US-based cancer biotherapeutics developer Werewolf Therapeutics closed a $56m series A round yesterday featuring Taiho Ventures, the corporate venture capital vehicle for pharmaceutical company Taiho Pharmaceutical.
Healthcare investment firm MPM Capital and VC firm Longwood Fund co-led the round, which included UPMC Enterprises, the commercialisation arm of healthcare provider and insurer UPMC, in addition to Arkin Bio Ventures and DC Investment Partners.
Werewolf is developing cancer treatments using its Predator protein engineering platform that will work by stimulating the body’s immune system to fight cancerous tumours.
The drugs are intended to be created so that they can be delivered in an inactivated format that will prevent them from damaging non-cancerous tissue.
The company was founded by MPM Capital, which supplied its initial seed funding, and MPM investment partner Daniel J. Hicklin has been appointed president and chief executive of the startup.
Hicklin said: “Immunotherapy has emerged as a foundational treatment option in oncology, but the range of patients benefiting from these medicines is still small and the repertoire of more potent immunotherapies is limited by significant toxicities.”
“Werewolf Therapeutics is designing powerful immunotherapies to more precisely and effectively stimulate anti-tumour immune responses to improve safety, efficacy and durability. Through our Predator technology platform, we are creating a new class of transformative immuno-oncology therapeutics to deliver a clinically meaningful impact for patients.”
