Astellas Announces Strategic Collaboration with Mass General Brigham

- Five-year collaboration to advance translational medicine and accelerate early development of novel therapies -
- Focus on oncology, rare disease, and cell and gene therapies -

TOKYO, Jan. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Astellas Pharma Inc. (TSE: 4503, President and CEO: Naoki Okamura, "Astellas") announced today that it has entered into a strategic collaboration with Mass General Brigham (President and CEO: Anne Klibanski, MD) that is focused on translational medicine and early development to establish an integrated approach to scientific advancement and clinical expertise.

Initial projects of mutual interest will be focused in key areas of R&D investment for Astellas, including oncology, rare disease, and cell and gene therapy. Through the alliance, Astellas and Mass General Brigham aim to:

• Accelerate innovation through collaborative research, as well as exploring and expanding new research frontiers.
  
  
• Translate innovative research into clinical trials and actionable solutions that address serious unmet needs and aim to improve healthcare for all.
  
  
• Leverage scientific and clinical expertise to inform and accelerate the development of novel therapies.

Academic collaborations are a critical component of Astellas' innovation strategy. They underpin the company's ongoing commitment to enhance scientific knowledge, better understand diseases and modalities, optimize clinical trials, and ultimately, transform patient care. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, Mass General Brigham is one of the leading academic medical centers in the United States. The healthcare system has extensive discovery and translational research in all areas, including oncology, rare disease, and cell and gene therapy, through its research initiatives and thematic centers, including the Gene and Cell Therapy Institute. This collaboration will leverage Mass General Brigham's clinical and research expertise, and capabilities including clinical data and human-derived cell models.

Chris Coburn, Chief Innovation Officer, Mass General Brigham

"Industry alliances are critical to advancing novel therapies toward commercialization and bringing the 'bench to the bedside'. This collaboration supports three critical areas of rapid clinical advancement and high patient need: oncology, rare diseases, and cell and gene therapy and reflects our commitment to advancing patient-centered research and innovation."

Tadaaki Taniguchi, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer, Astellas

"We are incredibly excited about this collaboration with Mass General Brigham – one of the leading biomedical research organizations in the U.S. – and the promise it represents. As a global innovation community, we face significant challenges when exploring complex, potential breakthrough modalities. Only by working alongside the most innovative institutions and experts can we find solutions that can help deliver life-changing value to patients, faster."

About Astellas
Astellas Pharma Inc. is a pharmaceutical company conducting business in more than 70 countries around the world. We are promoting the Focus Area Approach that is designed to identify opportunities for the continuous creation of new drugs to address diseases with high unmet medical needs by focusing on Biology and Modality. Furthermore, we are also looking beyond our foundational Rx focus to create Rx+^® healthcare solutions that combine our expertise and knowledge with cutting-edge technology in different fields of external partners. Through these efforts, Astellas stands on the forefront of healthcare change to turn innovative science into VALUE for patients. For more information, please visit our website at https://www.astellas.com/en.

For more information about Mass General Brigham, please visit massgeneralbrigham.org.

Cautionary Notes
In this press release, statements made with respect to current plans, estimates, strategies and beliefs and other statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements about the future performance of Astellas. These statements are based on management's current assumptions and beliefs in light of the information currently available to it and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to: (i) changes in general economic conditions and in laws and regulations, relating to pharmaceutical markets, (ii) currency exchange rate fluctuations, (iii) delays in new product launches, (iv) the inability of Astellas to market existing and new products effectively, (v) the inability of Astellas to continue to effectively research and develop products accepted by customers in highly competitive markets, and (vi) infringements of Astellas' intellectual property rights by third parties.
Information about pharmaceutical products (including products currently in development) which is included in this press release is not intended to constitute an advertisement or medical advice.

SOURCE ASTELLAS PHARMA INC.