Three biotech companies collectively raised $584 million in their initial public offerings last week, continuing a streak that has the healthcare sector playing a leading role in the robust level of market activity this summer. Of the three companies, the one with investigational therapies that haven’t yet begun tests in humans raised the most. South … Continue reading “3 Biotech IPOs Together Rake In Over a Half Billion to Advance Treatments”
Category: San Diego
ViaCyte Taps Insulet’s Bradrick as Its First Chief Financial Officer
ViaCyte added its first chief financial officer to its C-suite, bringing on Brittany Bradrick from Massachusetts-based medical device company Insulet (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PODD]]) where she served as vice president of strategy and corporate development. Bradrick’s prior experience includes roles in the diabetes care division at Abbott (NYSE: [[ticker:ABT]]). Before entering the industry she spent about a … Continue reading “ViaCyte Taps Insulet’s Bradrick as Its First Chief Financial Officer”
Bio Roundup: Blackstone’s Billions, Biogen Finishes Filing, Novavax at “Warp Speed” & More
Cash flowed throughout the life sciences ecosystem this week as Blackstone (NYSE: [[ticker:BX]]) raised a record-setting life sciences fund, companies of all stages announced new financings, and money continued to find its way to those working on efforts to treat or prevent COVID-19. Financiers poured $100 million or more into at least three biotechs, a … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Blackstone’s Billions, Biogen Finishes Filing, Novavax at “Warp Speed” & More”
Cend Therapeutics Names Viracta’s David Slack As Its New President & CEO
Cancer drug developer Cend Therapeutics has appointed one of its board members, David Slack, to succeed Erkki Ruoslahti as its president and CEO. Slack, who joined the Cend board last year, was most recently chief business officer at Viracta Therapeutics. His previous experience includes serving as co-founding CEO at Kinagen and vice president for business … Continue reading “Cend Therapeutics Names Viracta’s David Slack As Its New President & CEO”
Kinnate Adds WuXi NextCODE’s Richard Williams as Chief Medical Officer
Kinnate Biopharma appointed Richard Williams as its chief medical officer. Williams was most recently CMO and global head of oncology programs at WuXi NextCODE. His prior experience includes roles with cancer detection company Grail, Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]), and Puma Biotechnology (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PBYI]]). San Diego-based Kinnate is developing kinase inhibitors to treat genetically defined cancers.
VelosBio Tacks on $137M to Advance Its ROR1-Targeting Cancer Antibody Drugs
Dave Johnson has known UC San Diego physician and cancer reseacher Thomas Kipps for nearly 20 years. Now Johnson, CEO of San Diego-based cancer drug developer VelosBio, has secured $137 million to accelerate the company’s goal of developing targeted therapies based on an antibody program developed by Kipps that homes in on tumors with a … Continue reading “VelosBio Tacks on $137M to Advance Its ROR1-Targeting Cancer Antibody Drugs”
Novavax Gets $1.6B in Operation Warp Speed Funding for COVID-19 Vaccine
The federal government’s Operation Warp Speed has made its biggest financing award yet, promising $1.6 billion to a Maryland biotech to help advance its investigational COVID-19 vaccine and ready millions of doses in preparation for its possible success. Gaithersburg, MD-based Novavax, which has never before brought a product to market, announced the federal award Tuesday. … Continue reading “Novavax Gets $1.6B in Operation Warp Speed Funding for COVID-19 Vaccine”
PacBio CEO, CFO Plan Retirements and More People on the Move
Here’s a look back at some of the life science industry’s executive appointments, departures, and retirements from recent weeks: —Pacific Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PACB]]) CEO Michael Hunkapiller and Chief Financial Officer Susan Barnes are retiring. —Moderna (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRNA]]) appointed Ray Jordan as chief corporate affairs officer. —Aridis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARDS]]) appointed Hasan Jafri its chief medical officer. … Continue reading “PacBio CEO, CFO Plan Retirements and More People on the Move”
MEI Pharma, Helsinn Scuttle Cancer Drug Trial After Miss on Efficacy
