On October 19, 2020 Orion Corporation, 120,939 A shares have been converted into 120,939 B shares (Press release, Orion , OCT 19, 2020, View Source [SID1234568647]). The conversion has been entered into the Trade Register on 19 October 2020.

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The total number of shares in Orion Corporation is 141,134,278 which, after the conversion, consists of 35,131,035 A shares and 106,003,243 B shares. The number of votes of the company’s shares is after the conversion 808,623,943.

On October 19, 2020 ImmunoGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN), a leader in the expanding field of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) for the treatment of cancer, and Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Huadong Medicine Co., Ltd., reported that the companies have entered into an exclusive collaboration to develop and commercialize mirvetuximab soravtansine in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan (Greater China) (Press release, ImmunoGen, OCT 19, 2020, View Source [SID1234568645]). ImmunoGen will retain all rights to mirvetuximab in the rest of the world.

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This collaboration provides ImmunoGen with access to the second largest pharmaceutical market in the world via Huadong Medicine’s development, regulatory, and commercial capabilities, while supporting Huadong Medicine’s growth strategy to build a deep portfolio of oncology, endocrinology, and autoimmunology candidates. Mirvetuximab adds a compelling late-stage oncology asset to Huadong Medicine’s portfolio.

"With extensive regional experience, the right development and regulatory capabilities, and access to a deep local network of hospitals and clinics across Greater China, Huadong Medicine is an ideal partner for us," said Mark Enyedy, ImmunoGen’s President and Chief Executive Officer. "This collaboration reflects mirvetuximab’s potential to deliver meaningful value to ovarian cancer patients as well as our ability to translate our work in ADCs into long-term relationships that create sustainable value for ImmunoGen and our partners. We look forward to working closely with Huadong Medicine to develop and commercialize mirvetuximab in Greater China as we advance the mirvetuximab program and prepare for the first potential commercial launch in the United States in 2022."

"ImmunoGen is a leader in the development of ADCs for the treatment of cancer and this partnership provides us with a late-stage asset that will enable us to further expand our pipeline of innovative oncology programs," said Liang Lu, Chairman of Huadong Medicine. "The compelling clinical data generated to date highlights mirvetuximab’s potential to be a promising therapy for an extremely difficult to treat disease and we look forward to beginning its development as we seek to meet the growing needs of ovarian cancer patients in Greater China."

Under the terms of the agreement, ImmunoGen will receive an upfront payment of $40 million and is eligible to receive additional milestone payments of up to $265 million as certain development, regulatory, and commercial objectives are achieved. ImmunoGen is also eligible to receive low double digit to high teen royalties as a percentage of mirvetuximab commercial sales by Huadong Medicine in Greater China.

Huadong Medicine will be responsible for the development as well as potential regulatory submissions and commercialization of mirvetuximab in Greater China pursuant to input from a joint steering committee comprised of individuals from both companies. Huadong Medicine will also have the opportunity to participate in global clinical studies of mirvetuximab conducted by ImmunoGen. ImmunoGen will continue to be responsible for the development and commercialization of mirvetuximab in the United States and other geographies.

ABOUT MIRVETUXIMAB SORAVTANSINE

Mirvetuximab soravtansine (IMGN853) is a first-in-class ADC comprising a folate receptor alpha (FRα)-binding antibody, cleavable linker, and the maytansinoid DM4, a potent tubulin-targeting agent to kill the targeted cancer cells.

On October 19, 2020 Varian (NYSE: VAR), a leading provider of cancer care technologies and solutions, reported to reinforce its commitment to delivering Intelligent Cancer Care during the 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) taking place virtually from October 24-31 (Press release, Varian Medical Systems, OCT 19, 2020, View Source [SID1234568644]). At this year’s show, the company will showcase its progress in helping more people access advanced cancer care, making cancer care more personalized, and delivering more data-driven insights to improve efficiencies and outcomes. In addition to a "best in class" virtual experience, Varian’s contributions to Intelligent Cancer Care will be highlighted in eleven presentations including data from the use of Varian’s adaptive radiotherapy system, Ethos, for lung, prostate, bladder, upper abdomen, head & neck cancers, and the first-look data presented by the recently-formed AI-driven Adaptive Intelligence Consortium.

