On September 5th, AstraZeneca and Jiangsu Hailai Xinchuang Medical Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Hailai Xinchuang) officially signed a clinical research cooperation agreement. According to the agreement, both parties will jointly carry out clinical research on the application of AstraZeneca immune checkpoint inhibitors combined with Hailey Xinchuang electric field therapy in solid tumors such as gastrointestinal tumors represented by biliary malignancies.
Tumor Treating Fields (TTF) is an innovative physical therapy modality for tumors. Previously, as a pioneer in tumor electric field therapy, Novocure's product Optune was currently the only globally approved product for market launch. In July 2020, Optune was introduced to the domestic market through Zaiding Medical. That year, Zaiding Medical's market value doubled, and Optune became the company's second largest pipeline, with a net revenue growth of 300%. Afterwards, Optune continued to grow at an annual rate of around 10%.
The tumor treatment electric field is currently in the import stage in China. Apart from Optune, which has been approved for the treatment of glioblastoma in China, there are no domestically produced products on the market yet. However, companies in China, including Jiangsu Hailai Xinchuang, Hunan Antaikang, and Zhejiang Saifukaier, are laying out in this emerging field.
Among them, the tumor electric field therapy device EFE-G100 independently developed by Hailai Xinchuang has been recognized as an innovative medical device by the National Medical Products Administration and is currently conducting multi center clinical trials. Hailai Xinchuang has also become the first TTF research and development enterprise in China and the second in the world to enter the multi center clinical stage.
From now on, the collaboration between AstraZeneca and Haier Innovation not only expands the application of electric field therapy in a wider range of tumor fields, but also sets a new paradigm for clinical research on drug combination innovative tumor treatment devices.
It is reported that, in addition to this cooperation, AstraZeneca will promote the clinical research of combined treatment of third-generation EGFR-TKI ohitinib, targeted HER2 ADC dtriazumab (developed in cooperation with the First Three Communist Party of China), immunocheckpoint inhibitors (including Tremelimumab and Duvalizumab), and the new BTK inhibitor achotinib, covering gastrointestinal tumors, lung cancer, breast cancer, blood tumors and other fields. As of now, more than 20 local pharmaceutical companies have applied and reached cooperation agreements with five Chinese local enterprises, including Shiyao Group and Yasheng Pharmaceutical, for joint treatment clinical research.