UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 10-K

 

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017

or

For the transition period from to

Commission file number 001-35409

 

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (617) 441-1000

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    ☐  Yes    ☒  No

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    ☐  Yes    ☒  No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    ☒  Yes    ☐  No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    ☒  Yes    ☐  No

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.  ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.     ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    ☐  Yes    ☒  No

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant, based on the last sale price for such stock on June 30, 2017, was $157,909,117.

As of March 7, 2018, there were 13,342,784 shares of Common Stock, $0.01 par value per share, outstanding.

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

The registrant intends to file a definitive proxy statement pursuant to Regulation 14A in connection with its 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Portions of such proxy statement are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

 

 

 

---

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

 

1

 

---

 

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward‑looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including statements regarding our strategy, future operations, future financial position, future revenues, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management, are forward‑looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “target,” “potential,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should,” “continue” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward‑looking statements, although not all forward‑looking statements contain these identifying words.

The forward‑looking statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K include, among other things, statements about:

We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements we make. We have included important factors in the cautionary statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, particularly in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors, that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements that we make. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures or investments that we may make.

You should read this Annual Report on Form 10-K and the documents that we have filed as exhibits to this Annual Report on Form 10-K completely and with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we expect. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

NOTE REGARDING TRADEMARKS

ONIVYDE^® is a registered trademark of Ipsen S.A. Any other trademarks, trade names and service marks referred to in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are the property of their respective owners.

2

 

---

 

PART I

Item 1. Business

Overview

We are a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts that is outthinking cancer by targeting biomarker-defined cancers. Our vision is to ensure that cancer patients and their families live fulfilling lives. Our mission is to transform cancer care through the smart design and development of targeted solutions based on a deep understanding of cancer pathways and biological markers. All of our development programs, including four clinical trials and six candidates in preclinical development, fit into our strategy of (1) understanding the biological problems we are trying to solve, (2) designing specific solutions against the problems we are trying to solve and (3) developing those solutions for biomarker-selected patients. This three-pronged strategy seeks to ensure optimal patient outcomes.

We currently own worldwide development and commercial rights to all of our clinical and preclinical programs. The following table summarizes our clinical programs as of March 1, 2018, each of which is described in further detail below.

 

A further description of our clinical programs is as follows:

3

 

---

 

The table below summarizes our preclinical pipeline as of March 1, 2018. We have six preclinical programs that we are actively working to advance into the clinic. Our preclinical programs focus on three areas of expertise: disruption of growth factor pathways, disruption of cellular proliferation and repair, and immuno-oncology.

We are also developing in vitro diagnostics for use with each of our oncology product candidates. Our in vitro diagnostics employ biophysical or biochemical markers of cancer, or biomarkers. We believe that our biomarker-driven development strategy utilizing companion diagnostics will allow us to improve the efficiency and productivity of our clinical development and enhance the potential efficacy and pharmacoeconomic benefit of our product candidates.

On April 3, 2017, we completed the sale, or the asset sale, to Ipsen S.A., or Ipsen, of all of our right, title and interest in the non-cash assets, equipment, inventory, contracts and intellectual property primarily related to or used in our business operations and activities involving or relating to developing, manufacturing and commercializing ONIVYDE, our first commercial product, and MM-436, or the commercial business. Additional information about the asset sale is described in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations. Our non-commercial assets, including our clinical and preclinical development programs described above, or the pipeline business, were not included in the asset sale and remain assets of ours.

Our Approach to Cancer Research

We are executing a three-pronged strategy as the basis for our approach to drug development. Our process begins with identifying the problems we are trying to solve and developing a fundamental understanding of how cancer cell signaling pathways

4

 

---

 

and drug metabolism affect those problems. We then engineer product candidates, which include both antibodies and antibody-directed nanotherapeutics, which are designed to match the problem and fit our understanding of the target. Finally, we test our product candidates in biomarker-defined populations that are more homogenous than the general unselected disease population. This strategy improves our ability to detect a clear signal early in clinical development and enables us to pursue smaller, shorter, more personalized studies with lower development costs and a potentially accelerated timeframe to clinically meaningful data.

