Merck Pays $2.13B for Rights to Experimental Cancer Treatment SPR2015

Pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. has agreed to pay $2.13 billion under an exclusive global license agreement with Chinese biotech SciBrunch Therapeutics for the rights to develop, manufacture and sell experimental cancer treatment SPR2015.

The deal grants Merck access to an oral drug treatment that targets a common cancer-driving mutation found in pancreatic, colorectal and lung cancers.

Under the terms of the transaction, Shanghai-based SciBrunch will receive an upfront payment of $400 million and is eligible for up to $1.73 billion in potential milestone payments.

The agreement comes as Merck pushes to diversify its treatment portfolio ahead of looming patent losses for its top-selling cancer drug Keytruda and vaccine Gardasil.