AbbVie, a global biopharmaceutical company, and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine today announced that they signed a five-year collaboration agreement with the goal of advancing medical oncology research and discovery at both organizations.
Designed to build strong collaboration between AbbVie and Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers, the agreement will focus on several areas of oncology research, which could include lung, colorectal, breast, prostate and hematological cancer.
“As an alumnus and a former faculty member of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, I know from my own experience that we will be able to combine AbbVie’s expertise in oncology with some of the most talented academic researchers in the field of medicine today,” said Gary Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., vice president, oncology clinical development, AbbVie. “This collaboration will combine our resources and talent with Johns Hopkins Medicine to help further advance our ability to develop new therapies available for cancer patients in need.”
The agreement allows Johns Hopkins Medicine physicians and scientists access to explore new therapies developed by AbbVie for use in preclinical research funded by the collaboration. In addition, the relationship includes opportunities for research and development teams from both organizations to work closely to promote scientific knowledge exchange. AbbVie also gains an option for an exclusive license to certain Johns Hopkins Medicine discoveries made under the agreement.
“The importance of cancer research is critical to developing new therapies that could have life-changing implications,” said William Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., Director, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins. “Opportunities to advance science and further research help move us in a direction to yield positive outcomes.”
As part of the collaborative agreement, a joint steering committee consisting of representatives from each organization will determine the research projects that the collaboration will undertake. Researchers from Johns Hopkins and AbbVie will also participate in an annual symposium to discuss their joint research and evaluate potential new projects.