MEI Pharma and its Swiss partner Helsinn are ending a Phase 3 study of an investigational cancer drug for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after an interim analysis indicated it was unlikely to meet the trial’s main goal of helping patients live longer. San Diego-based MEI (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MEIP]]), licensed the compound, pracinostat, from a … Continue reading “MEI Pharma, Helsinn Scuttle Cancer Drug Trial After Miss on Efficacy”
Roche Gets FDA OK for Injectable Version of Breast Cancer Drug
A new version of a combination drug marketed by Roche for early-stage and metastatic breast cancer with a specific genetic signature received FDA approval Monday for a formulation that can be delivered in minutes rather than an hour or more. The antibody combo, delivered alongside IV chemotherapy, is intended for women with breast cancer that … Continue reading “Roche Gets FDA OK for Injectable Version of Breast Cancer Drug”
FDA Again Dings Heron’s Opioid Alternative Over “Nonclinical Issues”
Heron Therapeutics revealed Monday that its investigational non-opioid drug for treating postoperative pain has again been rejected by the FDA. The San Diego company’s HTX-011 is an extended-release solution of bupivacaine, a local anesthetic, and meloxicam, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Heron (NASDAQ: [[ticker:HRTX]]) positioned it as a pain management option that could contribute to a … Continue reading “FDA Again Dings Heron’s Opioid Alternative Over “Nonclinical Issues””
Artiva Bio Raises $78M to Broaden Access to Cancer Cell Therapies
Creating cell therapies for cancer is a complex process. The business case for them has proven tricky, too. Biotech veterans Tom Farrell and Peter Flynn have teamed up to start a new San Diego company that aims to develop allogeneic, or off-the-shelf, cell-based immunotherapies using natural killer (NK) cells that can be manufactured at scale … Continue reading “Artiva Bio Raises $78M to Broaden Access to Cancer Cell Therapies”
Bio Roundup: Gilead’s Pionyr Grab, Relay to IPO, Unicorn Sana & More
Uncertainty related to the continued spread of the pandemic continued to consume most of the oxygen in the room this week, but life sciences news outside of that arena continued apace. Once considered all but shuttered, the IPO market again saw an active week between new public debuts and more companies joining the queue. Indeed, … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Gilead’s Pionyr Grab, Relay to IPO, Unicorn Sana & More”
La Jolla Pharma Steps In With Better Offer, Wins Tetraphase Bidding War
It’s common for antibiotics developers to run into financial trouble these days but what’s unusual is seeing a bidding war erupt for one of them. The competition for Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals now has a new winner: La Jolla Pharmaceutical. San Diego-based La Jolla (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LJPC]]) has pledged to pay Tetraphase shareholders $43 million in cash now … Continue reading “La Jolla Pharma Steps In With Better Offer, Wins Tetraphase Bidding War”
Reneo Readies for Global Test of Drug for Rare Mitochondrial Disease
Reneo Pharmaceuticals has encouraging results from an early trial of a compound it is advancing for rare diseases characterized by impaired mitochondria—our cells’ energy generators—and the company says it is now designing a large global study of its drug candidate. Headed by president and CEO Niall O’Donnell (pictured), the San Diego-based company launched last year … Continue reading “Reneo Readies for Global Test of Drug for Rare Mitochondrial Disease”
Bio Roundup: A Royal IPO, Akili Arrives, Orca Bio Surfaces & More
The biggest life sciences deal this week involves a company that doesn’t discover or develop drugs, or even sell them. Yet its mark is found on pharmaceutical products spanning the entire sector. Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RPRX]]) acquires the royalty rights for drugs. Most of those royalties are for products that are already approved, but the … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: A Royal IPO, Akili Arrives, Orca Bio Surfaces & More”
Engrail Therapeutics Launches With $32M to Develop New Neuro Drugs
Typically a new biotech assembles a group of investors that collectively puts in the money a fledgling company requires to develop or acquire potential therapies. Engrail Therapeutics, which emerged from stealth Thursday with $32 million in outside financing, landed its entire Series A funding from a sole source: Nan Fung Life Sciences, a subsidiary of … Continue reading “Engrail Therapeutics Launches With $32M to Develop New Neuro Drugs”