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"Despite the transition to a virtual platform, our entire global Varian team is looking forward to connecting with ASTRO 2020 attendees and showcasing our innovations that help providers deliver the best cancer care to patients throughout their entire journey," said Dow Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of Varian. "Since its launch at last year’s ASTRO, our Ethos Therapy has demonstrated significant impact toward personalizing treatment for patients resulting in 10 featured presentations during this year’s meeting."

At this year’s virtual event, Varian will participate with a dynamic booth presence and provide one-on-one product demonstrations, as well as highlight how it pioneers for the future with sessions during the ASTRO Innovation Hub. The company will also have a presence at the American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT) and Society of Radiation Oncology Administrators (SROA) concurrent meetings. Attendees can register for all Varian educational and demo sessions at View Source

ASTRO attendees will be able to view the following data presentations featuring Varian products and innovation. Registration links are available here: View Source

Topic

Session/Time and Day

Brain Cancer

– Semi-Automated Hippocampal Sparing Avoidance Whole-Brain Radiotherapy Using a Commercially Available Artificial Intelligence Toolkit

Digital Poster Q&A

Oct 25, 2:00 p.m. ET

Upper Abdomen Cancer

– Feasibility of AI-assisted CBCT-guided Stereotactic Online Adaptive Radiotherapy (CT-STAR) for Upper Abdominal SBRT: Results of a Prospective in Silico Clinical Trial

Oral Presentations

Oct 25, 9:10 a.m. ET

– Evaluation and validation of artificial intelligence (AI) delineation models for CBCT-guided stereotactic online adaptive radiotherapy (STAR) targeting upper abdominal malignancies

Oct 25, 12:20 a.m. ET

Prostate Cancer

– Adaptive radiotherapy can be applied routinely, using an artificial intelligence solution, to treat prostate cancer patients

Digital Poster Q&A

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

Head & Neck Cancer

– Evaluation of dosimetric quality of auto-generated plans by a novel online adaptive system for head and neck radiotherapy

Digital Posters Q&A

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

– Evaluation of the Auto-Segmentation Performance of a Novel Online Adaptive Radiotherapy System for Head and Neck Cancer Treatment

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

– Head and neck quad shot using CT based adaptive treatment on a ring gantry LINAC

Oct 26, 4:30 p.m. ET

AI and Cancer Treatment

– First AI-driven Adaptive System-International Consortium lead Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA)

Oral Presentation

Oct 26, 12:50 a.m. ET

Bladder Cancer

– Results of a pilot study on online adaptive radiotherapy of bladder cancer with artificial intelligence-driven full re-optimization on the anatomy of the day

Oral Presentation

Oct 27, 1:00 a.m. ET

Lung Cancer

– Improved treatment quality in stage III lung cancer patients using online adaptive radiotherapy in a simulation setting

Digital Poster Q&A

Oct 27, 2:00 p.m. ET

Treatment Planning

– Accuracy of the Treatment Plan Dose Preview Functionality of a Newly Commercially- Available, CBCT-Based, Online Adaptive Radiotherapy Treatment System

Digital Posters Q&A

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

– Data-Driven Margin Determination for Online Adaptive Radiotherapy Using Batch Automated Planning

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

– Plan quality and fidelity evaluation of CBCT-Guided stereotactic online adaptive radiotherapy (CT-STAR) with an artificial intelligence (AI) aided plan re-optimization

Oct 28, 2:00 p.m. ET

Clinical Workflow

– Dosimetric Impact and Required Clinician Time of Online Adaptive Radiotherapy using a Newly Commercially-Available, CBCT-Based Adaptive Treatment System

Digital Poster Q&A

Oct 25, 2:15 p.m. ET

– Feasibility of Expediting Radiotherapy Clinical Workflow by Planning on Diagnostic Images and Adapting on a Commercial Adaptive Radiotherapy System

Oral Presentation

Oct 28, 3:15 p.m. ET

On October 19, 2020 Veracyte, Inc., (Nasdaq: VCYT) reported that new data presented at the CHEST Annual Meeting 2020 show that a genomic smoking index developed for use on samples obtained from the main lung airway can also be detected in nasal samples (Press release, Veracyte, OCT 19, 2020, View Source [SID1234568643]). The findings, shared in an oral presentation at the virtual meeting, reinforce the foundational "field of injury" technology behind Veracyte’s noninvasive nasal swab test being developed to identify lung cancer risk in patients with lung nodules.

