Alpha-9 Oncology

About Alpha-9 Oncology

Alpha-9 Oncology operates as a clinical-stage radiopharmaceutical company focused on developing targeted radiation therapies for various cancers. The company was established in 2019 as a spin-out from the University of British Columbia and BC Cancer. It was founded by a team of leading researchers in radiopharmaceuticals and drug design: Dr. François Bénard, Dr. Kuo-Shyan Lin, and Dr. David Perrin. Their collective expertise in peptide chemistry, cancer imaging, and radiopharmaceutical development, including a novel method for tagging molecules with fluorine-18, formed the company's scientific foundation.

The company's core business involves engineering bespoke radiopharmaceuticals designed to selectively deliver radiation to tumor sites, thereby minimizing off-target effects and damage to healthy tissue. This is achieved through a proprietary toolbox of technologies that includes various binders, linkers, chelators, and radioisotopes. Alpha-9's approach is to design each component of the radiopharmaceutical for optimal stability, selectivity, and payload delivery, enabling the rapid development of drug candidates. The business model is centered on advancing its robust pipeline of radiopharmaceuticals through clinical trials to treat solid and hematologic malignancies, such as metastatic melanoma and prostate cancer. In January 2024, the company entered into a global clinical supply agreement with ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE for Lutetium-177, a key medical radioisotope for its therapy candidates.

Alpha-9 has demonstrated significant progress in fundraising and infrastructure development. The company has successfully raised a total of $261 million over three funding rounds. Key financing milestones include an $11 million Series A in April 2021, a $75 million Series B in December 2022, and a substantial $175 million Series C in October 2024. These funds are allocated to advancing its clinical pipeline, expanding research and development, and scaling manufacturing capabilities. The company maintains a dual headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts, and Vancouver, British Columbia, with purpose-built research facilities in Vancouver that became fully operational in 2022. In May 2024, Alpha-9 announced the dosing of the first patient in a Phase 1 study for A9-3202, a radiodiagnostic agent targeting the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) for imaging metastatic melanoma.