Frazier Launches Lassen to Advance Antibodies Against Fibrosis, Cancer
Lassen Therapeutics, a biotech that is developing antibodies as potential treatments for fibrosis, rare diseases, and cancer, debuted Wednesday with $31 million in Series A financing. The San Diego-based company says it will use the money to accelerate its antibody programs, including asking the FDA for the green light to move its lead drug candidate … Continue reading “Frazier Launches Lassen to Advance Antibodies Against Fibrosis, Cancer”
Exec Search Underway at PacBio After CEO, CFO Announce Plans to Retire
Gene sequencing company Pacific Biosciences of California is seeking two new leaders in the wake of retirement announcements by a pair of longtime top executives. PacBio (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PACB]]) president and CEO Michael Hunkapiller plans to retire by year’s end, and the company’s chief financial officer, Susan Barnes, is slated to do the same in August. … Continue reading “Exec Search Underway at PacBio After CEO, CFO Announce Plans to Retire”
FDA Reverses Authorization for Use of Antimalarials to Treat COVID-19
The FDA on Monday revoked its emergency authorization permitting use of the antimalarial drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine to treat the novel coronavirus, citing a lack of evidence of their efficacy. In late March the agency authorized the drugs, which President Donald Trump touts often as a potential treatment, for patients who were hospitalized with COVID-19 … Continue reading “FDA Reverses Authorization for Use of Antimalarials to Treat COVID-19”
Biotech Roundup: BIO on Racism, AbbVie Antibodies, IPO Surge & More
At the start of 2020 thousands of biotechies anticipated spending the second week of June in San Diego, hobnobbing at the annual conference hosted by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization. Instead, attendees from 64 countries spanning 28 times zones convened online this week for the first-ever virtual BIO International Convention. There, topics once as unanticipated as the … Continue reading “Biotech Roundup: BIO on Racism, AbbVie Antibodies, IPO Surge & More”
Moderna Finalizes Plan, Dose for Phase 3 Test of mRNA COVID Vaccine
Less than a month after reporting preliminary early-stage data for its experimental vaccine for the novel coronavirus, Moderna has finalized the plan for a Phase 3 test. The study, set to begin next month, is targeting enrollment of about 30,000 volunteers, Moderna (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRNA]]) announced Thursday. Those patients will be randomly assigned to receive either … Continue reading “Moderna Finalizes Plan, Dose for Phase 3 Test of mRNA COVID Vaccine”
Amplyx Appoints Mirati’s Chris LeMasters as Chief Operating Officer
Amplyx Pharmaceuticals announced Monday the addition of Chris LeMasters to its C-suite as chief operating officer. LeMasters most recently served as chief business officer at cancer drug developer Mirati Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRTX]]), another San Diego-based biotech. He left Mirati in January after about three years there. His prior experience includes senior management roles at Promosome, Tragara … Continue reading “Amplyx Appoints Mirati’s Chris LeMasters as Chief Operating Officer”
Akouos Aims for an IPO to Advance Hearing Loss Gene Therapy to Clinic
Hearing loss can stem from a variety of reasons, but in rare cases it’s caused by genetic defects. Akouos is developing a gene therapy to address these problems and it’s planning an IPO to finance the first tests of its approach in humans. In paperwork filed with regulators late Friday, Boston-based Akouos set a preliminary … Continue reading “Akouos Aims for an IPO to Advance Hearing Loss Gene Therapy to Clinic”
Bio Roundup: Race and Pharma, ASCO Recap, Warp Speed Ahead & More
Race is not a topic that often comes up in pharmaceutical discussions but perhaps it should. Disease doesn’t discriminate by race, but health and economic disparities put some groups at higher risk than others. And yet clinical trials fail to reflect the broad spectrum of patients that drug makers aim to treat. Racial disparities are … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Race and Pharma, ASCO Recap, Warp Speed Ahead & More”
