Pharma major Lupin Ltd and the US-based AbbVie on Monday announced a partnership to develop and commercialise the former’s novel drug to treat hematological cancers.

Under the pact, AbbVie, a biopharmaceutical company, will pay Lupin an upfront payment of $30 million (approx Rs 210 crore) for an exclusive licence to the programme.

Upon successful completion of regulatory, development and commercial milestones, Lupin is eligible to receive total milestone payments of up to $947 million (approx Rs 6,655 crore), Lupin said in a regulatory filing.

Lupin will also be entitled to receive a double-digit royalty on the sales of the product and will retain commercial rights to the programme in India, the company added.

The announcement, however, failed to cheer the Lupin stock, which ended 2.25 per lower at Rs 838.05 on the BSE.

AbbVie has licensed Lupin’s MALT1 (Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma Translocation Protein1) inhibitor programme. Through this partnership, AbbVie gains exclusive global rights to develop and commercialise Lupin’s MALT1 inhibitors.

The Telegraph

Lupin said AbbVie intends to pursue development across a range of hematological cancers, many with limited current treatment options.

Lupin managing director Nilesh Gupta said the company has partnered AbbVie which shares the commitment to deliver high quality medicines in areas that lack approved treatment and have a dire medical need.

“We are delighted with the success of our Novel Drug Discovery and Development (NDDD) programme to bring India’s first pharmaceutical innovation in this space. This is a first-in-class drug discovery programme delivered exclusively by Lupin right from concept generation through the various stages of drug discovery and development,” said Raj Kamboj, president (NDDD) of Lupin.

Tom Hudson, MD, vice-president (discovery) of AbbVie, said, “Lupin’s MALT1 programme is exploring a new and innovative approach in difficult-to-treat cancers. AbbVie is committed to pursuing advanced treatment options for patients and we look forward to partnering our expertise in hematological oncology with Lupin’s discovery program to offer new hope to patients.”