A global initiative is set to leverage oncology expertise to advance a pipeline of novel cancer therapies. 

Biopharmaceutical company UCB has announced a new multi-project alliance with Cancer Research UK and its innovation arm, Cancer Research Horizons.  

Under the new partnership, Cancer Research UK’s Centre for Drug Development and Cancer Research Horizons’ Therapeutic Innovation teams will work with UCB to progress potential therapeutics from research stages through to early clinical development.  

The project is designed to accelerate the translation of cutting‑edge science into potential new cancer medicines capable of improving outcomes for patients. 

“Partnering with CRUK’s Centre for Drug Development and Cancer Research Horizons allows us to harness their world-class oncology expertise and clinical insights, complementing UCB’s strengths in discovery and development,” said Alistair Henry, Executive Vice President & Chief Scientific Officer at UCB. 

“This collaboration is a testament to the power of strategic alliances and creates a unique synergy that will enable us to advance promising therapies more efficiently and effectively.” 

Alliance promises to deliver ‘life-changing’ cancer treatments

The latest partnership follows a successful multi-project collaboration between UCB and Cancer Research UK’s Centre for Drug Development, announced in 2023, which has progressed two antibody drug candidates into ongoing clinical trials recruiting across multiple UK and European sites.  

The collaboration will now include earlier‑stage discovery and preclinical programmes, with UCB seeking to leverage Cancer Research UK’s deep oncology knowledge, access to leading clinical investigators, and extensive drug discovery and development capabilities. 

 It is believed UCB will nominate research and development projects from its internal discovery pipeline at any stage of development. Each selected project that enters the alliance will be jointly progressed through discovery and preclinical development activities, with Cancer Research UK’s Centre for Drug Development then responsible for the design, preparation, sponsorship and performance of a Phase I/II clinical trial.  

UCB, which has nominated two projects to enter this new alliance, will retain exclusive rights to further develop and commercialise all programmes that enter the alliance. However, Cancer Research Horizons will receive undisclosed success-based milestone and royalty payments contingent on downstream project progression. 

“This alliance exemplifies our mission to translate exceptional science into life‑changing treatments for people with cancer,” said Lars Erwig, Director of the Centre for Drug Development at Cancer Research UK.  

“By integrating our oncology expertise with UCB’s strengths in molecule discovery, we can accelerate the development of innovative therapeutics with the potential to make real impact for patients.”