AbbVie Enters $1 Billion Deal for Trispecific Lung Cancer Drug, Challenging Amgen's Imdelltra

AbbVie has made a significant move in the competitive lung cancer drug market, securing rights to a promising trispecific T-cell engager in a deal potentially worth over $1 billion. The agreement positions AbbVie to challenge Amgen's recently approved Imdelltra, intensifying the race to develop effective treatments targeting the DLL3 protein in small cell lung cancer (SCLC).

AbbVie's Strategic Acquisition

Illinois-based pharmaceutical giant AbbVie has committed to an upfront payment of $100 million to Suzhou Zelgen Biopharmaceuticals for the ex-China rights to ZG006, also known as alveltamig. The deal includes potential milestone payments totaling $1.075 billion, with up to $60 million in near-term payments based on clinical progress and licensing option fees.

ZG006 is a DLL3xDLL3 T-cell engager that has recently entered Phase III trials. The drug's trispecific design, which binds to two distinct DLL3 epitopes on tumor cells and CD3 on T cells, is aimed at improving efficacy against tumors with low DLL3 expression compared to existing bispecific antibodies.

Promising Clinical Data and Market Potential

Zelgen reported encouraging Phase II data for ZG006 in SCLC last year, with a 66.7% response rate observed in 27 heavily pretreated patients. Notably, the drug showed efficacy in patients with low DLL3 expression, achieving a 71.4% response rate in a pooled analysis of 25 patients with low to medium DLL3 expression.

These results compare favorably to Amgen's Imdelltra, which received full FDA approval for extensive SCLC in November 2026 based on a Phase III trial showing a 40% response rate in 99 patients who had undergone at least two prior therapies.

Intensifying Competition in DLL3-Targeted Therapies

AbbVie's acquisition of ZG006 rights places it among a growing list of pharmaceutical companies targeting DLL3 in SCLC:

• Merck acquired a trispecific DLL3 T-cell engager, MK-6070, through its $650 million purchase of Harpoon in 2024. Daiichi Sankyo later invested $170 million for a stake in this program.
• Boehringer Ingelheim has a bispecific DLL3xCD3 T-cell engager in Phase II trials.
• Roche is developing a Phase I trispecific antibody targeting DLL3 with bivalent CD3xCD137 binding, aiming to increase efficacy through CD137 costimulation.
• In early 2025, Roche also licensed a DLL3-directed antibody-drug conjugate from a Chinese company in a deal potentially exceeding $1 billion.

As the DLL3-targeted therapy landscape becomes increasingly crowded, AbbVie's substantial investment in ZG006 underscores the potential of this approach in SCLC treatment and sets the stage for fierce competition in the coming years.