China-based Innovent Biologics, Inc., a world-class biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and commercialises high quality medicines for the treatment of oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic, autoimmune, ophthalmology and other major diseases, has announced a collaboration and exclusive license agreement with Swiss pharma firm Roche to advance the development of IBI3009, a novel DLL3-targeted antibody drug conjugate (ADC) candidate.

IBI3009 has already obtained IND approvals in Australia, China, and the US, with the first patient for the Phase 1 study dosed in December 2024. This collaboration aims to bring innovative treatment options to patients with advanced small cell lung cancer.

IBI3009 targets DLL3, an antigen with low expression in normal tissues but significantly overexpressed in certain cancers, particularly small-cell lung cancer and other neuroendocrine tumors. Developed leveraging Innovent's proprietary novel topoisomerase 1 inhibitor (TOPO1i) platform, IBI3009 is one of the leading and potentially best-in-class DLL3-targeting ADCs. IBI3009 has shown encouraging anti-tumour activity in multiple tumour-bearing mouse models, particularly in chemo-resistant tumour types, and has demonstrated a favorable safety profile.

Under the agreement, Innovent has granted Roche exclusive global rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise IBI3009. The two parties will jointly focus on the early-stage development of this ADC candidate, after which Roche will take over full development. Innovent will receive an upfront payment of $80 million and is eligible to receive up to $1 billion in development and commercial milestone payments, along with tiered royalties on net sales.