MSD and Adcendo have established a collaboration and supply agreement to evaluate the combination of ADCE-T02 and pembrolizumab. The companies are preparing for a Phase Ib solid tumour clinical trial targeting patients with advanced solid tumours.
Adcendo will act as the sponsor for the solid tumour clinical trial, with MSD providing pembrolizumab. ADCE-T02 is an investigational antibody-drug conjugate designed to target tissue factor, utilising a topoisomerase-1 inhibitor. Pembrolizumab operates as an anti-PD-1 therapy. The integration of this antibody-drug conjugate with the anti-PD-1 mechanism is anticipated to enhance anti-tumour activity due to the complementary characteristics of both treatments.
The first patient in this Phase Ib evaluation is expected to be dosed in the second half of 2026. Investigators will assess the tolerability, safety, and preliminary efficacy of escalating doses of ADCE-T02 administered alongside a standard dose of pembrolizumab. Dr Lone Ottesen, Chief Medical Officer at Adcendo, indicated that combining these therapies could positively impact clinical outcomes in cancers known to overexpress tissue factor, including head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, non-small cell lung cancer, and cervical cancer.
Under the terms of the agreement, both companies will retain all commercial rights to their respective compounds, whether utilised as monotherapies or in combination regimens. ADCE-T02 is currently undergoing concurrent evaluation as a monotherapy in the Phase I Tiffany-01 study, which also involves patients with advanced solid tumours.
Adcendo’s clinical pipeline includes other targeted therapies such as ADCE-D01, which targets uPARAP, and ADCE-B05, currently in clinical evaluation for squamous cell solid tumours. In related developments earlier this month, MSD partnered with Erasca in a separate clinical trial collaboration to investigate ERAS-0015 alongside pembrolizumab in patients with RAS-mutant solid tumours.
