1. Scrip
  2. >>Therapy Areas
  3. >>Anticancer
  4. >>Immuno-oncology

Novartis Drops BeiGene PD-1 Asset Tevimbra As Drug Wins Esophageal Cancer Nod In Europe

 
• By Alaric DeArment

The Swiss drug maker’s decision to give back rights to tislelizumab means BeiGene goes without the potentially $1.55bn in milestone payments the companies had agreed to in early 2021.

BeiGene took back full rights for its PD-1 inhibitor, Tevimbra • Source: Shutterstock

Novartis AG has decided to jettison a second immuno-oncology agent from its partnership with BeiGene, Ltd., though BeiGene itself is taking its PD-1 inhibitor tislelizumab forward in a variety of indications and just won approval from the European Commission for esophageal cancer, which the US Food and Drug Administration is currently considering.

BeiGene said 19 September that it had gained full rights from Novartis to the PD-1 inhibitor Tevimbra (tislelizumab) – including development, manufacturing and commercialization – which the companies had been developing under a license agreement since January 2021

Key Takeaways

  1. Novartis decided to hand back rights to PD-1 inhibitor Tevimbra to BeiGene, meaning the Chinese firm loses out on up to $1.55bn in milestone payments.

  2. The Swiss drug maker made the decision based on the competitive landscape for PD-1/L1 inhibitors. Tislelizumab would be at least the eighth FDA-approved drug in the class.

  3. The same day, BeiGene announced EC approval for Tevimbra in esophageal cancer

Read the full article – start your free trial today!

Join thousands of industry professionals who rely on Scrip for daily insights

  • Start your 7-day free trial
  • Explore trusted news, analysis, and insights
  • Access comprehensive global coverage
  • Enjoy instant access – no credit card required
Start Free Trial

Already a subscriber?

More from Immuno-oncology

BioNTech Aims To Diversify BNT323 Manufacturing As Filing Nears

 
• By Alaric DeArment

The company plans to expand manufacturing of the HER2-targeting ADC beyond China and plans to file for US FDA approval in 2025.

Merck Set To Add Perioperative Head-And-Neck Cancer To Keytruda Label

 
• By Joseph Haas

With positive data versus radiation therapy in KEYNOTE-689, Merck & Co. files for approval in perioperative head and neck cancer, adding to additional claim in that cancer type.

Akeso Explains Ivonescimab Prelim OS Data After Investors’ Negative Reactions

 
• By Dexter Jie Yan

Akeso explains the circumstances behind the release of preliminary overall survival data from a head-to-head Phase III trial with ivonescimab in lung cancer, which some investors viewed as disappointing.

Gilead Pipeline Progress Offsets Oncology Sales Slowdown

 
• By Alaric DeArment

Sales of the company’s approved cancer therapies were weaker or down, but Trodelvy is likely to see a label expansion and cell therapies are making progress.

More from Anticancer

In Brief: Positive New Data For Aptose’s Triplet Therapy In 1L AML

 
• By Sushmita Panda

Aptose’s tuspetinib triplet shows early mutation-agnostic promise in new data from Phase I/II program for frontline acute myeloid leukemia.

BioNTech Aims To Diversify BNT323 Manufacturing As Filing Nears

 
• By Alaric DeArment

The company plans to expand manufacturing of the HER2-targeting ADC beyond China and plans to file for US FDA approval in 2025.

In Brief: Genmab To Seek FDA Nod For Epkinly In Lymphoma

 
• By Sushmita Panda

Genmab will submit an sBLA for Epkinly in R/R follicular lymphoma in H1 2025, backed by positive Phase III data.