Step 1: Understand the problem

To understand the problems we are trying to solve, we begin by developing a deep understanding of how cancer pathways and drug metabolism affect those problems. Using systems biology and systems pharmacology, our goal is to understand how the complex molecular interactions that occur within cell signaling pathways, or networks, lead to cancer. Our approach utilizes proprietary, dynamic biological data generated in a high-throughput method in which we test multiple biological or chemical parameters using engineering, analytical and modeling expertise, and from which we build computational models of cell biology to further our drug discovery, design and predictive development. We have developed an expertise in generating kinetic data, describing molecular changes or interactions over time, to illuminate the dynamic interactions that occur within biological systems. We apply those insights throughout the research and development process, including for target identification, lead compound design and optimization, diagnostic discovery and the design of clinical trial protocols.

Our models are constructed and validated using internally generated and proprietary data sets. Following the validation of a comprehensive model of a cell signaling network, we are able to use the model for drug discovery. A significant portion of our discovery work takes place in silico, or using the model for computer simulation, which we believe is a more efficient and productive approach for drug discovery and development than traditional approaches.

Step 2: Design a specific solution

Once we understand the problem that we are trying to solve and have developed a clear target, we design a very specific solution to fit our deep understanding of the target, using two internal platforms: our engineered antibody platform and our antibody-directed nanotherapeutics platform.

Human monoclonal antibodies

Human antibodies are a key component of many of our targeted therapies based on a range of favorable attributes, including significant target specificity and avidity relative to small molecules and well-understood pharmacokinetic properties. Our human monoclonal antibody engineering platform provides us with the ability to create antibodies that are designed to inhibit specific nodes responsible for tumor growth and survival, or to address inherent drug resistance by simultaneously targeting redundant signaling pathways. We have designed antibodies both for use as stand-alone therapeutics and as targeting or docking agents for our antibody-directed nanotherapeutics. We have worked with several antibody formats, including:

Antibody-directed nanotherapeutics

Our antibody-directed nanotherapeutics platform is a next-generation antibody drug conjugate, or ADC, that enables us to create actively targeted liposomes that can contain different chemotherapeutic agents. Our targeted nanotherapeutics are lipidic particles constructed to stably encapsulate active drug payloads. Nanoscale objects typically, though not exclusively, have dimensions on the order of 100 nanometers or smaller. We believe that our nanotherapeutics offer the following potentially favorable attributes:

5

 

---

 

Step 3: Test the solution in a homogenous patient population

With a clear understanding of the problem and a custom-designed solution, we target our product candidates to biomarker-defined populations. Every program must utilize a biomarker signature, and accordingly our companion diagnostics are being designed to test for such biomarkers and thereby provide prognostic and predictive value for enrichment of the patient populations. Utilizing companion diagnostics to identify the biomarker-defined population, our clinical trials are designed to test our product candidates in more homogenous patient populations.

Ultimately, we believe that our approach will result in better treatments for complex diseases by incorporating the identification of biomarkers and the development of associated companion diagnostics into the drug development process. We believe this may enable physicians to better deliver the right drug to the right set of patients at the right time, which may in turn improve patient outcomes, reduce the overall costs of treating and caring for cancer patients, and ultimately may provide a basis for seeking favorable reimbursement of approved drugs from payors.

Our Most Advanced Product Candidates

The table and descriptions below summarize key information about our clinical stage product candidate assets, MM-121, MM-141 and MM-310. Each of these product candidates is a targeted therapy, designed to efficiently act on selected cancer cells. These targeted therapies are either monoclonal antibodies or monoclonal antibody-derived molecules that are designed to block oncogenic signaling pathways, such as MM-121 and MM-141, or an antibody-directed nanotherapeutic designed to selectively deliver a large cytotoxic payload to the tumor tissue, such as MM-310. None of our product candidates is approved for any indication by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, or any other regulatory agency.

6

 

---

 

 

 

MM-121 (seribantumab)

MM-121 overview

MM-121 is a fully human monoclonal antibody that targets ErbB3 (HER3), a cell surface receptor that is activated by its ligand heregulin. Heregulin-driven ErbB3 (HER3) signaling has been implicated as a mechanism of tumor growth and broad resistance to cytotoxic, anti-endocrine, targeted and immuno-oncology therapies. When used in combination with anti-cancer drugs, MM-121 is designed to block heregulin-driven ErbB3 (HER3) signaling and enhance the anti-tumor effect of combination therapy partners.

Heregulin is the cognate ligand of the ErbB3 (HER3) receptor and a powerful driver of cell survival signaling. Based on the central role of heregulin and ErbB3 (HER3) in cancer growth and survival, we believe that MM-121 may be applicable to a broad range of metastatic tumors, including lung, breast, prostate, ovarian, head and neck, colon and pancreatic cancers, among others. Our preclinical studies of several hundred tumor samples and the analysis of tumor samples from our Phase 2 clinical trials suggest that MM-121 may be able to target heregulin-dependent ErbB3 (HER3) signaling that is relevant in approximately 35-50% of cancer patients with these types of tumors, defining a highly drug-tolerant cancer cell phenotype potentially contributing to poor prognosis and thus potentially addressing a high unmet medical need.

