NextCure signs up to $745 million deal with China’s Simcere to develop cancer drug

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(Reuters) -Drug developer NextCure said on Monday it had signed a deal worth up to $745 million with China-based drugmaker Simcere Zaiming to develop a cancer therapy for solid tumors.

NextCure said it will gain global rights to the experimental therapy, SIM0505, in all regions except Greater China, where Simcere Zaiming will retain control.

Zaiming is eligible to receive payments throughout the potential development phases, including upfront payment and other milestones up to $745 million, as well as tiered royalties up to double digits on net sales outside China, NextCure added.

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

Simcere’s SIM0505 belongs to a class of drugs known as antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), which are more targeted than conventional chemotherapy.

These therapies, also known as ‘guided missiles’, use antibodies to deliver toxic drugs directly to cancer cells, helping to destroy the tumor while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

CONTEXT

U.S. drugmakers have been licensing drugs from China for potential new medicines at an accelerating pace, as they look to rebuild pipelines of future products while facing a patent cliff for the older drugs.

WHAT’S NEXT

The experimental cancer drug is currently being tested in an early-stage trial in China. Initial data from the trial is expected in the first half of next year.

The company expects to begin studying the drug in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2025.

(Reporting by Padmanabhan Ananthan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)