Sanofi & Regeneron accelerate and expand investment for cemiplimab and dupilumab

Sanofi and Regeneron have revealed that they will accelerate and expand investment for the clinical development programmes of cemiplimab in oncology and dupilumab in type 2 allergic diseases.

Investment in cemiplimab will be increased to $1.64 billion under this expansion of the original agreement formed in 2015. Additionally, the companies will continue to fund the cemiplimab development equally and will also invest in other immune-oncology programmes as per the existing Immuno-oncology Discovery Agreement. Investigational cemiplimab is being studied as monotherapy and in combination with other therapies in a wide range of cancers including advanced skin cancers, non-small cell lung cancer, cervical cancer and lymphomas, with more studies in other indications planned to begin in 2018. The companies expect to submit US and EU regulatory applications for cemiplimab in advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in the first quarter of 2018.

Furthermore, the additional investment in the dupilumab development programme will help accelerate planned new studies in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, peanut allergy and grass allergy as well as in patients who have multiple allergic conditions. These areas are in addition to ongoing dupilumab clinical development in paediatric atopic dermatitis, paediatric asthma, eosinophilic esophagitis and nasal polyposis.

The companies have also announced that the additional investment will be used to accelerate and expand development of REGN3500, an IL-33 antibody, with studies expected to be conducted in atopic dermatitis, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This increased funding for dupilumab and REGN3500 will be pursuant to the existing Antibody License and Collaboration Agreement between the companies.

“The ongoing collaboration between Sanofi and Regeneron underscores our commitment to partnering in the development of medicines to treat significant unmet medical needs,” stated Dr Elias Zerhouni, global head of R&D at Sanofi. “The expansion of these clinical programmes for both cempilimab and dupilumab should enable us to quickly identify treatment opportunities in other disease areas.”