AstraZeneca has acquired full global rights to the investigational cancer therapy C-CAR031 from Shanghai-based AbelZeta for $630 million. This move follows an earlier partnership between the two companies, established in December 2023, which gave AstraZeneca worldwide ownership of C-CAR031 except in China, where both companies shared development and commercialization responsibilities.
With this latest agreement, AstraZeneca now holds exclusive global rights to develop and commercialize C-CAR031. AbelZeta CEO Tony Liu commented on the deal, stating it will "maximize C-CAR031’s global reach." The transaction is AstraZeneca's second significant collaboration in China within two months; last month, the company committed $2 billion to work with Jacobio Pharma on a pan-KRAS inhibitor for cancer treatment.
C-CAR031 is an autologous CAR T-cell therapy that targets glypican 3, a protein often overexpressed in various cancers such as hepatocellular carcinoma. Early clinical data published in 2024 showed an objective response rate of 56.5%, with efficacy reaching up to 75% at higher dose levels and tumor reduction observed in more than 90% of patients.
The therapy was developed using AstraZeneca’s proprietary armoring platform. This technology modifies CAR cells by disrupting the TGFβ receptor, enhancing their ability to survive and function within the tumor microenvironment.
In addition to armored cell therapies like C-CAR031, AstraZeneca is developing AZD0120—a CAR T therapy targeting CD19 and BCMA for multiple myeloma. Results from a Phase Ib/II study presented last November indicated a complete or stringent complete response rate of 78.3%, with partial responses at 17.4%. The company is also progressing surovatamig, a bispecific T cell engager currently in late-stage trials for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
According to CFO Aradhana Sarin at a recent J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference event, these advanced cell therapies and antibody-drug conjugate programs are part of AstraZeneca’s strategy to achieve $80 billion in revenue by 2030.