Samumed Taps Pfizer’s Michael White as Its Chief Scientific Officer
Samumed added Michael White to its leadership team as its chief scientific officer. He was most recently CSO for tumor cell biology at the Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) oncology R&D group. White’s prior experience includes more than 20 years at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where his roles included professor of cell biology, associate director … Continue reading “Samumed Taps Pfizer’s Michael White as Its Chief Scientific Officer”
AbbVie Wins First FDA Approval of Drug to Treat Uterine Fibroid Bleeds
An AbbVie drug that treats pain in the uterus has notched an additional FDA approval for addressing heavy menstrual bleeding associated with uterine fibroids. The regulatory decision Friday covers that drug, elagolix, combined with estrogen and progestin in a capsule that North Chicago, IL-based AbbVie (NYSE: [[ticker:ABBV]]) plans to market as Oriahnn. Elagolix (Orilissa) was … Continue reading “AbbVie Wins First FDA Approval of Drug to Treat Uterine Fibroid Bleeds”
Bio Roundup: ASCO Opens, Merck Takes On COVID, Evofem’s Approval & More
A year ago about 40,000 people gathered in Chicago for the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Today a virtual version of the ASCO conference, the cancer field’s largest, kicks off, with oncologists and others tuning in from throughout the country and around the world to check out the latest in cancer … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: ASCO Opens, Merck Takes On COVID, Evofem’s Approval & More”
New Webinars: In Vitro Hepatotoxicity Assessment Solutions & Enzyme Fragment Complementation Tech
Xconomy Insight is excited to offer two special webinars to our community this June. Sponsored by Eurofins, registration is free to all. Applying Cell-based In Vitro Assays to Improve In Vitro Hepatotoxicity Assessment Challenges Date: Wednesday, June 10, 2020 Time: 9:00am PDT / 12:00pm EDT Duration: 1 hour Register today In this webinar, we will … Continue reading “New Webinars: In Vitro Hepatotoxicity Assessment Solutions & Enzyme Fragment Complementation Tech”
Viacyte Adds $27M to Move Ahead Trio of Stem Cell Diabetes Treatments
Privately held biotech ViaCyte has banked $27 million, the majority an installment of cash from a tranched $80 million Series D financing round it closed in late 2018. The company says the money will go to further develop the three diabetes treatment programs it has underway, including enough prep work to enable it to bring … Continue reading “Viacyte Adds $27M to Move Ahead Trio of Stem Cell Diabetes Treatments”
Generation Bio Leads a Trio of Biotech Companies Aiming for the Nasdaq
COVID-19 has ravaged the economy, and it was expected to quash the IPO market, too. But the biotech sector is defying the pandemic with crossover financings and freshly minted public companies. On Friday, three firms added their names to the list of life science companies preparing to join the public markets. Gene therapy company Generation … Continue reading “Generation Bio Leads a Trio of Biotech Companies Aiming for the Nasdaq”
FDA Approves Evofem’s “On-Demand” Non-Hormonal Birth Control Gel
While treatments for many health conditions have undergone reinvention in the past two decades, birth control options haven’t changed much. On Friday, San Diego-based Evofem Biosciences said it received FDA approval for a new kind of contraceptive: a non-hormonal vaginal gel intended for use directly before intercourse. The drug, a combination of lactic acid, citric … Continue reading “FDA Approves Evofem’s “On-Demand” Non-Hormonal Birth Control Gel”
Bio Roundup: mRNA Vaccine Data, Rise of Rallybio, Roche’s Protein Play & More
As the nation started to reopen this week following two months of closed businesses and stay-at-home orders, public health officials and economists cautioned that society won’t truly return to anything resembling a pre-pandemic normal without a COVID-19 vaccine. Moderna (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRNA]]) moved one step closer to filling that need with the release of preliminary Phase … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: mRNA Vaccine Data, Rise of Rallybio, Roche’s Protein Play & More”
Vividion Gets $135M in Collaboration With Roche on Protein Degradation
