New Jersey oncology biotech PMV Pharma has seen a healthy $74 million in funding from its Series B with help from InterWest Partners, Osage University Partners, Topspin Biotech Fund (which led this round), and its Series A lead investor OrbiMed.
The company said it will use its new cash boost for work on its p53-targeted small molecule drugs in cancer, building on the $30 million it got back in December 2014.
PMV says its target is the most commonly mutated protein in human cancers, with more than half of all tumors containing mutant p53, something that can help them evade death.
The biotech is designing its pipeline around the promise that could see it restore p53 to its normal function, therefore removing its ability to escape and selectively killing the mutant cancer cells, all, crucially, without affecting normal tissues, something that causes adverse events.
The biotech was founded by p53 thought leader Arnold Levine as well as the world-renowned virologist Thomas Shenk.
“PMV Pharmaceutical's world-class founders, scientific advisers, and leadership team, together with its transformative chemistry and biology platform position PMV Pharma to be a leader in next-generation cancer therapies to improve patients’ lives,” said Steve Winick of Topspin, who also joins PMV’s board.
“This financing provides PMV Pharma with the resources to broadly expand our pipeline and to bring p53 therapies to the clinic,” added David Mack, president and CEO of PMV Pharmaceuticals.
“We are excited to have Topspin join us in our pursuit of developing meaningful new medicines for large segments of the cancer population. The enthusiasm and confidence from our new and existing investors underscore the important advances we have made.”