Novartis has announced that it will be acquiring MorphoSys for €2.7bn, marking a significant boost to the drugmaker’s oncology pipeline.
The deal gives Novartis access to pelabresib (CPI-0610), an investigational therapy being evaluated in combination with Incyte’s Jakafi (ruxolitinib) as a treatment for myelofibrosis.
Estimated to affect one in 10,000 people in the EU, myelofibrosis is a rare blood cancer caused by genetic abnormalities in bone marrow stem cells.
The disease is characterised by four hallmarks: enlarged spleen, anaemia, impaired bone marrow microenvironment causing fibrosis, and debilitating disease-associated symptoms.
The pelabresib/ruxolitinib combination recently met its primary endpoint of spleen volume reduction in the late-stage MANIFEST-2 study in JAK inhibitor-naive myelofibrosis patients, and also demonstrated favourable trends in symptom improvement at week 24 compared to baseline.
Pelabresib is also being studied in patients with essential thrombocythaemia, a rare blood cancer that causes a high number of blood cells called platelets to form.
Shreeram Aradhye, president, development and chief medical officer of Novartis, said: “We are excited about the opportunity of bringing pelabresib, a potential next-generation treatment combined with ruxolitinib, to people living with myelofibrosis, a rare and debilitating form of blood cancer.”
“Building on our long-standing development partnership with MorphoSys, we look forward to continuing our work together to realise the full impact and value of [its] investigational medicines for patients with unmet needs,” Aradhye added.
The acquisition also includes tulmimetostat (CPI-0209), an early-stage investigational dual inhibitor of the EZH1/EZH2 proteins currently being tested in patients with solid tumours or lymphomas.
Under the terms of the agreement, which is expected to close in the first half of 2024, Novartis will make a voluntary public takeover offer for all no-par value bearer shares of MorphoSys for €68 per share.
Jean-Paul Kress, chief executive officer of MorphoSys, said: “Novartis will provide ample resources currently unavailable to MorphoSys as a standalone biotech company to help accelerate the development opportunities and maximise the commercialisation potential of pelabresib at a greater speed and scale.”
The announcement comes just over two weeks after Novartis shared positive results from a late-stage study of its radioligand therapy Lutathera (lutetium Lu 177 dotatate) as a first-line treatment for newly-diagnosed neuroendocrine tumours.