Repare Therapeutics has entered into an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Debiopharm International S.A. for lunresertib, a PKMYT1 inhibitor aimed at treating solid tumors. This deal comes seven months after Repare announced it would suspend independent development of lunresertib unless a partner could be found.
In January, Repare halted plans for a phase 3 study of lunresertib combined with its ATR inhibitor, camonsertib, for platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. However, the company continued evaluating lunresertib in conjunction with Debiopharm’s WEE1 inhibitor, Debio 0123, as part of an ongoing collaboration.
Under the new licensing agreement, Debiopharm will make a $10 million upfront payment to Repare. The deal also includes up to $5 million in near-term milestone payments, in addition to a maximum of $257 million tied to clinical, regulatory, commercial, and sales achievements. Repare will also receive single-digit royalties on future global net sales of lunresertib.
Debiopharm will now lead the development of lunresertib and take over the MYTHIC study, which explores the combination of lunresertib and Debio 0123. This includes assuming responsibility for ongoing and future clinical activities related to lunresertib. Debio 0123 is described as a highly selective and brain-penetrant WEE1 inhibitor.
In a July 15 statement, Debiopharm CEO Bertrand Ducrey commented, “Based on very promising phase 1/1b clinical data, we believe the combination of lunresertib and Debio 0123 is highly synergistic and could potentially drive rapid and deep tumor regressions.”
The licensing agreement builds on the collaboration between the two companies established in January 2024, when they signed a clinical study and collaboration agreement to investigate the interaction between lunresertib and Debio 0123.
Steve Forte, President, CEO, and CFO of Repare, stated, “The exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Debiopharm allows for the continued development of lunresertib, a novel PKMYT1 inhibitor, that has demonstrated encouraging results across multiple clinical trials in difficult-to-treat solid tumors.”
As Repare transfers lunresertib development responsibilities to Debiopharm, the company will focus on its two internal phase 1 programs. These include RP-1664, a PLK4 inhibitor currently under investigation in the LIONS trial, and RP-3467, a Polθ ATPase inhibitor being evaluated in the POLAR trial.
RP-1664 is a first-in-class, oral PLK4 inhibitor targeting TRIM37-high solid tumors. It is being studied as a monotherapy in adult and adolescent patients. Initial safety and efficacy results from the LIONS trial are expected in the fourth quarter of 2025.
RP-3467 is being examined both alone and alongside olaparib in the POLAR trial. This study involves patients with advanced ovarian cancer, breast cancer, castration-resistant prostate cancer, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. A data readout from this trial is anticipated in the third quarter of 2025.
