Checkpoint Inhibitors news and latest updates

News and Trends 28 May 2018

Genmab and Janssen Suffer Combination Therapy Setback

Janssen will discontinue a Phase I study testing Danish biotech Genmab’s blood cancer blockbuster daratumumab combined with a candidate checkpoint inhibitor in patients with multiple myeloma. Janssen, which obtained the exclusive global rights to commercialize daratumumab from Genmab in 2012, will also discontinue a Phase Ib/II study of daratumumab in patients with non-small cell lung […]

May 28, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik

OSE Immunotherapeutics Boehringer Ingelheim

News and Trends 5 Apr 2018

Boehringer Offers €1Bn for New Checkpoint Inhibitor from a French Biotech

OSE Immunotherapeutics could receive up to €1.1Bn from its new partner Boehringer Ingelheim, which has set its eyes on a new type of checkpoint inhibitor being developed by the French biotech. OSE Immunotherapeutics has entered a global license and collaboration deal with Boehringer Ingelheim for the development of OSE-172, a checkpoint inhibitor antibody to treat […]

April 5, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández

News and Trends 13 Mar 2018

Danish Biotech Collaborates With US Merck on Combination Therapy for Lung Cancer

IO Biotech will test its immune modulator in combination with Merck’s checkpoint inhibitor Keytruda, known for curing former US President Jimmy Carter’s cancer. IO Biotech, based in Copenhagen, has entered an agreement with Merck (the US one) to enter a Phase I/II trial for treating lung cancer with IO’s immune modulator, IO102, and Merck’s checkpoint […]

March 13, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik

News and Trends 1 Mar 2018

Could This Parisian Biotech Startup’s Cancer Treatment Compete With Merck and Novartis?

Stimunity, a Parisian biotech, secured a 2M€ seed investment to develop a cancer treatment that could compete with that of big players such as Merck and Novartis. Stimunity is a preclinical-stage startup company which develops drugs targeting a new cell signalling pathway to treat cancer. The company secured funding from Portage, a US-Canadian firm that […]

March 1, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik

News and Trends 21 Feb 2018

FDA Approves AstraZeneca’s Lung Cancer Treatment after Rejecting Merck and Pfizer’s

The FDA approval will give AstraZeneca a competitive advantage in the lung cancer treatment market over Merck KGaA & Pfizer, who received rejections for a similar treatment. AstraZeneca received FDA approval for Imfinzi in non-small cell lung cancer one day after Merck KgA and Pfizer received a rejection for competitor drug Bavencio in the same indication. Imfinzi (durvalumab) […]

February 21, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Alexander Burik

Interview 14 Feb 2018

This Biotech Veteran Is Using These Tips for Successful Drug Development, Here Is Why

Our second interview at Refresh in Vienna was with Peter Llewellyn-Davies, the founder of Accellerate Partners and Apeiron’s CFO and CBO. He told us how he found himself at the biotech and shared the lessons he learned on his way there. Peter Llewellyn-Davies founded Accellerate Partners in 2012, which offers services including corporate expansion, funding […]

February 14, 2018 - 5 minutesmins - By Alex Dale

News and Trends 6 Feb 2018

Spring Cleaning: AstraZeneca Ditches Underperforming Asthma and Cancer Candidates

AstraZeneca has given up on the development of its PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor drug, which was the headline act when its subsidiary MedImmune acquired Amplimmune in 2013. There was no sentiment as pharma giant AstraZeneca cut a number of drugs from its pipeline after they did not perform as expected during clinical trials. The biggest name to get […]

February 6, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Alex Dale

News and Trends 30 Jan 2018

Two Biotechs Team Up to Test their Cancer Antibody Combo in the Clinic

Innate Pharma and MedImmune will test the combination of Innate’s cancer antibody and the checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab in patients with solid tumors. Innate Pharma uses antibodies to enhance the immune system’s ability to fight cancer. It has formed a clinical trial collaboration with the MedImmune, an R&D arm of AstraZeneca. The two companies will share the costs […]

