Lantheus has wasted no time this year on expanding its radiopharmaceutical pipeline, announcing on Tuesday a second acquisition in the space potentially worth up to $1 billion. The deal will see Lantheus pay $250 million in cash upfront to buy Evergreen Theragnostics, with the latter eligible for a further $752.5 million in potential milestone payments.
The purchase will expand Lantheus’ oncology diagnostic pipeline by adding both Octevy, a registrational-stage PET diagnostic agent for certain neuroendocrine tumours (NETs), as well as a number of clinical and preclinical theranostic pairs. Evergreen is also involved in contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) services.
Lantheus noted that subject to FDA approval, Octevy is expected to be indicated for use with positron emission tomography (PET) for localisation of somatostatin receptor-positive NETs in adult and paediatric patients. The company indicated that Octevy could be used alongside PNT2003 — its lutetium-177-based somatostatin receptor targeted radiotherapeutic — as a theranostic pair.
"This transaction, along with the agreement to acquire Life Molecular Imaging, enhances our operations across the radiopharmaceutical value chain," remarked Lantheus CEO Brian Markison, adding "with Evergreen's manufacturing and development capabilities, we become fully integrated."
Earlier this month, Lantheus agreed to acquire Life Molecular Imaging, a subsidiary of Life Healthcare Group, for $350 million upfront, giving it a foothold in the Alzheimer’s disease radiodiagnostic market.