Merck & Blackstone Enter Research and Development Funding Agreement 

Merck (MSD outside of the United States and Canada) has agreed to receive funds managed by Blackstone Life Sciences (Blackstone) for the development of sacituzumab tirumotecan (sac-TMT).

Sac-TMT is an investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) targeting trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2 (TROP2), a protein found on the surface of various cancer cells. Merck is currently evaluating sac-TMT in 15 global Phase 3 clinical trials spanning six tumor types, including breast, endometrial, and lung cancers.

Per the agreement, Blackstone will pay Merck $700 million (which is non-refundable, subject to termination provisions provided for in the agreement) to fund a portion of the development costs for sac-TMT expected to be incurred throughout 2026. 

In return, Blackstone is eligible to receive low-to-mid single-digit royalties on net sales of sac-TMT across all approved indications in Merck’s marketing territories, contingent upon receipt of regulatory approval in the U.S. for first-line treatment of triple-negative breast cancer based on findings of the TroFuse-011 clinical trial.

Sac-TMT is being developed as part of an exclusive license and collaboration agreement with Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a holding subsidiary of Sichuan Kelun Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd. (Kelun-Biotech), which is unchanged by this agreement with Blackstone. 

Merck will retain decision-making authority and control over the development, manufacturing, and commercialization of sac-TMT; Blackstone will not receive any rights to sac-TMT.

“This agreement positions Merck to harness the potential of sac-TMT, a promising ADC candidate targeting TROP2, while we continue to advance our broad and expansive pipeline,” said Caroline Litchfield, chief financial officer, Merck. “We are making important investments to drive patient impact and revenue growth, and to sustain our business for the future while remaining disciplined towards maintaining an appropriate financial profile.”

“Sac-TMT is an innovative asset that has the potential to improve patient care across many forms of cancer,” said Dr. Nicholas Galakatos, global head, Blackstone Life Sciences. “We are excited to be collaborating with Merck to realize the full value of this high priority product and contribute to our partner’s revenue growth by leveraging our scale capital and expertise.”