Novartis has entered a licensing agreement with Arvinas for the worldwide development and commercialization of ARV-766, a second-generation androgen receptor degrader aimed at treating prostate cancer.
The partnership will leverage Novartis' development and commercialization capabilities to bring ARV-766 to patients, potentially as a first-in-class treatment option for prostate cancer. ARV-766, which uses Arvinas' proprietary PROTAC protein degrader technology, is designed to selectively target and degrade the androgen receptor, showing activity in preclinical models against both wild type and mutant forms of AR, including those that could lead to resistance against current AR-targeted therapies.
Back in November, Arvinas shared plans to initiate a phase 3 trial for ARV-766 in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer "as soon as possible."
The licensing agreement also includes the sale of Arvinas' preclinical AR-V7 program, also targeting metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, to Novartis.
Under the terms of the deal, Novartis will be responsible for worldwide clinical development and commercialization of ARV-766 and will have all research, development, manufacturing and commercialization rights with respect to the preclinical AR-V7 program. Arvinas will receive a $150 million upfront payment and is eligible for up to $1.01 billion in potential payments tied to development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, in addition to tiered royalties on ARV-766.
