Pharmaceutical Business review

TORL BioTherapeutics secures $158m for oncology pipeline development

The proceeds will primarily support the clinical development of TORL-1-23. Credit: Herney Gómez from Pixabay.

The funding will be used for the advancement of TORL’s new antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) oncology pipeline, including the clinical development.

The Series B-2 financing was led by Deep Track Capital and saw new investments from global biotechnology investors such as RA Capital Management, Perceptive Advisors, and Avidity Partners.

Existing investors, including UC Investments, Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Bristol Myers Squibb, Moore Strategic Ventures, Vertex Ventures HC, Blue Owl Healthcare Opportunities, and Perceptive Xontogeny Venture Fund, also participated, bringing the total funds raised to over $350m.

The proceeds will primarily support the clinical development of TORL-1-23, a clinical-stage ADC targeting CLDN 6+ solid tumors, through Phase I and a pivotal Phase II trial set to commence in the second half of this year.

This Phase II trial aims to expedite the regulatory review and potential approvals for the ADC as a new treatment for patients with CLDN 6+ platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.

Additionally, the funding will facilitate ongoing Phase I studies for the TORL-2-307 programme, which includes both a monoclonal antibody and an ADC for CLDN 18.2+ solid tumours.

The investment will also advance the development of TORL-3-600, an ADC for CDH17+ advanced colorectal cancer, and TORL-4-500, an ADC for DLK1 positive solid tumors.

TORL chairman and CEO Mark Alles said: “We are grateful for the continued support from our existing world-class life sciences investors and are extremely pleased to add RA Capital Management, Perceptive Advisors, and Avidity Partners to the TORL team.

“This investment significantly enhances our opportunity to deliver multiple data-driven milestones from our novel antibody-based discovery platform and clinical-stage oncology drug development pipeline.”

Last year, TORL BioTherapeutics raised $158m in a Series B financing round for advancing the development of new biologics for cancer treatment.