Pfizer to buy cancer drugmaker Seagen in US$43B deal
Global News
Pfizer is spending about $43 billion to reach deeper into new cancer treatments that target tumour cells while sparing surrounding healthy tissue.
Pfizer is spending about $43 billion to reach deeper into new cancer treatments that target tumour cells while sparing surrounding healthy tissue.
The pharmaceutical giant said Monday it will pay $229 in cash for each share of Seagen Inc. Pfizer then plans to let the biotech drug developer “continue innovating,” except with more resources than it would have alone, Pfizer Chairman and CEO Albert Bourla told analysts.
“We are not buying the golden eggs,” he said. “We are acquiring the goose that is laying the golden eggs.”
Bothell, Washington-based Seagen Inc. specializes in working with antibody-drug conjugate, or ADC, technology. Its key products use lab-made proteins called monoclonal antibodies that seek out cancer cells to help deliver a cancer-killing drug while sparing surrounding tissue.
Cancer treatments are a priority for Pfizer. They brought in $12 billion in revenue for the drugmaker last year. But Pfizer has only marketed a couple first-generation ADC treatments, a spokeswoman said.
Seagen has four treatments on the market. It also has a pipeline of drugs under development that includes potential treatments for a form of lung cancer and advanced breast cancer.
“We think this really changes dramatically the oncology presence of Pfizer, makes it one of a kind,” Bourla said.
Seagen’s top seller, Adcetris, treats lymph system cancers. It brought in $839 million in sales last year, a 19 per cent increase over the previous year.
