LG Chem Licenses Frontier Cancer Drug Candidate Targeting p53 Y220C Mutation

LG Chem said April 2 it has signed a global exclusive license with U.S.-based Frontier Medicines to develop and commercialize the cancer drug candidate FMC-220, which is nearing entry into a Phase 1 clinical trial.

Under the deal, LG Chem will lead development and commercialization worldwide excluding China. The company will pay Frontier an upfront payment, along with additional development and commercialization milestone payments and separate sales royalties.

FMC-220 is a p53 Y220C activator designed to restore the normal function of p53, a tumor-suppressor protein, by acting on the Y220C mutation among multiple p53 mutations.

The p53 Y220C mutation is found in about 1% to 3% of all cancer patients and is considered an important treatment target. However, it has been viewed as an “undruggable” target because of structural constraints that have made drug development difficult.

LG Chem said FMC-220 is designed as a covalent drug, meaning it binds irreversibly to its target. The company said this could allow more stable binding than noncovalent approaches and help sustain the drug’s effect longer.

Frontier said preclinical results showed strong anti-cancer efficacy and durable responses even at low doses, and that anti-tumor activity was maintained in tumor models with co-mutations in KRAS, suggesting broader potential use across patient groups.

LG Chem said it will initially develop the drug for ovarian cancer, where the p53 Y220C mutation is relatively more common, and plans to expand development to other cancers with the mutation. The company plans to recruit patients with ovarian cancer and other solid tumors in the United States and South Korea and begin a Phase 1 trial within the year.

“FMC-220 is an innovative approach in that it targets a genetic mutation for which treatment options are currently limited,” Son Ji-woong, head of LG Chem’s Life Sciences division, said. “We will work to verify the potential of a treatment option that can provide real help to many patients.”