January 30, 2018 - 3 minutesmins - By Alex Dale

Infographics 10 Jan 2018

Infographic: All You Need to Know About Checkpoint Inhibitors

Everything you need to know about what checkpoint inhibitors are and why they have caused a wave of hype for cancer immunotherapies. Since the approval of the first PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor, Keytruda, in 2014, there has been an explosion of the numbers of trials testing these drugs, both alone and in combination. The latest figure, […]

January 10, 2018 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández

hpv cancer isa pharmaceuticals regeneron

News and Trends 18 Dec 2017

Dutch and US Biotechs Team Up Against HPV-related Cancer

ISA Pharmaceuticals will work together with Regeneron to combine its immunotherapy against cancer induced by HPV infection with its partner’s PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor. The human papillomavirus (HPV) is known for its ability to cause cancer, including cervical and head and neck cancer. Based in Leiden, the Netherlands, ISA Pharmaceuticals’ target choice is type 16 HPV, which […]

December 18, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández

News and Trends 29 Nov 2017

Merck and Pfizer’s Checkpoint Inhibitor Fails to Treat Gastric Cancer

Avelumab, marketed as Bavencio by Pfizer and Merck, has failed to show better efficacy than chemotherapy in a Phase III trial with gastric cancer patients. Merck (the German one) and Pfizer joined the checkpoint inhibitor club earlier this year with the approval of Bavencio (avelumab) in both the US and Europe. Looking to keep expanding the […]

November 29, 2017 - 2 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández

News and Trends 21 Sep 2017

European Commission Approves Merck’s PD-L1 Inhibitor for Aggressive Skin Cancer

Merck and Pfizer’s new immunotherapy, avelumab, has been approved by the European Commission to treat metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. The approval is based on data from a Phase II study, JAVELIN Merkel 200, where subjects responded well to treatment for a sustained period of time. Earlier this year, Avelumab was […]

September 21, 2017 - 3 minutesmins - By Alex Dale

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Checkpoint Inhibitors

Genmab and Janssen Suffer Combination Therapy Setback

Boehringer Offers €1Bn for New Checkpoint Inhibitor from a French Biotech

Danish Biotech Collaborates With US Merck on Combination Therapy for Lung Cancer

Could This Parisian Biotech Startup’s Cancer Treatment Compete With Merck and Novartis?

FDA Approves AstraZeneca’s Lung Cancer Treatment after Rejecting Merck and Pfizer’s

This Biotech Veteran Is Using These Tips for Successful Drug Development, Here Is Why

Spring Cleaning: AstraZeneca Ditches Underperforming Asthma and Cancer Candidates

Two Biotechs Team Up to Test their Cancer Antibody Combo in the Clinic

Infographic: All You Need to Know About Checkpoint Inhibitors

Dutch and US Biotechs Team Up Against HPV-related Cancer

Merck and Pfizer’s Checkpoint Inhibitor Fails to Treat Gastric Cancer

European Commission Approves Merck’s PD-L1 Inhibitor for Aggressive Skin Cancer

Subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest biotech news!

The top biotech deals of March 2025

The biggest biotech funding rounds in March 2025

Join the webinar: AI in antibody discovery - from in silico analysis to AI-enabled data management

Beyond amyloid: The search for the next big thing in Alzheimer’s treatment

Connect with decision-makers and researchers worldwide for collaborative opportunities

Subscribe to our newsletter

Advertise with us

The top biotech deals of March 2025

The biggest biotech funding rounds in March 2025

Join the webinar: AI in antibody discovery - from in silico analysis to AI-enabled data management

Beyond amyloid: The search for the next big thing in Alzheimer’s treatment

Connect with decision-makers and researchers worldwide for collaborative opportunities

Subscribe to our newsletter

Advertise with us

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