Symphogen, Merck KGaA deal

Symphogen granted Merck exclusive, worldwide rights to develop and commercialize cancer product Sym004. Symphogen will receive €20 million ($25.2 million) up front and is eligible for up to €475 million ($597.4 million) in milestones, plus royalties. Sym004 is a combination of two anti- EGFR mAbs against two distinct and non-overlapping epitopes in the extracellular domain III of EGFR. The product is in an open-label Phase II trial to treat squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) in patients who failed anti-EGFR-based therapy. It is also in a Phase I/II trial in patients with advanced K-Ras wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) who have progressed on treatment with an anti-EGFR mAb and chemotherapy. ...