MEDiC Life Sciences has announced the acquisition of a clinical-stage therapeutic program, marking the biotechnology company's first acquisition and strategic shift toward building a robust therapeutic pipeline. The program, which has completed Phase 1 dose escalation studies, was identified and validated through MEDiC's proprietary SLS (Synthetic-Lethal-Gene Signature) biomarker platform.
Platform-Driven Patient Selection Strategy
The acquired program targets a key oncogenic driver in cancer treatment, addressing a significant challenge in the field where researchers have struggled to identify the correct patient cohort. MEDiC's SLS platform has enabled the company to refine patient selection criteria, potentially improving the program's clinical success rate.
The SLS platform generates millions of biomarker combinations in 3D cancer models and detects drug sensitivity to each combination. This precision-medicine approach is designed to increase the program's probability of success and accelerate its path to market. MEDiC is currently finalizing pre-clinical data and plans to initiate biomarker-driven clinical development next year.
Strategic Implications and Future Development
"This acquisition carries two major strategic implications for MEDiC," said Kyuho Han, CEO of MEDiC Life Sciences. "In the near term, it allows us to relaunch a clinical-stage asset in an SLS biomarker-defined patient cohort, creating a Phase II–ready program. In the long-term, its success will serve as a key validation of our platform."
Han emphasized the broader potential of the approach: "By identifying synthetic-lethal biomarkers that enhance the clinical success of cancer therapies, we can unlock a new wave of precision medicines - developed faster, at lower cost, and, most importantly, for the benefit of cancer patients, which remains our highest priority."
Expansion Plans and Platform Validation
The company plans to continue leveraging the SLS platform to identify and evaluate additional acquisition targets while advancing internal first-in-class targets to expand its therapeutic portfolio. This acquisition serves as a proof of concept, demonstrating MEDiC's ability to apply its technological expertise to identify undervalued or under-optimized therapeutic assets.
The acquisition represents MEDiC's commitment to ensuring promising cancer therapies are advanced in the appropriate patient populations, utilizing functional genomics in 3D cancer models to transform drug development through precision medicine approaches.