In 2017, we obtained orphan drug designation in the United States for MM-121 for the treatment of heregulin positive non-small cell lung cancer.

Our three-pronged drug development strategy informs our approach to our MM-121 program:

Understand the problem. The ErbB3 (HER3) pathway is a drug resistance pathway, allowing cancer cells to escape death and survive the effect of other drugs. The ErbB3 (HER3) pathway is activated by its ligand heregulin, which binds to the ErbB3 (HER3) receptor. We have identified this pathway as a key node in cellular signaling networks and a prime target for cancer drug development.

Design a specific solution. MM-121 is an engineered monoclonal antibody designed to block the ErbB3 (HER3) pathway by preventing the binding between heregulin and the ErbB3 (HER3) receptor.

7

 

---

 

Test the solution in a homogenous patient population. Consistent with cell biology data, human clinical trials in three different cancers (lung, breast and ovarian) have independently pointed to the potential value of investigating MM-121 in tumors with a high expression of heregulin. Our SHERLOC and SHERBOC randomized Phase 2 clinical trials are designed to prospectively test the therapeutic effect of MM-121 in lung and breast cancer patients, respectively, whose tumors have high expression of heregulin.

MM-121 Phase 2 clinical trial in non-small cell lung cancer

In February 2015, we initiated the global, open-label, biomarker-selected, Phase 2 randomized SHERLOC clinical trial evaluating MM-121 in combination with docetaxel, versus docetaxel alone, in patients with heregulin positive non-small cell lung cancer. The trial was amended in 2017 into a proof-of-concept study in a more defined patient population, namely second or third-line heregulin positive adenocarcinoma of the lung. In March 2018, we announced an amendment to the SHERLOC clinical trial to increase the number of patients from 80 to 100. The primary endpoint of the trial is progression free survival, or PFS, and secondary endpoints include overall survival, objective response rate, safety and tolerability. We expect to report top-line results from the SHERLOC clinical trial in the second half of 2018.

MM-121 Phase 2 clinical trial in breast cancer

In August 2017, we initiated the global, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, biomarker-selected, Phase 2 randomized SHERBOC clinical trial of MM-121 in combination with fulvestrant, versus fulvestrant alone, in patients with heregulin positive, hormone receptor positive, ErbB2 (HER2) negative, metastatic breast cancer. This is a double-blinded, placebo-controlled randomized trial, and we plan to enroll 80 patients. The primary endpoint of the trial is investigator-assessed PFS and secondary endpoints include overall survival, time to progression, objective response rate, safety and pharmacokinetics.

MM-121 previous clinical trials

We have evaluated MM-121 in multiple Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials in combination with both chemotherapies and other targeted agents across a wide spectrum of solid tumor patient populations, including patients with ovarian, breast and lung cancers. Over 700 patients were treated with MM-121 in those previous clinical trials. The goal of these clinical trials was to explore the efficacy and safety of MM-121 in combination with other agents and to establish and validate clinically meaningful biomarkers to identify patients most likely to benefit from MM-121.

Three such previous Phase 2 clinical trials of MM-121 in unselected patient populations with NSCLC, ovarian cancer and breast cancer enrolled a total of 464 patients and evaluated whether MM-121 in combination with a standard of care therapy was more effective than the standard of care therapy alone in prolonging PFS. In the NSCLC trial, two of the three cohorts (Groups A and C) did not meet their primary endpoints, and the third cohort (Group B) did not pass its planned interim analysis and ceased enrolling patients. Additionally, the previous Phase 2 clinical trials of MM-121 in patients with ovarian cancer and in patients with breast cancer did not meet the primary endpoints. However, retrospective biomarker analysis of each of these three trials identified heregulin as a key biomarker for MM-121. In 2014, we announced biomarker results from a meta-analysis of these three trials. This meta-analysis highlighted heregulin as the principal biomarker for MM-121 efficacy. High levels of heregulin mRNA correlated with favorable hazard ratios in all three of these trials. A hazard ratio, or HR, is a measure of how often a particular event happens in one group compared to how often it happens in another group over time. In cancer research, hazard ratios are often used in clinical trials to measure survival at any point in time in a group of patients who have been given a specific treatment compared to a control group given another treatment or a placebo. A hazard ratio of one means that there is no difference in survival between the two groups, while a hazard ratio of greater than one or less than one means that survival was better in one of the groups. The confidence interval, or CI, given after the HR reflects the amount of certainty in the estimate of the HR. A HR value that is not contained within a 95% CI is unlikely to be the true HR.

