Blueprint Medicines Corp. recently disclosed the chemical structure of BLU-222, an oral, potent and highly selective inhibitor of the CDK2 kinase, being developed for the potential treatment of cancers with CCNE1 amplification and/or cyclin E overexpression, such as HR-positive HER2-negative breast cancer resistant to CDK4/6 inhibitor therapy.
Though down nearly 6% in January, the BioWorld Drug Developers Index (BDDI) rebounded in February, finishing the month with a 4.41% increase and outperforming both the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI; up 1.33%) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA; up 3.47%). In 2023, BDDI concluded the year down 11.35%, trailing behind the NBI and DJIA.
Blueprint Medicines Corp. found a new U.S. commercialization home for Gavreto (pralsetinib) through an agreement with Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc. potentially worth $117.5 million, now that Roche Holding AG has relinquished all rights. The product, a once-daily oral small-molecule kinase inhibitor of wild-type RET (rearranged during transfection) and oncogenic RET fusions, received accelerated approval in 2020 by the U.S. FDA, under priority review and with orphan drug designation, to treat adults with metastatic RET fusion-positive non-small-cell lung cancer.
Vantai Inc. has entered into an amended and restated collaboration and license agreement with Blueprint Medicines Corp. to design and advance novel targeted protein degrader therapies.
Blueprint Medicines Corp. shifted away from two early clinical therapies for EGFR-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer and dropped development and commercialization of lung and thyroid cancer drug Gavreto (pralsetinib) for areas outside of the U.S. and greater China, reducing its operating expenses, as it prepares for increasing Ayvakit sales and prioritizes development of other assets.
Researchers from Blueprint Medicines Corp. presented data from a study that aimed to assess the effects of combining cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) inhibitor BLU-222 with CDK4/6 inhibitors, such as palbociclib or ribociclib, to overcome CDK4/6 inhibitor resistance in HR-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer.
Blueprint Medicines Corp. has identified KIT (c-KIT) (mutant) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST).
Blueprint Medicines Corp. has synthesized EGFR (HER1; erbB1) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer, particularly non-small-cell lung cancer.
More than two months after Blueprint Medicines Corp. gained a broadened label for Ayvakit (avapritinib), the company is “really pleased to see the diversity of revenue this early in the launch across specialties and across both the academic and community settings,” said Philina Lee, chief commercial officer. The situation “bodes very well for a continued cadence of prescribing [into] the foreseeable future,” she said.
Blueprint Medicines Corp. scored a broader label from the U.S. FDA for Ayvakit (avapritinib), which became the first approved therapy to treat adults with indolent systemic mastocytosis (ISM).
