XOMA Earns First Milestone Payment From 2018 Royalty Purchase Agreement
XOMA Corporation recently announced it has earned a $1-million milestone payment from Agenus Inc. related to Merck’s advancement of MK-4830 into a Phase 2 study in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) previously treated with anti-programmed cell death receptor ligand 1 (PD-L1) therapy. MK-4830 is part of XOMA’s first transaction under its royalty and milestone aggregator business model in which the company acquired a royalty interest in seven milestone and royalty-bearing licenses Agenus held with Merck and Incyte for $15 million.
“Today’s announcement marks the first asset that the XOMA team acquired under our royalty and milestone aggregator business model to achieve a clinical milestone. We congratulate Merck on its early clinical success with MK-4830, and we hope this positive development ultimately translates into a new therapeutic option for patients with non-small cell lung cancer,” said Jim Neal, Chief Executive Officer at XOMA.
XOMA has built a significant portfolio of products that are licensed to and being developed by other biotech and pharmaceutical companies. The company’s portfolio of partner-funded programs spans multiple stages of the drug development process and across various therapeutic areas. Many of these licenses are the result of XOMA’s pioneering efforts in the discovery and development of antibody therapeutics. The company’s royalty-aggregator business model includes acquiring additional milestone and royalty rights associated with drug development programs with third-party funding. For more information, visit www.xoma.com.
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