GSK-acquired Australian cancer drug earns Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation

Biotech News: Professors Andrew Wilks and Dr Chris Burns have been awarded the prestigious $250,000 Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation, honouring their contributions to medicine.

Their achievements stem from their work at Cytopia, an Australian biotech firm, where they pioneered a drug to combat myelofibrosis, a rare blood cancer. Ojjaara (momelotinib), an inhibitor of JAK1/JAK2 and activin A receptor type 1 (ACVR1), which was acquired by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has garnered approval from US and European regulators.

“This recognition underscores the collaborative effort involved in our work,” remarked Professor Wilks, reflecting on their achievement.

“It has been a privilege to contribute to the discovery of these crucial intracellular enzymes and the development of momelotinib.”

Ojjaara represents a significant milestone as the first FDA-approved treatment for both newly diagnosed and previously treated myelofibrosis patients with anaemia, effectively addressing critical aspects of the disease.

The journey towards Ojjaara’s success traces back to Cytopia’s acquisition by YM Biosciences in 2009 for AU$14 million, which was later acquired by Gilead Sciences in 2012 for US$510 million. Subsequently, Gilead sold the drug to Sierra Oncology in 2018 for US$3 million upfront, and in a notable transaction last year, Sierra further sold CYT387 to GlaxoSmithKline for an impressive US$1.9 billion (AU$2.9 billion), marking the highest acquisition price ever paid for a drug developed in Australia.

The program that birthed Ojjaara began in the late 1990s under the leadership of Professors Wilks and Dr Burns at Cytopia. The involvement of Monash University’s drug researchers, initiated in the early 2000s by Professors William Charman and Susan Charman through the establishment of the Centre for Drug Candidate Optimization (CDCO), was instrumental in advancing the project.

Currently, Professor Wilks serves as the Managing Director of SYNthesis Bioventures, focusing on early-stage therapeutics, while Dr Burns leads Amplia Therapeutics as CEO, a biotech firm dedicated to developing small molecule inhibitors for treating cancer and fibrotic diseases.

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