Institut Curie and the IRPF (Institut de Recherche Pierre Fabre) will collaborate on new therapeutic strategies to advance cancer treatment for patients. The objective of this novel partnership is to dissect the biology of novel therapeutically tractable targets and evaluate the impact of innovative pharmacological approaches leveraging the Institut Curie’s biological models.

“We will work to better understand the immunological responses to tumors, and to learn how to use the immune system to fight cancer. Research projects will range from analysis of the most fundamental aspects of intracellular transport in cells of the immune system to functional aspects of immune responses to tumors in animal models and to clinical immunotherapy in cancer patients,” explains Sebastian Amigorena, director of the Institut Curie Center of Cancer immunotherapy and director of the U932 Institut Curie / INSERM / UPMC research unit.

“Pierre Fabre’s know-how in oncology is based on more than 30 years of experience. This strategic partnership is in line with our commitment to deliver transformative therapies to patients afflicted with cancer. It will combine the accumulated knowledge in immuno-oncology gathered by oncologists and biologists at the Institut Curie with the capabilities of Pierre Fabre and the expertise of our researchers and product development teams. It is a great opportunity to strengthen our research capabilities in cancer immunotherapy and to ultimately open up promising prospects for the discovery of new cancer treatments,” says Eric Chetaille, Head of Pierre Fabre Oncology Innovation Unit.

Sebastian Amigorena and Claire Hirvoz's teams work to better understand the tumor immune-related microenvironment, and to learn how to use the immune system to fight cancer. Their projects range from basic immunology in healthy individuals to more applied studies of immune response in the context of tumors using animal models or human biological samples from cancer patients.

“This new partnership in the field of immuno-oncology with one of the top French company investing in R&D illustrates the current dynamism of Tech Transfer at Institut Curie. Based on the expertise of the teams involved at Pierre Fabre and Institut Curie, the objective will be to develop new immunotherapies to bring innovative therapeutic solutions to the clinics,” adds Amaury Martin, Head of the Institut Curie Technology Transfer and Industrial Partnerships Office and Director of the Institut Carnot Curie Cancer.

Under the terms of this agreement, Institut Curie and the Institut de Recherche Pierre Fabre will collaborate on new therapeutic strategies to improve cancer treatment for patients. Both parties will interact closely to dissect the biology of novel therapeutically actionable targets and evaluate the impact of novel pharmacological approaches leveraging the Institut Curie’s biological models.