United Kingdom-based GlaxoSmithKline and United States-based Merck are developing and commercialising novel immunotherapy to treat multiple cancers, it was reported yesterday.

The deal is valued at EUR3.7bn. Under the terms of the deal, Merck will secure an upfront payment of EUR300m and potential development milestone payments of up to EUR500m after presenting data from the M7824 lung cancer program. Merck will also receive up to EUR2.9bn after achieving future approval and commercial milestones. Both firms will jointly conduct development and commercialisation activities, and also share profits and costs equally on a global basis.

M7824 is an investigational bifunctional fusion protein immunotherapy, which is presently under clinical development, including potential registration studies, for multiple difficult-to-treat cancers. Bintrafusp alfa is said to be the proposed International Nonproprietary Name (INN) for the bifunctional immunotherapy M7824. M7824 is designed to aggregate transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta trap) with an anti-programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) mechanism in one fusion protein.