The unit’s closure comes as Genentech’s parent Roche rethinks its cancer business, an effort that has included the discontinuation of three early-stage candidates and a T-cell partnership with Adaptimmune.
Genentech’s cancer immunology unit is ending operations as the company reprioritizes its investments in cancer research, according to several media outlets. Department head Ira Mellman will also depart the company.
A Genentech spokesperson In a statement to Endpoints News, which first broke the news, said that the decision to wind down its cancer immunology operations was driven by “shifts in the science of immuno-oncology.” Moving forward, the company will merge its R&D activities in this space with its molecular oncology programs, creating a single but broader cancer effort.
As a result of the restructuring, Vice President of Cancer Immunology Ira Mellman will step down from his post. Mellman has been with the company for 17 years.
The Roche subsidiary will also make adjustments in its department of human pathobiology and OMNI reverse translation group, according to Fierce Biotech, which reported that this shuffle will affect a limited number of employees.
The reorganization comes as Roche restructures its cancer business. In its first quarter report in April 2024, the pharma group announced that it axed three early-stage oncology candidates, including two Phase I small molecule drugs—camonsertib and belvarafenib—being assessed for solid tumors. The company also scrapped the early-stage RG6286 for colorectal cancer.
That same month, Genentech announced that it was terminating its potential $3 billion agreement with Adamtimmune. Originally inked in September 2021, the partnership was supposed to leverage Adaptimmune’s induced pluripotent stem cell platform to produce allogeneic T-cell therapies for up to five cancer targets, as well as advance personalized allogeneic T-cell therapies. At the time, the companies did not disclose the reason for the termination.
In July 2024, Roche reported disappointing Phase II/III data for its anti-TIGIT antibody tiragolumab in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The readout from the SKYSCRAPER-06 study showed that tiragolumab, when combined with the PD-L1 inhibitor Tecentriq (atezolizumab), had “reduced efficacy” in terms of progression-free survival versus Merck’s Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and chemotherapy.
Roche terminated SKYSCRAPER-06 but continues to evaluate tiragolumab in small cell lung cancer, cervical cancer, esophageal cancer and other malignancies.
In April 2024, Roche scored back-to-back victories in cancer, with an FDA approval for Alecensa (alectinib) for adjuvant use in early-stage ALK-positive NSCLC, and a Phase III win for its bispecific T-cell engager Columvi (glofitamab) in lymphoma.