Biotechs are increasingly looking to leverage a mechanism cells use to get rid of unwanted proteins to drug targets previously considered out of reach. Roche ponied up $135 million upfront this week to work with Vividion Therapeutics in search of small molecules that use that “protein degradation” process to do just that. The drug discovery … Continue reading “Vividion Gets $135M in Collaboration With Roche on Protein Degradation”
Explore San Diego’s Precision Medicine and Genomics Sector in Xconomy’s New Podcast and Special Report
Learn what’s fueling San Diego’s biotech investment and partnership opportunities by downloading Xconomy’s new special report and podcast that package the highlights from the recent Xcelerating Life Sciences San Diego: Biomedical Breakthroughs in Precision Medicine & Genomics event. The special report includes: San Diego Biotech Entrepreneurs, Innovation Leads to “Maturing” Ecosystem What It Takes for … Continue reading “Explore San Diego’s Precision Medicine and Genomics Sector in Xconomy’s New Podcast and Special Report”
Mirati Names Synthorx’s Joseph Leveque as New Chief Medical Officer
Mirati Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRTX]]) this week appointed Joseph Leveque as its new chief medical officer. Leveque most recently served as CMO at San Diego’s Synthorx, which was recently acquired by Sanofi. Prior he served in the same role at ARMO Biosciences, which was acquired by Eli Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) in 2018. Previous experience includes positions … Continue reading “Mirati Names Synthorx’s Joseph Leveque as New Chief Medical Officer”
Amplyx Adds Cash from Pfizer, Adage as Funding Round Tops $90M
Amplyx Pharmaceuticals has completed enrollment in one mid-stage trial of its lead drug candidate, a new kind of antifungal treatment, and has finished treating the first patients in two more such studies. Now the San Diego-based company has added $53 million to a round of funding it first closed in 2017, money that it plans … Continue reading “Amplyx Adds Cash from Pfizer, Adage as Funding Round Tops $90M”
Bio Roundup: FDA Dings BMS, Genfit’s Fall, Alexion’s Activist & More
This was a disappointing week for at least two major drug makers. French firm Genfit reported a trial failure in an intensely competitive indication, and New York-based Bristol Myers Squibb encountered a delay when the FDA declined to review its experimental multiple myeloma treatment. Genfit (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GNFT]]) was developing a treatment for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: FDA Dings BMS, Genfit’s Fall, Alexion’s Activist & More”
Gossamer Announces Resignation of Chief Medical Officer Jakob Dupont
Gossamer Bio’s chief medical officer, Jakob Dupont, is leaving the company this week. Dupont is resigning to “pursue oncology opportunities” closer to his family in the San Francisco Bay Area, the company reported Tuesday. Dupont’s resignation takes effect Thursday, according to a regulatory filing. Gossamer (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GOSS]]) said he will advise the San Diego-based company … Continue reading “Gossamer Announces Resignation of Chief Medical Officer Jakob Dupont”
Oncology Biotech CEO Activates “Latent Viral Side” Against COVID-19
In every National Football League game, athletes must accomplish two difficult things that rest at opposite ends of the spectrum: rigor and speed. If their movements are off by even half a second, they risk being tackled by their opponent. Game over. In this COVID-19 day and age, believe it or not, the NFL serves … Continue reading “Oncology Biotech CEO Activates “Latent Viral Side” Against COVID-19″
Bio Roundup: Acquisitive Alexion, CRISPR on COVID, C. diff Success & More
Alexion Pharmaceuticals CEO Ludwig Hantson has made no secret that he wants to diversify his company’s drug portfolio and he has shown willingness to open the corporate checkbook to accomplish that goal. Last October, Alexion (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALXN]]) struck a $930 million deal to acquire Achillion Pharmaceuticals, a biotech whose lead drug complements the Boston company’s … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Acquisitive Alexion, CRISPR on COVID, C. diff Success & More”
Trovagene Rebrands as Cardiff Oncology, Promotes Longtime Exec to CEO
Trovagene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TROV]]), which started out as a diagnostics company, has renamed itself Cardiff Oncology to better reflect its focus on the cancer drug it is advancing in three clinical trials. In 2017 the San Diego area-based biotech made the first step in its transformation into a drug development-focused organization, licensing rights to an investigational … Continue reading “Trovagene Rebrands as Cardiff Oncology, Promotes Longtime Exec to CEO”
