Incyte has broken off its immuno-oncology deal with Agenus. The step, which follows a series of program terminations, will give Agenus full control of assets that it will consider advancing internally or through new partnerships.
The deal dates back to 2015 when Incyte paid $60 million upfront and committed up to $350 million in milestones to work with Agenus on candidates against a clutch of checkpoint regulators. Incyte increased its bet two years later, committing up to $510 million in milestones to take full control of two programs, and oversaw a multifront push into the clinic.
Yet, Incyte’s enthusiasm has waned in recent years. The biotech terminated its OX40 program in October 2023, marking the start of a whirlwind of pipeline updates that unraveled the Agenus alliance. Work on a GITR asset and preclinical prospect against an undisclosed target stopped in May 2024.
Incyte brought the ax down on the final two programs—antibodies against LAG-3 and TIM-3—in July 2024, but the wounded Agenus deal lumbered on. That changed last week when Incyte told Agenus it was terminating the deal. The termination, which Agenus disclosed Monday, will take effect in early February 2026.
Agenus will only receive a fraction of the potential paydays covered by the deal. Incyte said it paid $30 million in milestones from the start of the alliance through the end of last year. The biotech was still on the hook for a further $500 million in milestones.
While Agenus looks set to miss out on that money, it will regain the rights to candidates that progressed at Incyte. Agenus said it will evaluate future opportunities for advancing the drug candidates, including internal development and potential new partnerships.
To form a new deal, Agenus will need to find a company that has a different view of the prospects of the programs than Incyte did. Discussing the LAG-3 termination in July, Pablo Cagnoni, M.D., head of research and development at Incyte, said the company had pulled back from the target because it was “far behind our competitors.” Incyte wants to be first or best in class and has left areas where that is unlikely to happen.