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Theramex, a London-headquartered specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to women and their health, and China-based Asieris Pharmaceuticals, a global innovative biopharmaceutical company focused on genitourinary tumours and women’s health, have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for APL-1702 (CEVIRA®) covering all countries in Europe, as well as Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) and Turkey, subject to certain conditions. Asieris retains the rights for the rest of the world.
APL-1702 is a photodynamic drug-device combination product being developed as a non-surgical treatment for cervical precancerous lesions associated with HPV, including cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. The product is designed to be administered by a healthcare professional in an office-based setting and may provide a local treatment option for appropriate women who would otherwise be considered for surgical procedures. By offering a non-surgical approach designed to preserve cervical tissues, APL-1702 has the potential to address a highly unmet clinical need for non-surgical treatments globally.
The deal includes $15 million of upfront payment and a total of $11 million of near-term regulatory milestone payments, and commercial milestone payments as well as tiered royalties. The total deal value is in excess of $250 million.
The upfront payment is subject to certain conditions, which include signing of a supply agreement, successful audits of CEVIRA® manufacturing sites, streamlining this agreement with the upstream agreement, and a clarification with European Commission around the clinical value assessment of the CEVIRA® device.
In March 2026, Asieris announced that CEVIRA® had received approval from China’s National Medical Products Administration as a first-in-class non-invasive therapy for cervical precancerous lesions.
