PARIS and BOSTON; December 22, 2020 – Servier and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute today announced a research collaboration agreement focused on a large-scale integration of immune checkpoint signaling in the context of cancer. The collaboration will aim to advance the understanding of the interplay between various immune checkpoint pathways in different immune cells, their regulatory networks, and how to integrate this knowledge into predictive preclinical models to inform the rational selection of the best checkpoint and combination strategies.
“At Servier, we partner for a purpose, our patients. We seek partners who share our values and commitment to improving the lives of the patients, caregivers and the families we serve,” said Hugues Dolgos, R&D Global Head of Oncology at Servier. “Establishing this postdoctoral fellowship and research collaboration with the like-minded team at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute further bridges the gap between academia and industry and we’re confident that together we can potentially accelerate the development of early stage discoveries to address unmet medical needs.”
The collaborative research effort will be led by Marios Giannakis, M.D., Ph.D., Medical Oncologist and Dana-Farber and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Giannakis also conducts research at Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard to understand the molecular mechanisms of colorectal cancer formation and develop novel targeted and immune-based treatments for gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.
“Current immune checkpoint therapies provide benefit only to a limited subset of patients living with gastrointestinal cancer. Understanding immune-checkpoint modulation in the context of translationally relevant preclinical models is key to predicting the response to combinations of immunotherapies and to developing novel biomarkers for the clinic,” said Giannakis.
Servier is actively engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of innovative therapeutics directed against GI cancers, including colorectal and pancreatic cancers. Servier has significantly accelerated its investment in hard-to-treat cancers, with more than 50% of research and development dedicated to oncology.
To learn more about Servier’s Oncology Pipeline visit, https://servier.us/research-and-development/our-pipeline/ .
About Servier
Servier is an international pharmaceutical company governed by a non-profit foundation, with its headquarters in France (Suresnes). With a strong international presence in 150 countries and a total revenue of 4.6 billion euros in 2019, Servier employs 22,000 people worldwide. Entirely independent, the Group invests on average 25% of its total revenue (excluding generics) every year in research and development and uses all its profits for its development. Corporate growth is driven by Servier’s constant commitment in five areas of excellence: cardiovascular, immune-inflammatory, and neurodegenerative diseases, cancer and diabetes, as well as by its activities in high-quality generic drugs. Servier also offers eHealth solutions beyond drug development.
Servier Group’s partnering efforts in the U.S. are bolstered by Servier BioInnovation (SBI), located in Kendall Square, MA. SBI’s mission includes identifying innovative early-stage R&D opportunities, establishing partnerships and expediting BD&L activities in the local innovation ecosystem.
About Servier U.S.
Servier Pharmaceuticals LLC is a commercial-stage pharmaceuticals company with a passion for innovation and improving the lives of patients, their families and caregivers. In the United States, Servier Pharmaceuticals is committed to building a robust portfolio, starting with oncology, with future growth driven by innovation in other areas of unmet medical need, leveraging Servier’s global portfolio and seeking acquisitions, licensing deals and partnerships.
Servier Pharmaceuticals believes co-creation is fundamental to driving innovation and is actively building alliances that bring solutions to patients’ lives and can accelerate access to therapies. We are building relationships with academia, venture capitalists, biotech and pharmaceutical peers and advocates with the aim of entering into mutually beneficial and complementary partnerships where each organization’s skill sets are recognized and leveraged for the benefit of patients.
With our commercial and scientific expertise, global reach and commitment to clinical excellence, Servier Pharmaceuticals is dedicated to bringing the promise of tomorrow to the patients that we serve.