Pfizer strikes $6 billion deal with 3SBio for cancer drug rights

US pharma major Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) is stepping up its presence in the high-stakes field of bispecific immuno-oncology with a licensing deal worth up to $6 billion for a Chinese-developed drug that targets two key cancer pathways.

The agreement, announced today, gives Pfizer exclusive global rights outside China to develop, manufacture and commercialize SSGJ-707, a bispecific antibody that simultaneously blocks PD-1 and VEGF.

These targets play a central role in immune evasion and tumor angiogenesis, respectively. The deal positions Pfizer alongside a growing group of companies racing to advance so-called “Keytruda killers” – therapies aiming to outperform Merck & Co’s (NYSE: MRK) blockbuster PD-1 inhibitor, Keytruda (pembrolizumab), in key cancer indications.