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Summit Therapeutics, AstraZeneca and more from cancer conference ASCO

Published

3 weeks ago

June 6, 2024

Summit Therapeutics, AstraZeneca and more from cancer conference ASCO

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Robert “Bob” Duggan, CEO of Summit Therapeutics.

Photo by Christian Peacock/The Forbes Collection

The American Society for Clinical Oncology held its annual conference in Chicago this past week, where biotech companies large and small highlighted the progress of clinical trials for a wide range of cancers. The conference was big for it Summit Therapeuticswhose share price subsequently more than doubled reporting interim clinical trial data showing that its drug candidate ivonescimab outperformed Merck’s blockbuster drug Keytruda for non-small cell lung cancer. One catch? The clinical trial took place in Chinameaning a US-based investigation will likely be required by the FDA before it will consider approval. “That wasn’t bad for one day’s work,” Summit CEO Bob Duggan, whose net worth that day was $7.5 billion, told Forbes.

AstraZeneca also showed data for lung cancer patients. a clinical study of his cancer treatment Tagrisso in a certain type of stage III non-small cell lung cancer, it was shown to reduce the risk of disease progression or death 84% compared to a placebo. An investigation into the drug Imfinzi also showed one 27% reduced risk of disease progression or death in patients with a type small cell lung cancer, a disease with fewer treatment options. This represents “a dramatic improvement in terms of the hazard ratio and risk of progression or death in this population,” according to the company’s EVP of oncology. Dave Fredrickson told Forbes.

More data also emerged for another promising treatment: vaccines against cancer. Data presented by Modern And Merck found that Moderna’s mRNA cancer vaccine in combination with Merck’s Keytruda reduced the risk of recurrence or death for skin cancer in an advanced stage by 49% compared to Keytruda alone. The two companies are also exploring a similar combination therapy for lung cancer in a late-stage clinical trial.

Other news that stood out was a collaboration between Takeda And Pfizer on the medicine Adcetris in combination with chemotherapy for patients with Hodgkin lymphoma. The study compared this combination with the usual standard of care in the Netherlands Europe and found both improved survival rates and significantly fewer side effects, potentially meaning a better quality of life for patients with this disease. One important difference? The standard of care can often lead to infertility and sexual dysfunction in patients, who have an average age of 30 years at diagnosis. The new regime these incidents reduced Through more than 50%. “We want to heal [these patients]”, Takeda’s chief of oncology PK Tomorrow told Forbes. “We also want them to have a great life, to be able to get married and have children.”

Healthcare investors feature prominently on this year’s Forbes Midas list

From left: Venture capital investors Trae Stephens, Annie Lamont and Vinod Khosla.

Stephens by CODY PICKENS FOR FORBES; Lamont and Khosla by GUERIN BLASK FOR FORBES

Every year, in partnership with Truebridge Capital, Forbes publishes its annual Midas List, which ranks the top venture capitalists based on the recent success of their portfolios. Several healthcare and biotech startup investors made the list this year, including:

Robert Nelsen, the co-founder of ARCH Capital, which has financed more than 150 companies, 47 of which have reached valuations of more than $1 billion. His notable healthcare investments include Gameto, Vir and Altos Labs.
Ann Miura-Ko, co-founder of Floodgate, which has backed Tetrascience and Inscopix, among others. She also sits on the board of AI healthcare company SmarterDX.
Hemant Taneja, CEO of General Catalyst, which has backed companies like Cityblock, CapitalRx and Karius. Taneja also co-founded Livongo and his company recently acquired a hospital system with an eye to developing the portfolio company’s technologies.

Pipeline and deal updates

Neurology: QurAils has granted Lilly an exclusive license to its drug candidate QRL-204, a potential treatment for ALS, dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. Lilly will make an upfront payment of $45 million for the deal, which is potentially worth it to $577 million plus royalties. :

Radiopharma: AstraZeneca led a series A round extra time in Nucleus RadioPharma, a CDMO for radiotherapies. Financial terms were not disclosed, but it announced its initial Series A of $56 million last October.

Digital stethoscopes: Eko Health, which has developed digital stethoscopes and FDA-approved algorithms for detecting heart problems, has announced a $41 million Series D round.

RSV: The FDA approved Moderna’s mRNA vaccine for RSV, mRESVIA, for adults 60 years and older.

Digital Health: Sword Health, a startup offering AI-powered digital physical therapy and pelvic floor therapy, has announced $130 million in funding at a $3 billion valuation. Part of the funding went toward allowing early investors and current employees to sell their shares. Sword has delivered more than three million AI sessions to patients, according to a study press release.

How Midas Lister Annie Lamont Became a Health Tech Heavy Hitter

Annie Lamont, co-founder of Oak HC/FT.

GUERIN BLASK FOR FORBES

Before she became First Lady of Connecticut, Midas lister Annie Lamont bet early on health tech — and saw big returns. Her venture capital firm Oak HC/FT, which has $5.3 billion in assets, is the latest chapter in a career that spans multiple companies and four decades, with lifetime investments in at least 80 companies. She has returned an estimated $1.5 billion to investors over the past decade. Now she’s reinventing herself for the AI era.

Other healthcare news

Psychedelic stocks plummeted after an FDA advisory committee voted against approval MDMA therapy for PTSD.

One study suggests Ozempic and similar medications may help curb alcohol use disorders that may be related to the way the drug reacts with the hormone dopamine in the brain.

An FDA panel voted in favor of manufacturing new products Covid-19 vaccines to specifically target the JN.1 variant line – the most dominant strain circulating in the US – due out this fall.

Prebiotic drink brand Poppi is facing a lawsuit over claims the drinks don’t contain enough prebiotic fiber to improve gut health.