BioNTech: Partnerships are key to deliver drugs at scale

In a post pandemic era, BioNTech, which rose to fame through its COVID-19 vaccine, has looked beyond mRNA as its dominant modality and has invested in cell therapies, various antibodies, and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).

Having experienced the decreased COVID vaccine demand and taking a revenue hit of $981 million due to inventory write-downs by Pfizer, the company has turned to bolstering its oncological pipeline to strengthen its footing by the end of 2024.

“We are seeing a huge burden of chronic disease. BioNTech is [now] really in the oncology space, and we are designing personalized cancer vaccines. To really deliver them at scale for the major classic types of cancer, we actually have to partner with health systems to create the infrastructure [to do this],” said William Warr, senior vice president for global health strategy at BioNTech, at Abu Dhabi Global Healthcare Week (ADGHW) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

While BioNTech has inked various partnerships with firms such as Biotheus, Medilink, and OncoC4 to increase its clinical oncology portfolio by integrating ADCs and immune-modulatory programs, Warr told delegates the key to delivering these vaccines at scale is to find “partners and countries who see genomics, the health system, and patient engagement all as one to [drive] the future of cancer care.”

He reiterated the firm is “really focused on the oncology space” and said, “if more parties can come together on the big challenges” such as diabetes, dementia, and cancer etcetera, clinical trials would speed up “dramatically.”

In addition to the need for partnerships, he also said there is a requirement to “intervene early” and referenced how in the UK “a lot of cancers are first detected” when the individual has “extreme symptoms.” In turn, this makes it “hard to treat as it has spread and the patient’s immune system is low.”