Astellas announces wind-down of Agensys research operations

Astellas Pharma (a Japan based pharmaceutical company) announced that it is winding down its Agensys research operations in Santa Monica, California, USA, to further refine its oncology strategy by expanding its investment in the research in new technologies and modalities and reducing its focus on Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) research.

"Agensys has positively contributed to Astellas' objective of developing innovative treatments for patients with cancer," said Wataru Uchida, Ph.D., senior vice president, Drug Discovery Research (DDR), Astellas. "The team has provided post-Proof of Concept compounds and antibody-related technology that have been incorporated into our promising oncology pipeline. Yet, the field of research has evolved and led to a new frontier of treatment options. Expanding our investment in this new area of research and development will be critically important and help us to better address high unmet medical needs, as well as deliver innovative benefits to patients in the fight against many types of cancers."

The field of oncology is ever evolving, and Astellas believes that its research focus also needs to evolve to continue to be successful in developing potential therapies to help patients.  Astellas continuously evaluates its operations and investment programs to ensure it is optimizing its resources and research capabilities.  

Astellas will continue certain clinical trials and collaborations on ADC programs that have been in progress at Agensys, including its collaboration with Seattle Genetics.

Astellas plans to complete the wind-down of Agensys research operations in the first quarter of calendar 2018. Astellas is still reviewing the impact of this development on its financial forecasts for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2018.