.” Earlier this year, the biotech's parent company Roche announced cuts to its product development team. “Note that this limited reduction will allow us to shift resources to the areas that we believe can provide the greatest impact for patients,” a Genentech spokesperson told Fierce Biotech in an emailed statement. “We are actively hiring in a number of areas to bring forward our most promising molecules and capabilities, and we project that the overall workforce across Roche will remain stable throughout 2024.” For Adaptimmune, the termination comes almost exactly one year after another pharma discontinued work with the biotech. In April 2023, GSK paid Adaptimmune $37.3 million to wipe its hands of two programs, one of which included lete-cel, an asset the company at one point touted as its leading cell therapy. Then, in November, Adaptimmune axed two programs dubbed Gavo-cel and TC-510. After a review of safety and efficacy data for both candidates, the U.K. company said it didn’t “see a path forward” for further development of either programs. Now, the company has zoomed in on launching afami-cel—which has snagged FDA priority review and is slated for an FDA decision by or on August 4 of this year—for patients with advanced synovial sarcoma. "We've had a very valuable collaboration with our partner Genentech, and we continue to believe in the long-term potential of our iPSC-based allogeneic platform,” Adaptimmune CEO Adrian Rawcliffe said in an April 12 release. “Over the past 12 months, we've been resolutely focused on our late-stage autologous pipeline—in particular, our sarcoma franchise. We have the resources to deliver afami-cel to market as planned, and I look forward to updating on progress at our investor day next week."

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Myeloid Therapeutics, Inc. ("Myeloid"), a clinical stage oncology company, has appointed Robert Hofmeister, Ph.D., as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). An expert in immuno-oncology, gene and cell therapy, Dr. Hofmeister brings more than 25 years of scientific leadership experience and a track record of drug discovery and early development. "As Myeloid advances our novel pipeline of programs, I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Hofmeister as our new Chief Scientific Officer. His successful track record leading drug discovery teams, which contributed to the approval of two drugs by the FDA, will be instrumental in building upon our achievements and navigating the promising opportunities ahead," said Daniel Getts, Ph.D., Myeloid CEO. Dr. Hofmeister's appointment comes at a crucial time when Myeloid has achieved numerous milestones, including a Phase 1 clinical study with MT-302 for patients with TROP2-expressing tumors. Notably, this study investigates the first in vivo mRNA CAR candidate to ever be dosed in patients. In the year ahead, the company is on track to advance its second in vivo CAR program to the clinic targeting GPC3-positive liver cancers. In addition to being a key member of the executive management team, Dr. Hofmeister will lead the expansion of Myeloid's cutting-edge RNA focused research and development efforts, aimed at designing novel therapeutics that target, deliver, and program immune cells to combat cancer and other deadly diseases. "I'm thrilled to work with Myeloid's world class team and cutting-edge in vivo engineering platform to revolutionize the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, and make a difference in the lives of patients," Robert Hofmeister, Ph.D. "Myeloid's in vivo mRNA programming platform is positioned to dramatically change the future of cancer immunotherapy and the treatment of other devastating diseases." Before joining Myeloid, Dr. Hofmeister was the CSO at Resonance Medicine where he drove the development of their discovery platform for therapeutic proteases. Previously, he served as CSO at TCR2 Therapeutics where he started as employee number one and was instrumental in building and leading the R&D function, driving the development of their proprietary TRuC®-T cell platform from concept to first cleared IND (TC-210 program) and successfully contributed to taking the company public as well as securing multi-million dollar rounds of fundraising. Dr. Hofmeister also held various roles at EMD Serono where he was involved in the development of now approved Bavencio (avelumab) and building the company's immuno-oncology platform. He started his biotech career at Micromet AG, now Amgen Research Munich, where he helped shape the development of Blincyto (blinatumomab), the first FDA-approved bispecific antibody for the treatment of refractory ALL. Dr. Hofmeister received his Ph.D. from the University of Regensburg in Germany, where he studied the signaling of the cytokine interleukin-1. He continued to work in the cytokine field as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute. About Myeloid Therapeutics Myeloid Therapeutics is a clinical stage oncology company developing novel therapies for cancer. Integrating the fields of mRNA-based therapeutics, immunology, and cancer biology, the Company's proprietary platform provides clinical solutions for patients with solid tumors. Myeloid is headquartered in Cambridge, MA. For more information visit: . Media Contact: Jennifer Hanley Ridge Hill Group [email protected] Investor Contact Amy Conrad Juniper Point [email protected] SOURCE Myeloid Therapeutics, Inc.