In the lung cancer clinical trial, heregulin-high patients had a PFS HR of 0.35 (95% CI [0.16–0.76]) (37 of 69 evaluable patients were heregulin positive; prevalence of 54%); in the ovarian cancer clinical trial, heregulin-high patients had a PFS HR of 0.37 (95% CI [0.18–0.76]) (57 of 151 evaluable patients were heregulin positive; prevalence of 38%); and in the breast cancer clinical trial, heregulin-high patients had a PFS HR of 0.26 (95% CI [0.11–0.63]) (34 of 76 evaluable patients were heregulin positive; prevalence of 45%). In ovarian cancer, the definition of biomarker positive also required that patients have low ErbB2 (HER2) levels. In breast cancer, where only ErbB2 (HER2) negative patients were enrolled in the clinical trial, this requirement was not needed. In lung cancer, where ErbB2 (HER2) levels are naturally low, this requirement was also not needed. Across these previous clinical trials, there was a consistent, but modest and tolerable, increase in adverse events when MM-121 was combined with erlotinib (lung), paclitaxel (ovarian) and exemestane (breast). Most adverse events were reported as mild to moderate in severity and included diarrhea, fatigue, vomiting, rash, hypokalemia and stomatitis.

8

 

---

 

MM-121 diagnostic development

In partnership with Leica Biosystems Newcastle, Ltd., or Leica, we are developing a companion diagnostic assay for MM-121 using RNA in situ hybridization, or RNA-ISH, as the method to detect heregulin expression in tumor cells. In this assay, a section of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded, or FFPE, tissue, obtained through a biopsy procedure, is stained for heregulin mRNA and scored by a certified pathologist. This assay format is currently being utilized in both our SHERLOC and SHERBOC clinical trials.

MM-141

MM-141 overview

MM-141 is a fully human tetravalent bispecific antibody designed to block tumor survival signals by targeting receptor complexes containing the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor, or IGF-1R, and ErbB3 (HER3) cell surface receptors. A tetravalent bispecific antibody is a single molecule that has four binding sites, two for each of two different target cell surface receptors. IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3) both activate a major signaling pathway, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, that allows tumor cells to grow and develop resistance to chemotherapy. We designed MM-141 to suppress the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway by reducing the levels of IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3) that trigger the pathway.

In 2014, we obtained orphan drug designation in the United States for MM-141 for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Our three-pronged drug development strategy informs our approach to our MM-141 program:

Understand the problem. Our research suggests that two pathways, IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3), cooperate to drive a master control of cancer cells’ growth. Our research also suggests that the blockade of these two pathways should be more effective if one drug blocks both receptors rather than two drugs acting separately.

Design a specific solution. MM-141 is an engineered tetravalent bispecific antibody that blocks both pathways by binding to both IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3).

Test the solution in a homogenous patient population. We are prospectively testing the therapeutic effect of MM-141 in pancreatic cancer patients who have high blood levels of free IGF-1, the signal for IGF-1R, in our CARRIE clinical trial. High serum levels of free IGF-1 are prevalent in approximately 50% of pancreatic cancer patients, and high levels are believed to be associated with more aggressive forms of pancreatic cancer.

MM-141 Phase 2 clinical trial in metastatic pancreatic cancer

In May 2015, we initiated the global, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 randomized CARRIE clinical trial of MM-141 in combination with nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine, versus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine alone, in patients with newly diagnosed metastatic pancreatic cancer who have high serum levels of free IGF-1. In January 2017, we reduced the planned enrollment for this clinical trial from approximately 140 patients to approximately 80 patients, and enrollment for this trial is complete. Eligible patients for the trial had to have received no prior radiotherapy, surgery, chemotherapy or investigational therapy for the treatment of metastatic disease. The primary endpoint of the trial is PFS and secondary endpoints include overall survival, objective response rate, safety and tolerability. We expect to report top-line results from the CARRIE clinical trial in the first half of 2018.

