Biocon Collaborates With Advaxis

Biocon Ltd. and Advaxis, Inc. recently announced they have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for co-development and commercialization of ADXS-HPV, a novel cancer immunotherapy for the treatment of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated cervical cancer in women, for India and key emerging markets.

As per the agreement, Biocon will also have access to Advaxis’ innovative and proprietary immunotherapy technology that can be leveraged for the development of other novel therapeutics for various unmet medical needs.

“Biocon is committed to finding solutions for women’s health issues. This partnership will enable us to develop ADXS–HPV a novel immunotherapy to combat cervical cancer in women. It is a promising technology that has the ability to suppress the tumor inside the microenvironment, and can be leveraged for developing several other novel therapeutics to address various unmet medical needs of patients in India and other emerging markets,” said Chairperson and Managing Director of Biocon, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.

“We are excited to partner with Biocon, one of the world’s leading biotechnology companies and the largest biotechnology company in India to bring our innovative cancer immunotherapy for cervical cancer to women with few alternatives,” added Daniel J. O’Connor, Chief Executive Officer of Advaxis. “This agreement gives us reach into key markets where the number of patients with HPV-associated cancers is overwhelming.”

Cervical cancer is one of the most frequent cancers in women in India. Over 366 million women of the age of over 15 years are at a risk of developing cervical cancer. It is estimated that every year, over 134,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in India, and nearly 73,000 die from this disease. Approximately 7.9% of women in general are estimated to harbor cervical HPV infection at a given time, and 82.5% of invasive cervical cancers are attributed to high-risk HPV strains.

According to WHO, in 2008, there were over 530,000 new cases of cervical cancer worldwide, 90% of these were reported in developing countries. While globally there were over 300,000 deaths, the African region recorded over 50,000 deaths, and Asian countries reported over 150,000 deaths for the year.

ADXS-HPV has the potential to address this huge challenge in the developing world.
Under the terms of the agreement, Advaxis will provide exclusive commercialization rights for ADXS-HPV to Biocon for India, and key emerging markets for all HPV- associated cancers. Advaxis will manufacture and supply ADXS-HPV to Biocon.

Established in 1978, Biocon Limited is India’s largest and Asia’s leading biotechnology company with a strategic focus on biopharmaceuticals and research services. For more information, visit www.biocon.com.

Advaxis is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing the next generation of cancer immunotherapies. Advaxis’ immunotherapies are based on a novel platform
technology using live, attenuated bacteria to stimulate the immune system to selectively target cancer cells while reducing tumor defenses. For more information, visit
www.advaxis.com.