Dispatch Bio, a biotechnology startup formed in 2022, has emerged from stealth with $216 million in funding and an ambitious plan to develop what it calls a "universal" solid tumor immunotherapy. The company was created through a collaboration between Arch Venture Partners and the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, building on technologies developed in leading academic laboratories.
The startup's lead program is expected to enter clinical testing next year, representing a novel approach that combines elements of gene therapy, immunotherapy, and cell therapy to address one of oncology's most persistent challenges: effectively treating solid tumors with immune-based therapies.
Novel Three-Part Therapeutic Strategy
Dispatch's approach centers on delivering a synthetic protein called a "flare" antigen to cancer cells throughout the body. The therapy uses an engineered virus as a delivery vehicle to seek out cancerous cells and tag them with this unique antigen. Subsequently, the company administers specially designed CAR-T cells that are programmed to recognize and attack cells bearing the flare antigen.
According to the company, once the CAR-T cells find and destroy their tagged targets, viral particles carrying the flare are released into nearby tumor tissue, which then becomes flagged for destruction as well. The engineered virus also delivers inflammatory cytokines and chemokines designed to help break down the tumor's surrounding environmental defenses.
Steve Gillis, managing director at Arch and Dispatch board member, described the process as a "tumor-agnostic approach to immunotherapy" that could treat "a majority of solid tumors." The company believes this strategy may also help combat resistance mechanisms that tumors sometimes develop against other medicines.
Addressing Current Immunotherapy Limitations
The development comes as the pharmaceutical industry continues to grapple with significant limitations in current immunotherapy approaches. While checkpoint inhibitors like Merck's Keytruda have revolutionized cancer treatment and are used across dozens of tumor types, a substantial portion of patients don't respond to these drugs, particularly those whose tumors lack specific proteins associated with immunotherapy response.
Many "cold" tumors that don't elicit strong immune reactions remain beyond the reach of current checkpoint blockers. Meanwhile, CAR-T therapies, while successful in treating several blood cancers with seven approved treatments in the U.S., have struggled to demonstrate similar efficacy against solid tumors.
The challenge with solid tumors stems from their ability to create protective barriers of immune-suppressing cells and molecules that exhaust CAR-T cells and shield the cancer from immune defenders. Additionally, solid tumors often contain cells expressing different antigens, making them difficult to target with treatments aimed at just one specific marker.
Distinguished Scientific Foundation
Dispatch's technology is based on research from four prominent scientists who now serve as company co-founders: Carl June, a cell therapy pioneer at the University of Pennsylvania; Chris Garcia, a professor at Stanford University; Kole Roybal from the University of California, San Francisco; and Andy Minn, the new chair of immuno-oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
The concept for Dispatch originated during a Parker Institute retreat where these four researchers, along with institute head Sean Parker, discussed how to best address the challenges solid tumors present in immunotherapy development.
Leadership and Investment
The company is led by CEO Sabah Oney, a venture partner at Arch who previously held executive positions at Alector and Ariosa Diagnostics. Jeff Marrazzo, former head of gene therapy developer Spark Therapeutics, chairs the company's board.
Beyond founding investors Arch Venture Partners and the Parker Institute, Dispatch has attracted backing from Bristol Myers Squibb, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Alexandria Venture Investments. The company raised its Series A funding through two tranches, with the most recent $100 million round completed last month.
The pharmaceutical industry has invested billions of dollars over recent years in largely unsuccessful attempts to develop better immunotherapies, often by combining checkpoint inhibitors with other medicines to boost response rates. Cell therapy companies have similarly experimented with various approaches to target solid tumors, with limited success to date.
