IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CG Oncology, Inc. today announced the close of an oversubscribed $105 million crossover financing round, co-led by new investors Foresite Capital and TCGX, with participation from Avidity Partners, BVF Partners and Janus Henderson Investors, as well as existing investors including Acorn Bioventures, Ally Bridge Group, Decheng Capital, Longitude Capital, Malin Corporation and RA Capital Management.
“We are excited to welcome leading life science investors who share our vision of developing cutting-edge therapeutics addressing unmet medical needs in bladder cancer,” said Arthur Kuan, Chief Executive Officer, CG Oncology. “Our lead asset, cretostimogene grenadenorepvec, continues to make significant clinical progress in bladder cancer in both monotherapy and in combination studies and we are encouraged to see our treatments get closer to being available to bladder cancer patients worldwide.”
“We have been impressed and encouraged by the significant progress the team at CG Oncology has made to demonstrate the efficacy of oncolytic immunotherapy cretostimogene grenadenorepvec, which has shown clear signals of activity as a single agent and in combination,” said Michael Rome, Ph.D., Managing Director, Foresite Capital. “A significant unmet need remains in bladder cancer, and the CG team is moving with great urgency and focus to deliver potential new treatment options that could elevate the standard of care in this difficult-to-treat patient population.”
The proceeds will support the continued advancement of clinical programs in bladder cancer towards FDA approval including BOND-003, a fully enrolled, single-arm, Phase 3, monotherapy study for cretostimogene grenadenorepvec as a potential treatment for high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) unresponsive to Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG).
“Cretostimogene grenadenorepvec has the potential to address resistance mechanisms to approved immunotherapies and substantially improve outcomes for bladder cancer patients,” said Giuliano Marostica, Principal, TCGX. “We are excited to partner with CG Oncology to develop this transformational therapy that addresses a high unmet medical need in bladder cancer.”
About Cretostimogene Grenadenorepvec
Cretostimogene grenadenorepvec is an intravesically delivered oncolytic immunotherapy agent in a Phase 3 trial for the treatment of BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Cretostimogene grenadenorepvec is also in a Phase 2 study in combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) in the same indication. Other types of bladder cancer are being evaluated with cretostimogene grenadenorepvec in combination with OPDIVO® (nivolumab).
About CG Oncology
CG Oncology is an oncolytic immunotherapy company focused on developing bladder-saving therapeutics for patients with urologic cancer. CG Oncology sees a world where urologic cancer patients may benefit from our innovative therapies to live and work with dignity and an enhanced quality of life. To learn more, visit: www.cgoncology.com.
