Fusion Secures $105 Million, Will Double Headcount

Fusion Pharmaceuticals will forge ahead with a Phase I trial for its lead radiopharmaceutical asset bolstered by a $105 million Series B financing round supported by Varian, Johnson & Johnson Innovation and OrbiMed.

Fusion Chief Executive Officer John Valiant told BioSpace that radiopharmaceutical therapeutics targeting solid tumors is an effective and more precise way to deliver an agent straight to the tumor and kill the cancer without increasing toxicity concerns. The antibody molecules in the process are paired with potent alpha emitting medical isotopes that target the cancer cells and “precisely and effectively induce cancer cell death.” Unlike external radiation treatments that have been widely used for years as a way to target tumors, Valiant said the method utilized by Fusion delivers the radiation directly to the tumor itself.

“It’s like a bomb that goes off inside the cancer cell. It’s a really effective localized kill,” Valiant said in a telephone interview.

Valiant noted that since alpha particles travel only a short distance, they localize the radiation to the tumor, which helps reduce concerns about toxicity or other problems associated with the radiation.

https://www.biospace.com/article/exclusive-fusion-secures-105-million-to-support-phase-i-radiopharmaceutical-trial-will-double-headcount/