10 DEC 2007: GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and OncoMed Pharmaceuticals (OncoMed) have announced a worldwide strategic alliance to discover, develop and market novel antibody therapeutics to target cancer stem cells.

GlaxoSmithKline has offered an unprecidented $1.4 billion deal for a the preclinical company OncoMed. The alliance with GSK includes OncoMed’s lead antibody product candidate, OMP-21M18, a monoclonal antibody, which is scheduled to enter the clinic in 2008. OncoMed will develop the most promising of these monoclonal antibodies, including OMP-21M18, through clinical proof of concept across multiple indications. Upon OncoMed’s achievement of clinical proof of concept in an agreed indication, GSK will have an exclusive option to license such monoclonal antibody.

The deal, which hinges on a series of contingencies, milestone payments and royalties paid by GlaxoSmithKline over five years, reflects excitement over a hypothesis that may explain why tumors so often return after being all but destroyed by chemotherapy, radiation or surgery.

Related Research

Cancer Stem Cells: Emerging Therapeutic, Diagnostic and Market Opportunities (2008)