Checkmate Pharmaceuticals

Checkmate Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in proprietary technologies that use the power of the immune system to fight cancer.

History

2022: Regeneron bought Checkmate Pharmaceuticals for $250 million

In mid-April 2022, Regeneron bought the pharmaceutical company Checkmate Pharmaceuticals for $250 million to create drugs for skin cancer. The acquisition estimates Checkmate at $10.50 per share, which is four times higher than the company's closing price on April 18, 2022 at $2.41.

The company is developing the drug vidutolimod, which is in the first phase of trials in combination with other drugs for the treatment of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer, as well as head and neck cancer. Vidutolimod is an agonist of a protein called toll-like receptor 9, which is delivered as a virus-like particle. The drug is introduced into tumors in order to induce and increase the number of anti-tumor T cells in patients whose cancer has not been stopped by PD-1 inhibitors. In the presence of a tumor with an immune exclusion, the fourth and fifth stages can be violated: transportation of activated T cells and their infiltration into the tumor, but in patients with inflamed tumors, T cells may have difficulty in trying to establish which cells are malignant, or in bringing their destruction to the end.

Regeneron bought Checkmate Pharmaceuticals for $250 million

{{quote 'As we continue to develop and expand our research in immuno-oncology, the acquisition of Checkmate Pharmaceuticals will add a new promising methodology to Regeneron's set of potential approaches to intractable cancers. A unique combination of differentiated receptor 9 with other antibody-based cancer agents could lead to increased clinical benefit and provide treatment options for patients in need, said Regeneron President and Chief Executive Officer Leonard Schleifer. }} If successful, the drug will supplement PD-1 from Regeneron and Sanofi - Libtayo to treat two of the most common skin cancers in the United States: basal cell carcinoma and skin squamous cell carcinoma. Regeneron also has a bispecific antibody called REGN5458, undergoing phase 2 trials to treat multiple myeloma.^[1]

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