Ventus Launches With $60M to Shine Light on Innate Immune System Drugs
The innate immune system has become a hot area for drug development, and for good reason. As the body’s first line of defense, its function (or dysfunction) plays a role in many diseases. The problem, says Ventus Therapeutics CEO Marcelo Bigal, is that drug developers have been working in the dark. Scientists don’t know the … Continue reading “Ventus Launches With $60M to Shine Light on Innate Immune System Drugs”
Encouraging Signals for New Cancer Cell Therapy Strategies
Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies have shown remarkable efficacy in leukemia and lymphoma patients who relapsed or were refractory to several prior treatments, but many challenges remain in the cancer cell therapy field. Strategies that may improve upon first-generation therapies were presented during the American Association for Cancer Research virtual meeting with encouraging early activity, … Continue reading “Encouraging Signals for New Cancer Cell Therapy Strategies”
Kura Narrows Pipeline After Strategic Review Prompted by COVID-19
Kura Oncology is discontinuing development of one of its three clinical-stage cancer drug candidates amid pandemic-related impacts to its clinical trial plans. The decision to end work on the drug, KO-947, comes after San Diego-based Kura (NASDAQ: [[ticker:KURA]]) was successful in lifting a partial clinical hold placed on a Phase 1 trial of the drug … Continue reading “Kura Narrows Pipeline After Strategic Review Prompted by COVID-19”
COVID-19 and Fungal Superinfections: The Deadly, Perfect Storm
Virtually unknown just a few months ago, the COVID-19 pandemic has already resulted in over 239,000 deaths worldwide—including over 67,000 in the United States alone. Now, emerging reports suggest that as many as one third of patients with severe COVID-19 infection requiring intensive care may also be battling another life-threatening infection: invasive aspergillosis, a deadly … Continue reading “COVID-19 and Fungal Superinfections: The Deadly, Perfect Storm”
Bio Roundup: Remdesivir Data, Erasca’s $200M, a New FDA Nod & More
Remdesivir, the investigational Gilead Sciences antiviral drug, looks more likely than ever to become the first treatment authorized by the FDA to treat patients with COVID-19. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) head Anthony Fauci praised the drug after preliminary data released this week from a federally funded trial involving more than 1,000 … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Remdesivir Data, Erasca’s $200M, a New FDA Nod & More”
Podcast: How San Diego is Building a Biotech Ecosystem – Genomics & Precision Medicine Experts Weigh in
Miss the event or want to revisit the insightful content? Our new podcast packages the highlights from the recent Xcelerating Life Sciences San Diego: Biomedical Breakthroughs in Precision Medicine & Genomics forum. Listen today. Featuring expert panels on: Successful R&D models What it takes for commercialization Building a biotech ecosystem in San Diego Dozens of … Continue reading “Podcast: How San Diego is Building a Biotech Ecosystem – Genomics & Precision Medicine Experts Weigh in”
Neurocrine Gets FDA Nod for Once-Daily “Add-On” Parkinson’s Pill
Many patients with Parkinson’s disease take a combination medication called levodopa/carbidopa to control their symptoms, but over time, experience “off” episodes in which the tremor, slowed movement, and difficulty walking that characterize the disorder occur. Now the FDA has approved a Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:NBIX]]) drug intended to be taken along with levodopa/carbidopa to extend … Continue reading “Neurocrine Gets FDA Nod for Once-Daily “Add-On” Parkinson’s Pill”
Erasca Lands $200M Mega-Round to Move Cancer Programs to the Clinic
Serial biotech entrepreneur Jonathan Lim has raised a whopping $200 million to advance multiple candidates at his latest cancer drug development venture, Erasca, into human testing. Lim (pictured) sold his previous company, Ignyta, to Roche for $1.7 billion. On Monday Erasca—a portmanteau of “erase” and “cancer”—announced it had completed a Series B financing round jointly … Continue reading “Erasca Lands $200M Mega-Round to Move Cancer Programs to the Clinic”