Eli Lilly and Co. entered a definitive agreement to purchase the immuno-oncology company Armo BioSciences for about $1.6 billion, the drugmaker announced May 10.
Here are four things to know.
1. Armo BioSciences, which went public just four months ago, develops new drug candidates that activate cancer patients' immune systems to identify and kill tumors.
2. The acquisition will grant Eli Lilly access to Armo's lead product candidate, pegilodecakin, which is currently being assessed in a late-stage trial for patients with pancreatic cancer.
3. The deal will also put Eli Lilly in more direct competition with other major drugmakers stepping into the immuno-oncology sphere, like Merck and Bristol-Myers Squibb, reports Reuters.
4. Eli Lilly expects the deal to close at the end of the second quarter.