Lundbeck Foundation invests in treatment for rare tumours
American startup Tiburio, which is in the process of developing a drug for rare tumours in the pituitary gland, receives more than DKK 200 million in investments – from Lundbeckfonden Ventures, among others.
Lundbeckfonden Ventures and a number of other investors have invested a total of DKK 200 million in the newly launched Tiburio.
The company is working to develop a drug with the potential to shrink specific tumours in the pituitary gland – or halt their growth altogether. The disease is rare and a growing tumour can result in a range of symptoms in patients such as hormonal imbalance, epilepsy and visual impairment.
Previously, this disease could only be treated by surgically removing the tumour. The operation is conducted through the nose because the tumour is located in the middle of the skull, under the brain, and is difficult to reach. Although the operation is successful in 60% of patients, it is at best inadequate for the remaining 40%. What is left of the tumour grows again and requires a new operation or radiation therapy. These follow-up treatments often have significant side effects and may mean that patients will require lifelong treatment with hormones.
‘This disease is not acutely critical for patients, but when the tumour eventually gets too big, it causes a great deal of discomfort and we’ve seen that surgical removal is not an optimal solution. The drug Tiburio will now take through the clinical development stages has the potential to shrink the tumours, and perhaps even halt their growth altogether, preventing discomfort to patients and further surgical procedures,’ says Mette Kirstine Agger, Managing Partner at Lundbeckfonden Ventures.
‘I’m convinced that when given the choice between medicine and an operation most patients will choose the medicine, as long as Tiburio can document the clinical effect. So I believe in the potential of this drug – and in Tiburio,’ says Mette Kirstine Agger.
The investment in Tiburio is provided through orphan drug accelerator Cydan. Cydan establishes companies focused on therapies for rare genetic diseases and is financed by a number of American investors in addition to Lundbeckfonden Ventures.
