AstraZeneca said Tuesday it will acquire Fusion Pharmaceuticals in a deal worth approximately $2.4 billion.

“At Fusion, we are pushing the boundaries of science to create innovative precision medicines for cancer,” Canadian-based Fusion Pharmaceuticals states on its website.

“AstraZeneca said on Tuesday it will buy Canadian drug developer Fusion Pharmaceuticals Inc for $2 billion in cash as the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker bets on next-generation cancer treatments,” Chief Nerd noted.

“The deal gives AstraZeneca a foothold in the radiopharmaceutical drugs market, which has seen increasing investor interest since 2021 when data from Novartis’ treatment showed that the drug extended survival for prostate cancer patients.”

“Fusion Pharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical-stage oncology company focused on developing next-generation radioconjugates (RCs) as precision medicines, today announced the Company has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by AstraZeneca. The acquisition marks a major step forward in AstraZeneca delivering on its ambition to transform cancer treatment and outcomes for patients by replacing traditional regimens like chemotherapy and radiotherapy with more targeted treatments,” a press release stated.

“This acquisition combines Fusion’s expertise and capabilities in radioconjugates, including our industry-leading radiopharmaceutical R&D, pipeline, manufacturing and actinium-225 supply chain, with AstraZeneca’s leadership in small molecules and biologics engineering to develop novel radioconjugates. Expanding on our existing collaboration with AstraZeneca where we have advanced FPI-2068, an EGFR-cMET targeted radioconjugate into Phase I clinical trials, gives us a unique opportunity to accelerate the development of next-generation radioconjugates with the aim of transforming patient outcomes,” Fusion Chief Executive Officer John Valliant, Ph.D., said.

From PR Newswire:

RCs have emerged as a promising modality in cancer treatment over recent years. These medicines deliver a radioactive isotope directly to cancer cells through precise targeting using molecules such as antibodies, peptides or small molecules. This approach has many potential advantages compared to traditional radiotherapy, including minimizing damage to healthy cells and enabling access to tumors not reachable through external beam radiation.

This acquisition complements AstraZeneca’s leading oncology portfolio with the addition of the Fusion pipeline of RCs, including the Company’s most advanced program, FPI-2265, a potential new treatment for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). FPI-2265 targets prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a protein that is highly expressed in mCRPC, and is currently in a Phase 2 trial.

The acquisition brings new expertise and pioneering R&D, manufacturing and supply chain capabilities in actinium-based RCs to AstraZeneca. It also strengthens their presence in and commitment to Canada.

“We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation radiopharmaceuticals as precision medicines for the treatment of cancer. We have developed our Targeted Alpha Therapies, or TAT, platform together with our proprietary Fast-Clear linker technology to enable us to connect alpha particle emitting isotopes to antibodies and other targeting molecules in order to selectively deliver the therapies to tumors,” Fusion Pharmaceuticals writes.

“We believe our proprietary Fast-Clear linker technology is a safer approach to targeted radiopharmaceuticals. Fast-Clear represents a revolutionary step towards developing safe and effective new radiotherapeutics as the standard of care for the treatment of multiple tumor types. We believe this evolution of radiopharmaceuticals holds great promise to improve the lives of patients with cancer,” the company added.

STAT News reports:

AstraZeneca will pay $2 billion in cash upfront for Fusion, a price that at $21 a share is nearly double Fusion’s closing share price on Monday. If certain regulatory milestones are met, AstraZeneca will pay another $3 a share, or roughly $400 million.

Fusion specializes in developing radiopharmaceuticals, also known as radioconjugates or radioligands, which deliver radiation directly to tumors, guided by particular markers on cancer cells. The aim is not only to minimize the risk of damaging surrounding, healthy tissue, but also to reach tumors that traditional radiation can’t.

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