MD Anderson & Innovent Biologics Announce Strategic Rare Cancer Development Collaboration 

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Innovent Biologics, Inc. recently announced a strategic collaboration agreement to co-develop TYVYT (sintilimab injection), Innovent’s anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody, in rare cancers in the U S.

The joint development will focus on advancing sintilimab as an effective immune checkpoint inhibitor for patients with rare cancer types. This research will be enabled by MD Anderson’s experience in conducting clinical trials for even the rarest cancers not often seen by other centers. These studies will provide opportunities for Innovent to pursue approval of sintilimab by the US FDA or multiple rare cancer indications in addition to larger cancer indications for sintilimab that Innovent is independently pursuing for approval as well.

“TYVYT (sintilimab injection) was approved in 2018 by the National Medical Products Association (NMPA) in China for the treatment of relapsed or refractory classic Hodgkin’s lymphoma after second-line or later systemic chemotherapy, where it is currently being evaluated in additional clinical trials for solid tumors” said Dr. Michael Yu, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Innovent. “We believe TYVYT has great potential in various tumor types, both as a single agent and in combination with other inhibiting agents, and currently, we are conducting more than 20 related clinical trials including over 10 registration clinical trials. Through this new co-development collaboration, we will work to advance TYVYT into rare tumors, where we hope it will continue to demonstrate its efficacy across multiple tumor types.”

“We look forward to working with Innovent and utilizing our unique expertise in treating rare cancers to advance sintilimab toward potential FDA approval,” added Ferran Prat, PhD, JD, Senior Vice President for Research Administration and Industry Relations at MD Anderson. “The introduction of sintilimab to the US would broaden the treatment options available to patients with rare cancer types, many of whom do not currently have an effective standard of care available.”

Under the agreement, Innovent and MD Anderson will co-fund the development activities for sintilimab, which may include multiple clinical research studies to be conducted by MD Anderson. MD Anderson plans to develop an approach, upon commercialization in rare diseases, to allow royalty payments it receives on sales of the product in the US to be used to fund care for uninsured patients.

Inspired by the spirit of “Start with Integrity, Succeed through Action,” Innovent’s mission is to develop and commercialize high quality biopharmaceutical products that are affordable to ordinary people. Established in 2011, Innovent is committed to developing, manufacturing, and commercializing high-quality innovative medicines for the treatment of oncology, autoimmune, metabolic, and other major diseases. On October 31, 2018, Innovent was listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited with the stock code: 01801.HK.

Since its inception, Innovent has developed a fully-integrated multi-functional platform which includes R&D, CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls), clinical development and commercialization capabilities. Leveraging the platform, the company has built a robust pipeline of 23 valuable assets in the fields of oncology, autoimmune, metabolic diseases and other major therapeutic areas, with 16 in clinical development, 5 in Phase 3 or pivotal clinical trials, 4 under NDA reviews by the NMPA (3 under priority review status), while TYVYT (sintilimab injection), officially approved for marketing in China in 2018, has been the only PD-1 inhibitor included in the NRDL since 2019.

Innovent has built an international team of advanced talents in high-end biological drug development and commercialization, including many overseas experts. The company has also entered into strategic collaborations with Eli Lilly and Company, Adimab, Incyte, Hanmi, and other international pharmaceutical companies. Innovent strives to work with all relevant parties to help advance China’s biopharmaceutical industry, improve drug availability to ordinary people and enhance the quality of the patients’ lives. For more information, visit www.innoventbio.com.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston ranks as one of the world’s most respected centers focused on cancer patient care, research, education and prevention. The institution’s sole mission is to end cancer for patients and their families around the world. MD Anderson is one of only 51 comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). MD Anderson is ranked No. 1 for cancer care in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals survey. It has ranked as one of the nation’s top two hospitals for cancer care since the survey began in 1990, and has ranked first 15 times in the last 18 years. MD Anderson receives a cancer center support grant from the NCI of the National Institutes of Health (P30 CA016672).