MM-141 Phase 1 clinical trial

The design of our CARRIE clinical trial was informed by our multi-arm Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety and tolerability of MM-141 as a monotherapy and in combination with everolimus or with nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine in patients with advanced solid tumors. Patients in the Phase 1 trial were enrolled in one of three arms: MM-141 as a monotherapy, MM-141 in combination with everolimus and MM-141 in combination with nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine. Trial data showed common co-expression of IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3) in solid tumors, and suggested that the presence of this co-expression in metastatic pancreatic cancer was associated with decreased patient survival. An analysis of pre- and post-treatment biopsies confirmed that levels of IGF-1R and ErbB3 (HER3) were decreased following MM-141 administration. Hyperglycemia was reported as an adverse event of Grade 3 or higher in one out of 42 patients in the trial (2.4%). The most common treatment-emergent adverse events in the trial, of any grade, were vomiting (47.6%), decreased appetite (42.9%), headache (42.9%) and nausea (42.9%). The only dose limiting toxicity in the trial was in the combination arm of MM-141 with everolimus, and was a Grade 4 infusion-related reaction. MM-141 monotherapy was well tolerated with no dose limiting toxicities. The observed safety profile of MM-141 in combination with nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine was comparable to expected toxicities reported with the individual safety profiles of the chemotherapy agents.

9

 

---

 

MM-141 diagnostic development

Our CARRIE clinical trial uses a proprietary, validated test to prospectively select patients with high serum levels of free IGF-1 for inclusion in the trial. We are conducting additional research and development on an in vitro diagnostic for MM-141 that may help determine which patients would benefit the most from MM-141. This research is focused on identifying pathway-relevant biomarkers and assessing their correlation with the magnitude of patient response to MM-141.

MM-310

MM-310 overview

MM-310 is an antibody-directed nanotherapeutic that encapsulates a newly engineered form of the highly potent chemotherapy docetaxel as a prodrug in an EphA2 targeted liposome. In preclinical studies, MM-310 demonstrated increased antitumor activity in multiple models compared to free docetaxel. In the preclinical studies, EphA2-targeted liposomes delivered the cytotoxic to the tumor while minimizing exposure to healthy tissues. MM-310 is designed to result in prolonged exposure of the active drug at the tumor site and in preclinical studies had a significantly longer half-life than free docetaxel. In a sampling of approximately 200 tumors, EphA2 was found to be expressed in tumor cells, myofibroblasts and/or tumor-associated blood vessels. EphA2 overall prevalence was found to range from 50% to 100% across multiple indications. In cell models, a high level of specificity was observed in the MM-310 EphA2 targeted liposome, with a more than 100-fold increase in liposome cell association when compared to non-targeted liposomes.

Our three-pronged drug development strategy informs our approach to our MM-310 program:

Understand the problem. Conventional ADCs, which typically incorporate an ultra-high potency drug conjugated to a targeting antibody and which do not utilize liposomes to encapsulate the payload, can be highly effective therapies but are often accompanied by significant toxicities that limit tolerable dosage levels and duration of use. Other potential limitations of conventional ADCs include the need for direct conjugation of the drug to the antibody, which requires subsequent cleavage of the bond to release the drug, and the uptake of the conventional ADC into normal tissue due to both the small size of the ADC and the presence of the accessible target receptor on normal tissue. Docetaxel, the payload for MM-310, is a highly effective and well validated cancer chemotherapy with a conventional potency range, but it is often accompanied by significant toxicity that limits its dosage levels and duration of use. Our hypothesis is that a more sustained release of the drug should result in lower plasma levels and extended exposure at the tumor, and thus less toxicity and improved efficacy. We also believe that EphA2 is an attractive target due to the fact that it is expressed at a very high level on and internalized by cancer cells.

Design a specific solution. MM-310 is an antibody-directed nanotherapeutic that is designed to improve the therapeutic window of the active drug by incorporating it in the form of a drug precursor encapsulated in a nanoliposome to ensure a slower and more sustained release of the drug. The small size of the nanotherapeutic may allow it to take advantage of the leaky vasculature of the tumor through the permeability and retention effect and potentially deliver docetaxel more preferentially, while restricting distribution in normal tissues. The nanoliposome utilizes antibodies to the EphA2 receptor, a receptor often over-expressed in solid tumors, to help target more of the chemotherapy payload to the tumor site.

Test the solution in a homogenous patient population. After identifying the maximum tolerated dose and the drug’s safety profile in humans, future clinical trials will test the drug in tumor types that over-express the EphA2 receptors.