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Every year in the U.S. alone, an estimated 750,000 patients with lung nodules detected through imaging tests are referred for diagnostic evaluation. These nodules are typically the first sign of lung cancer; however, determining which are cancerous and which are benign is often challenging, leading to unnecessary invasive procedures or delayed treatment. Because survival rates are significantly better for patients whose lung cancer is detected and treated earlier, it is extremely important to identify the lung nodules most likely to need intervention.

Veracyte’s in-development nasal classifier is designed to help physicians determine whether patients with lung nodules are at high or low risk for lung cancer so that those deemed "high-risk" by the test can proceed promptly to diagnosis and treatment, while patients classified as "low-risk" may safely be monitored over time.

At the CHEST meeting, Dr. Carla Lamb from Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts, presented data from a study evaluating the ability of a 248-gene smoking index derived from whole-transcriptome sequencing to distinguish current versus former smokers in nasal samples collected from 144 patients and bronchial epithelial samples collected from 439 patients. All patients had lung nodules suspicious for cancer and were current or former smokers with no history of cancer. Results indicate that the genomic smoking index, while developed using samples from the main airway, can accurately distinguish current versus former smokers in samples obtained from the nose (89 percent sensitivity and 61 percent specificity).

"Our analysis suggests that the ‘field of injury’ technology underlying the nasal classifier can distinguish smoking-related genomic changes whether samples are derived from the nasal passages or from brushings of the main lung airway," said Dr. Lamb. "This finding is meaningful, because an accurate nasal swab-based lung cancer test developed from this technology would be a game-changer in lung-nodule management."

Veracyte continues to refine the algorithm for its nasal genomic classifier, accounting for variables such as nodule size and characteristics, smoking status, age, and more. The company plans to unveil early data for the test before the end of 2020, and to introduce the test in the United States in the second half of 2021.

"The data presented at the CHEST meeting provide additional feasibility evidence for our ‘field of injury’ approach to lung cancer diagnosis," said Bonnie Anderson, Veracyte’s chairman and chief executive officer. "We look forward to sharing early data for our nasal swab test and detailing the scientific rigor behind it. Moreover, we remain on track to launch our novel test next year, as part of a comprehensive lung cancer portfolio that we believe is going to transform lung cancer diagnosis."

On October 19, 2020 Locust Walk Partners reported Each quarter our team at Locust Walk compiles key statistics and trends on strategic transactions and financings (Press release, Locust Walk Partners, OCT 19, 2020, View Source;utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=q3-2020-biopharma-report [SID1234568642]). Our Q3 2020 Report: Global Trends in Biopharma applies the latest data to analyze current activities in the life science deal landscape.

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This quarter shaped to be another positive one for biopharma IPOs and strategic transactions across the globe. And in the US, the rapid need to raise capital without the lengthy IPO process brought back a financing vehicle to take small companies public – SPACs.

A few highlights:

US

Private financings saw one of the strongest Q3s on record, and 2019/2020 biopharma IPOs continue to perform well in the public markets, suggesting investors are bullish long-term on new biopharma opportunities
EU

European biotech financings set a historical record this quarter, demonstrating robust equity markets and increased interest in the region
China

In the Chinese stock market, the SSE Composite Index has fully recovered and stabilized while the top 16 pharma companies listed in mainland China peaked out in early August
Japan

Venture financing deals in 2020 continues its record-setting pace in Japan, as it already exceeds all-time high in the volume and value previously set in 2018
We hope you find this latest data that analyzes current activities in the life sciences deal landscape to be helpful.