Bristol Myers Squibb’s efforts to diversify its cancer portfolio beyond immunotherapies brought radiopharmaceuticals to its pipeline. Now it’s expanding its radiopharmaceuticals scope to prostate cancer with a licensing deal for an early-stage compound from Philochem.
BMS’s radiopharmaceuticals subsidiary, RayzeBio, is licensing global rights to Philochem’s OncoACP3, which is being developed as both a diagnostic agent and a targeted therapy for prostate cancer. The pharmaceutical giant is paying $350 million up front for global rights to the asset, according to deal terms announced late Tuesday.
OncoACP3 is a small molecule is designed to specifically bind to acid phosphatase 3 (ACP3). This enzyme is abundant in prostate cancer cells, which makes its valuable for both diagnosing the disease as well as serving as the biomarker for a targeted therapy. For diagnostic applications, OncoACP3 is paired with the radioisotope gallium 68 (68Ga).
Philochem has reached Phase 1 testing of 68Ga-OncoACP3 as a radiotracer for diagnostic imaging of prostate cancer. The company said initial data from the first group of patients evaluated with this diagnostic candidate has shown selective uptake by tumor cells but not healthy cells. The molecule also stayed in tumors for a long time.
Philochem said the preclinical research to support an application to advance OncoACP3 to a Phase 1 test as a prostate cancer therapy is ongoing. The therapy will pair the small molecule with actinium 225, an alpha-emitting radioisotope. Actinium-225 is also the radioactive particle used by RayzeBio, which BMS acquired last year in a $4.1 billion deal.
RayzeBio’s most advanced program is RYZ101, a therapy currently in Phase 3 testing for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETS), a type of gastrointestinal cancer. This study is specifically recruiting patients whose disease has not responded to treatment with Lutathera, a Novartis radiopharmaceutical awarded FDA approval for GEP-NETS in 2018. Lutathera employs the beta particle lutetium-177. Compared to beta particles, alpha particles bring higher energy that offers better tumor-killing ability. RYZ101 could compete against radiopharmaceuticals from Sanofi and Eli Lilly that each came from acquisitions.
RayzeBio is exploring RYZ101’s potential in other cancers. Separate Phase 1 tests of the radiopharmaceutical are enrolling patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer as well as extensive-stage small cell lung cancer.
Beyond the upfront sum that BMS is paying for Philochem’s OncoACP3, the Otelfingen, Switzerland-based company could receive up to $1 billion more in milestone payments tied to the progress of the program, plus royalties from sales if the radiopharmaceutical, or RPT, reaches the market. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
“This collaboration with Philochem enhances our leadership in the rapidly advancing radiopharmaceuticals space, consistent with our strategy to bring forward best-in-class RPT candidates,” RayzeBio President Ben Hickey said in a prepared statement. “OncoACP3, with its initial encouraging safety profile, provides a differentiated entry for Bristol Myers Squibb and RayzeBio into the prostate cancer arena, building on our leadership in actinium-based RPT development.”
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