Telix Pharmaceuticals Acquires Glioblastoma Program from Therapeia

Melbourne (Australia) and Dresden (Germany) – 18 January 2017. Telix Pharmaceuticals announces a product development partnership with Therapeia GmbH & Co KG

Telix is pleased to announce a product development partnership with Therapeia GmbH & Co KG (“Therapeia”).

Telix will add Therapeia’s ACD-101 theranostic program for glioblastoma to its pipeline of advanced theranostic radiopharmaceutical products. Telix has also secured the option to acquire Therapeia under pre-agreed terms.

ACD-101 is a synthetic amino acid that targets the L-type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1), which is strongly over-expressed in many aggressive malignancies, including glioblastoma, multiple myeloma, melanoma, gastric, breast, prostate and primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). ACD-101 has been studied clinically with both diagnostic radiolabels (for imaging with Positron Emission Tomography – PET) and therapeutic radionuclides. ACD-101 demonstrates favourable therapeutic biodistribution and kinetics, and is actively transported across the intact blood-brain-barrier into tumour cells. ACD-101 potentially offers therapeutic benefit as a monotherapy, and in conjunction with other therapeutic agents, including radiotherapies (external beam therapy, microspheres, brachytherapy, etc.), due to its radiosensitization effect.

CEO Chris Behrenbruch stated, “ACD-101 is a unique multi-action agent that has the potential to deliver something really new to the management of several very challenging malignancies, particularly glioblastoma. Early patient experience in Germany has demonstrated promising therapeutic results and we are excited to be working with the Therapeia team to take this program forward to Phase II and beyond.”

Therapeia Managing Director, Dr. Andreas Kluge added, “We are delighted become part of the Telix team and to add this program to Telix’s stable of theranostic radiopharmaceuticals. The radiopharmaceutical space has lacked commercial critical mass for decades, and has only just started to gain the clinical and product development momentum it truly deserves. Only by building a portfolio of best-in-class products and financing them appropriately, can we expect to see the field deliver on its enormous clinical potential.”

Dr. Kluge joins Telix as a Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer.

The full press release can be found here.