CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and
HOUSTON, July 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sanofi and The
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer
Center today announced a five-year strategic collaboration to
accelerate the development of investigational treatments, including
targeted and immune-therapies, for patients with cancer. The
alliance will combine MD Anderson's clinical trials infrastructure
and Sanofi's pipeline of investigational treatments to lead
biomarker-driven clinical studies to better understand how novel
cancer drugs work.
"Our goal is to improve the
outcome for patients with a range of difficult-to-treat cancers,
which is best achieved through a deep understanding of how
investigational new drugs work," said Peter Adamson, M.D., Global Development Head,
Oncology and Pediatric Innovation at Sanofi. "This alliance
leverages MD Anderson's agile approach to early phase clinical
trials, their laboratory capabilities and broad scientific
expertise. This will get us to go/no-go decisions much faster and
help us identify potential new combinations and indications more
accurately. That will save precious time and help us expand the
spectrum of patients who could potentially benefit from our
therapies."
MD Anderson manages one of the country's largest oncology clinical
trial programs, with well-established platforms for tissue
collection, molecular and immune profiling, and data analysis. This
infrastructure enables the comprehensive study of tumor samples
taken before, during and after treatment to uncover valuable
insights that help streamline patient selection and hasten the
identification of new therapy combinations and indications.
"Not only do clinical trials
help us to advance life-saving new treatments for our patients in
need, they provide us with valuable information to understand which
therapies may be more effective for which patients," said
Funda Meric-Bernstam, M.D., chair of
Investigational Cancer Therapeutics. "We are pleased to
collaborate with Sanofi in this effort to accelerate the
development of a pipeline of innovative cancer therapies."
The new alliance also will support investigations into
additional indications and combinations for studies already in the
clinic. Sanofi and MD Anderson scientists will collaborate on
experimental design, applying a core set of biomarkers and assays.
Joint projects also will apply novel investigational agents
developed at Sanofi to existing tumor samples to obtain further
data on their effects at different disease stages.
"MD Anderson's expertise in
deep immune phenotyping and molecular profiling will provide
invaluable insights into our emerging immunotherapy assets, helping
us refine our selection of indications and explore new
avenues," said Dmitri Wiederschain, Ph.D., Global Head of
Immuno-Oncology Research at Sanofi. "The knowledge we gain in
this collaboration will also deepen our shared understanding of
cancers' potential vulnerabilities."
New findings, as well as large-scale molecular and phenotype
datasets, will be applied to the design of new translational
studies on selected Sanofi molecules, and guide the selection of
indications. The collaboration is expected to launch its first
projects in summer 2020.
About MD Anderson
The University
of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston ranks as one of the world's most
respected centers focused on cancer patient care, research,
education and prevention. The institution's sole mission is to end
cancer for patients and their families around the world. MD
Anderson is one of only 51 comprehensive cancer centers designated
by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). MD Anderson is ranked No.1
for cancer care in U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals"
survey. It has ranked as one of the nation's top two hospitals for
cancer care since the survey began in 1990, and has ranked first 15
times in the last 18 years. MD Anderson receives a cancer center
support grant from the NCI of the National Institutes of Health
(P30 CA016672).
About Sanofi
Sanofi is dedicated to supporting people through their health
challenges. We are a global biopharmaceutical company focused on
human health. We prevent illness with vaccines, provide innovative
treatments to fight pain and ease suffering. We stand by the few
who suffer from rare diseases and the millions with long-term
chronic conditions.
With more than 100,000 people in 100 countries, Sanofi is
transforming scientific innovation into healthcare solutions around
the globe.
Sanofi, Empowering Life
Sanofi Media
Relations Contact Sally Bain
Tel.: +1 (781) 264-1091
mr@sanofi.com
|
MD Anderson Media
Relations Contact Clayton R. Boldt,
Ph.D. Tel.: +1 (713)
792-9518
crboldt@mdanderson.org
|
Sanofi Forward-Looking Statements
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the impact that COVID-19 will have on us, our customers, suppliers,
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changing rapidly and additional impacts may arise of which we are
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discussed or identified in the public filings with the SEC and the
AMF made by Sanofi, including those listed under "Risk Factors" and
"Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in
Sanofi's annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2019. Other than as required by
applicable law, Sanofi does not undertake any obligation to update
or revise any forward-looking information or statements.
Source: Sanofi (EURONEXT: SAN) (NASDAQ: SNY)
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