Symphogen, Merck KGaA deal

Symphogen regained rights from Merck to Sym004. Merck said it decided to return rights after an analysis of its pipeline assets, and both companies said that the decision was not related to any new safety or efficacy findings regarding Sym004 (see BioCentury, Sept. 10, 2012).

Under the 2012 deal, Symphogen received €20 million ($25.2 million) up front and was eligible for up to €475 million ($597.4 million) in milestones, plus royalties. The company said it received three undisclosed milestone payments last year under the deal for events that include initiation of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) clinical trials. ...