Telix Pharmaceuticals and Atlab Pharma Conclude Therapeutic Product Development Agreement for Prostate Cancer

Melbourne (Australia) and Nantes (France) – 18 January 2017. Telix announces completion of a product collaboration and purchase option agreement with Atlab

Telix is pleased to announce the completion of a product collaboration and purchase option agreement with Atlab Pharma SAS (Atlab).

Under the terms of the agreement, Telix will finance the manufacturing and clinical development of the huJ591 monoclonal antibody (mAb) radiolabelled with ¹⁷⁷Lu (Lutetium) and ²¹¹At (Astatine). Both are promising “theranostic” products for the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer.

The huJ591 mAb was originally developed by Dr. Neil Bander at the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences and targets Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA), a well-validated target in prostate cancer.

The parties will collaborate to manufacture clinical material and work together to execute a multi-centre Phase IIb trial for the treatment of men with metastatic prostate cancer, with and without end-stage chemotherapy (standard care).

In financing development, Telix also obtains an exclusive option to acquire Atlab under pre-agreed terms. The financial terms of the option exercise are not publicly disclosed at this time.

CEO Chris Behrenbruch stated, “PSMA targeting radiopharmaceuticals have shown great promise in both the diagnostic and therapeutic setting, dramatically increasing the interest in targeted radionuclide therapy by mainstream biopharma. The ¹⁷⁷Lu-huJ591 program is the most clinically advanced PSMA program and has extensive patient experience, including in conjunction with anti-androgens and chemotherapy. We are very pleased to be working with Atlab to add this very promising program to Telix’s development pipeline.”

Atlab President, Dr. Jean-Marc Le Doussal commented, “As we learn more about the different strategies to deliver PSMA-targeting radiopharmaceuticals in the clinic, the advantages of antibody-directed approaches have become increasingly apparent. We are pleased to be working with the experienced team at Telix to further progress this very promising program.”

Co-Founder and Chief Medical Adviser to Atlab, Professor Jean-François Chatal added, “Radioimmunotherapy is finally starting to hit its stride and garner the interest it deserves. In the clinic, we have seen targeted radionuclide therapy deliver impressive treatment responses, even in late stage patients. We are especially keen to use programs like ¹⁷⁷Lu-huJ591 in conjunction with other immuno-oncology agents that have generally demonstrated lackluster performance in the mCRPC setting.”

Professor Chatal will also join Telix’s scientific advisory board.

The full press release can be found here.