On February 16, 2022 ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE (ITM), a leading radiopharmaceutical biotech company and Grand Pharmaceutical Group Limited (GP), a diversified global pharmaceutical company listed in Hong Kong, reported that ITM and a subsidiary of GP have entered into a definitive agreement under which GP will make a EUR 25 million (USD 28 million) equity investment in ITM (Press release, ITM Isotopen Technologien Munchen, FEB 16, 2022, View Source [SID1234608194]). The agreement will further deepen the strategic collaboration between the two companies and support ITM to further expanding its broad pipeline of precision oncology treatments and diagnostics in Greater China.
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The equity investment follows the recent licensing agreement between the two companies which provides GP with exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize ITM’s precision oncology radiopharmaceutical candidates, ITM-11 (n.c.a. 177Lu-edotreotide) and ITM-41 (n.c.a. 177Lu-zoledronate) as well as ITM-11’s companion diagnostic, TOCscan (68Ga-edotreotide) in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
"We believe GP’s investment reinforces our global leadership position as a radiopharmaceutical developer and manufacturer while providing us with additional strategic support in expanding our presence in Asia with a recognized leader by our side," commented Steffen Schuster, Chief Executive Officer of ITM. "While we focus on advancing the late-stage development of our lead candidate, ITM-11 in GEP-NET patients, we look forward to further enhancing our global footprint to meet the needs of a growing patient population requiring precision oncology treatments."
"Targeted Radionuclide Therapies and Diagnostics are a core focus area for us. We believe that ITM, as one of the largest medical radioisotope manufacturers with a broad clinical pipeline and a deep understanding of the clinical landscape, has the ability to usher in a new era of precision medicine," said Frank Zhou, Chief Executive Officer of GP. "This second agreement is a testament to the strong relationship we have formed, sharing the common goal of providing innovative and high-quality radiopharmaceuticals to the patients we serve."
ITM is built on longstanding experience in the production and supply of high-quality medical radioisotopes for cancer treatment and diagnosis with an established global supply network. The company has forward-integrated to develop a broad pipeline of Targeted Radionuclide Diagnostics and Therapeutics designed to provide medical benefit for hard-to-treat cancer indications. The company’s lead candidate, ITM-11 (n.c.a. 177Lu-edotreotide) is being developed for the treatment of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) and is currently undergoing two phase III clinical trials, COMPETE for patients with grade 1 and grade 2 GEP-NETs and COMPOSE for grade 2 and grade 3 GEP-NETs. TOCscan (68Ga-edotreotide) is the companion diagnostic to ITM-11 for the diagnosis and staging of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). ITM-41 (n.c.a. 177Lu-zoledronate) is in preclinical development for the treatment of osteosarcoma and bone metastases.
About Targeted Radionuclide Therapy
Targeted Radionuclide Therapy is an emerging class of cancer therapeutics, which seeks to deliver radiation directly to the tumor while minimizing radiation exposure to normal tissue. Targeted radiopharmaceuticals are created by linking a therapeutic radioisotope to a targeting molecule (e.g., peptide, antibody, small molecule) that can precisely recognize tumor cells and bind to tumor-specific entities such as receptors which are expressed on the cell surface. As a result, the radioisotope accumulates at the tumor site and decays, releasing a small amount of ionizing radiation, thereby destroying tumor tissue. The highly precise localization of the radioisotope potentially enables targeted treatment with minimal impact to healthy surrounding tissue.