News and Trends 9 Jan 2020 French Biotech Raises €19M to Hit Phase I with Cancer Immunotherapy Alderaan Biotechnology has raised an €18.5M Series A round to push its lead cancer immunotherapy drug to phase I. The UK VC firm Medicxi and the returning French VC investor Advent France Biotechnology contributed to the round. Alderaan, whose name was inspired by a fictional planet in the Star Wars movies, will use part of […] January 9, 2020 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 13 Dec 2019 Transgene’s Cancer Vaccine Abandoned after Phase II Fail French biotech Transgene has ceased the development of a therapeutic cancer vaccine that failed to shrink tumors in patients with lung cancer in a phase II trial. In the phase II trial, Transgene tested its therapeutic cancer vaccine in combination with chemotherapy and the checkpoint inhibitor drug nivolumab, marketed as Opdivo. The treatment failed to […] December 13, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 11 Dec 2019 €14M Series A to Fund Cancer Immunotherapy Boosting Checkpoint Inhibitors The Swiss biotech ImmunOs Therapeutics has raised a Series A round of €13.7M (CHF 15M) that will fund the first human trials of its cancer immunotherapy that could improve the response of cancer patients to checkpoint inhibitors. The round was co-led by the Swiss life sciences venture capital firm BioMedPartners and by Pfizer Ventures. The […] December 11, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
Interview 11 Dec 2019 Collaboration Between Founders and Investors Primes Biotech Startups for Success How can entrepreneurs work with investors to maximize the chances of their company succeeding? Venture capital partner Nanna Lüneborg and biotech entrepreneur Mai-Britt Zocca spoke at Labiotech Refresh in Copenhagen about their experiences in founding IO Biotech, a Danish biotech startup that develops cancer immunotherapies. Zocca and Lüneborg were both involved in setting up IO […] December 11, 2019 - 5 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 6 Dec 2019 Update: Cancer Immunotherapy Biotech Files for Insolvency Update (06/12/2019): Following the phase III failure of its immunotherapy drug for colorectal cancer in the summer, the German company Mologen has filed for insolvency. Published 06/08/2019 A DNA immunotherapy drug developed by the German company Mologen has failed to improve the survival of patients with colorectal cancer in a phase III trial. The phase […] December 6, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 4 Dec 2019 €48M Series B Fuels Immunotherapies for Cancer and Autoimmune Diseases ImCheck Therapeutics has raised a Series B round worth €48M to fund the development of first-in-class immunotherapies that treat cancer and autoimmune diseases by targeting a rare type of immune cells called a gamma delta T-cell. ImCheck Therapeutics’ Series B round was led by Pfizer Ventures — the venture capital arm of the big pharma […] December 4, 2019 - 3 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 16 Oct 2019 GammaDelta Therapeutics Spins Out Cancer Immunotherapy Biotech The UK biotech GammaDelta Therapeutics has founded Adaptate Biotherapeutics to develop cancer immunotherapies based on antibodies that boost a rare type of immune cell. Adaptate Biotherapeutics is a spin-out of GammaDelta Therapeutics, a London company founded in 2016 that specializes in using a rare type of immune cells, known as gamma delta T-cells, to fight […] October 16, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 15 Oct 2019 German Cancer Virotherapy Biotech Launches with €12M Series A Abalos Therapeutics launches today with €12M in Series A funding to get the development of its arenavirus-based cancer therapies off the ground. Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund and Gründerfonds Ruhr co-led the investment round, with additional contributions from NRW.BANK and High-Tech Gründerfonds. Abalos, which is based in Essen, Germany, will focus on developing anti-cancer drugs with […] October 15, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Helen Albert Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
In Depth 15 Oct 2019 Four New Technologies That Will Change Cancer Treatment New approaches to tame the immune system in the fight against cancer are getting us closer to a future where cancer becomes a curable disease. Personalized vaccines, cell therapy, gene editing and microbiome treatments are four technologies that will change the way cancer is treated. Curing cancer is certainly one of the big challenges of […] October 15, 2019 - 9 minutesmins - By Clara Rodríguez Fernández Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
More News! 7 Oct 2019 UK Biotech Launches with €30M Series A to Treat Autoimmune Disease MiroBio has spun out of the University of Oxford with a Series A round of €30M (£27M) to develop treatments for autoimmune diseases that don’t disrupt the immune system as a whole. The big Series A round accompanying MiroBio’s launch was co-led by the university’s investor partner Oxford Sciences Innovation and the US investor Samsara […] October 7, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 2 Oct 2019 RNA Therapies, Immunotherapies and Cancer Tests Showcased in Spain Biotech companies around the world gathered in Barcelona, Spain, to present breakthroughs in cancer diagnostics and treatments such as cell therapies and cancer vaccines. Here’s our take on the most interesting offerings from the European crop. Barcelona is the home of Gaudi and Barcelona Football Club. Over the last few days, it was also the […] October 2, 2019 - 6 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email
News and Trends 30 Sep 2019 €20M Series A Launches Cancer Immunotherapy Biotech in Denmark The Danish company STipe Therapeutics has been launched with a €20M Series A to develop immunotherapy drugs that sensitize the innate immune system against cancer. STipe Therapeutics was spun out from Aarhus University, Denmark, last year with a small grant, and has now completed its full launch with this Series A. The round was co-led […] September 30, 2019 - 2 minutesmins - By Jonathan Smith Share WhatsApp Twitter Linkedin Email