Lantheus is paying $260 million upfront for a double bill of licenses for two of POINT Biopharma’s radiopharmaceutical oncology candidates, with another $1.8 billion tied up in biobucks.
Under the agreements, POINT will continue to fund and complete its phase 3 SPLASH trial for PNT2002, a prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeting 177Lu-based radiopharmaceutical therapy for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. After that, Lantheus will work with POINT to file the therapy for FDA approval.
The other candidate is PNT2003, a somatostatin receptor-targeted radioligand in development for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. POINT will facilitate completion of the ongoing University Health Network-sponsored study in Canada, while Lantheus will prepare and submit the regulatory filings in the U.S.
For both assets, the two companies will form joint steering committees to oversee the clinical studies and regulatory filings as well as ensure they are ready for manufacturing and to hit the market. If approved, Lantheus has the rights to commercialize both therapies worldwide.
Should the two assets secure FDA approval and then hit commercial milestones, POINT could be in line for up to $1.8 billion in biobucks plus royalties of 20% and 15% for PNT2002 and PNT2003, respectively.
Lantheus has already seen success commercializing the cancer diagnostic imaging agent Pylarify and Azedra, the first and only approved treatment for advanced vascular and nerve tumors called pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma. This track record in the field of radiopharmaceuticals made the company an “ideal collaborator” for PNT2002 and PNT2003, POINT CEO Joe McCann, Ph.D., said in a Monday morning release.
“This collaboration also immediately unlocks value for POINT, reduces the need for dilutive fundraising and enables us to focus on our pipeline of next-generation radioligands, which could be transformative for the field of precision oncology,” McCann added.
Outside of the licensing deal, POINT will continue to develop its phase 1 pan-cancer FAP-α asset called PNT2004, as well as PNT2001, an actinium-225 next-generation PSMA program that the company expects to enter the clinic next year.