Clovis Oncology has revealed that a bankruptcy filing "in the very near term looks increasingly probable," as the Colorado-based drugmaker struggles with sales on its only marketed product, cancer drug Rubraca.
Clovis broke the bad news in its recent SEC quarterly filing, predicting that the company will not have sufficient liquidity to maintain operations beyond January 2023. The company noted inconsistent revenue from Rubraca over the past two years — initially because of the pandemic and more recently, as a result of increased market competition.
Rubraca, an oral small molecule inhibitor of poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), is marketed in the U.S. for recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer and also for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Recent news on the drug has been positive. Back in Sept., Clovis announced that it submitted Rubraca’s sNDA to the FDA and a Type II variation to the EMA for approval in first-line maintenance treatment for women with advanced ovarian cancer regardless of biomarker status who have responded to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy.
More recently, the company shared data from a successful phase 3 trial evaluating Rubraca versus chemotherapy or second-line androgen deprivation therapy in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer with mutations in BRCA or ATM.
The drugmaker is also active in the growing radiopharma space, collaborating with 3B Pharmaceuticals on a fibroblast activation protein (FAP)-targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy, currently in early stage trials.
In regards to the potential bankruptcy, Clovis said it will continue to evaluate "strategic options and continue to discuss in and out of bankruptcy financing options with our creditors and other parties." On the table is also the possibility of strategic partnerships or licensing arrangements for Rubraca or product candidates.
