US-based immuno-oncology technology startup NextCure secured $67m on Wednesday in a series A round featuring pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Eli Lilly.
Eli Lilly, which participated through its Lilly Asia Ventures subsidiary, and Pfizer were joined in the round by Canaan Partners, OrbiMed Advisors, Sofinnova Ventures and Alexandria Venture Investments.
Founded in 2015, NextCure intends to develop product candidates licensed from the laboratory of co-founder Dr. Lieping Chen, a professor of immunobiology, dermatology, and medicine at Yale School of Medicine. It has also agreed to sponsor research and hire new scientists for Dr. Chen’s laboratory.
Chen said: “Immuno-oncology drugs are making a big impact on the survival of many cancer patients. Our research is targeted to finding new cures for those patients and tumour types which do not adequately respond to available therapy.”
– Photo of Dr. Lieping Chen courtesy of Yale University