Medarex, Inc. expects to receive an undisclosed milestone payment from its licensing partner, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, for the advancement into clinical trials of BMS-66513, a fully human antibody that targets CD137, for the treatment of cancer.
The antibody product was developed using Medarex's UltiMAb technology and is the first UltiMAb- derived antibody in clinical development by Bristol-Myers Squibb under the December 2003 agreement with Medarex. Medarex also expects to receive additional milestone payments as well as royalties on any commercial sales resulting from the development of this product.
"We are pleased that partners like Bristol-Myers Squibb continue to leverage our technology to develop potential treatments for unmet medical needs," Donald L. Drakeman, President and CEO of Medarex, Inc. said adding, "We believe that the fully human antibodies derived from our technology will continue to have an important role in expanding the already growing therapeutic class of antibodies for the treatment of many diseases."
Medarex applies its UltiMAb technology and product development and clinical manufacturing experience to generate, support and potentially commercialize a broad range of fully human antibody product candidates for itself and its partners.