MM-310 Phase 1 clinical trial

In March 2017, we initiated a Phase 1 clinical trial of MM-310 to evaluate its safety and preliminary efficacy in patients with solid tumors and to identify the maximum tolerated dose. In the first part of the trial, MM-310 will be assessed as a monotherapy until a maximum tolerated dose is established. After a maximum tolerated dose is established, an expansion cohort and MM-310 in combination with other therapies will be assessed. We expect to report safety data and the maximum tolerated dose from this trial in the second half of 2018.

MM-310 diagnostic development

We expect to utilize a validated test to prospectively select patients with high EphA2 receptor expression in the expansion cohort of our Phase 1 clinical trial of MM-310.

10

 

---

 

Preclinical Product Candidates

We are developing preclinical product candidates for a range of solid tumor indications. We have six preclinical programs, which focus on three areas of expertise: disruption of growth factor pathways, disruption of cellular proliferation and repair, and immuno-oncology.

Manufacturing

We do not have any manufacturing facilities or personnel. We currently rely, and expect to continue to rely, on contract manufacturing organizations, or CMOs, to manufacture our product candidates in order to meet our operational objectives for clinical testing, as well as for commercial manufacture if our product candidates receive marketing approval. We also currently outsource, and expect to continue to outsource, our fill finish, packaging, labeling and distribution activities.

We currently have manufacturing agreements with Samsung Biologics Co., Ltd., or Samsung, for the manufacture of MM-121 and the performance of associated quality related services and with Ipsen for the manufacture of MM-310 and the performance of certain quality related services. We do not currently have arrangements in place for redundant supply or manufacturing agreements for our other product candidates. To the extent we approach commercialization for any product candidates, we expect that we would identify and qualify additional manufacturers to provide the active pharmaceutical ingredient and fill finish services as a part of such commercialization plans.

We are developing and testing diagnostic assays for predictive biomarkers in an internal laboratory and through collaborations with third-parties. Upon completion of the development of the diagnostic tests, we plan to evaluate external as well as internal options for manufacturing and commercialization of the tests. We have partnered with Leica for the development of a companion diagnostic for our MM-121 program.

Sources and Availability of Raw Materials

We currently rely on single source suppliers for certain raw materials that we use for our antibody and nanoliposome manufacturing processes. We purchase these materials from our suppliers on a purchase order basis and do not have long-term supply agreements in place.

Competition

The biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries are characterized by rapidly advancing technologies, intense competition and a strong emphasis on proprietary products. While we believe that our integrated research, development experience and scientific knowledge provide us with competitive advantages, we face potential competition from many different sources, including major pharmaceutical, specialty pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic institutions and governmental agencies and public and private research institutions. Any product candidates that we successfully develop and commercialize will compete with existing therapies and new therapies that may become available in the future.

Many of our competitors have significantly greater financial resources and expertise in research and development, manufacturing, preclinical testing, conducting clinical trials, obtaining regulatory approvals and marketing approved products than we do. Mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and diagnostic industries may result in even more resources being concentrated among a smaller number of our competitors. These competitors also compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel and establishing clinical trial sites and patient registration for clinical trials, as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to, or necessary for, our programs. Smaller or early stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies.

The key competitive factors affecting the success of all of our product candidates, if approved, are likely to be their efficacy, safety, convenience, price, the effectiveness of diagnostics in guiding the use of related therapeutics, the level of generic competition and the availability of reimbursement from government and other third-party payors.

Our commercial opportunity could be reduced or eliminated if our competitors develop and commercialize products that are safer, more effective, have fewer or less severe side effects, are more convenient or are less expensive than any products that we may develop. Our competitors also may obtain FDA or other regulatory approval for their products more rapidly than we may obtain approval for ours. In addition, our ability to compete may be affected because in many cases insurers or other third-party payors seek to encourage the use of generic products. There are many generic products currently on the market for the indications that we are pursuing, and additional products are expected to become available on a generic basis over the coming years. If our product candidates are approved, we expect that they will be priced at a significant premium over competitive generic products.

11

 

---

 

The initial focus of our business is to develop therapeutics and diagnostics for the treatment of solid tumor cancers. Cancer is the second most common cause of death in the United States, exceeded only by heart disease. There are a variety of available drug therapies marketed for solid tumors. Although there has been considerable progress over the past few decades in the treatment of solid tumors and the currently marketed therapies provide benefits to many patients, generally these therapies all are limited to some extent in their efficacy and frequency of adverse events, and none of them are successful in treating all patients. As a result, the level of morbidity and mortality from solid tumor cancers remains high. In many cases, these drugs are administered in combination to enhance efficacy. Some of these drugs are branded and subject to patent protection, and others are available on a generic basis. Many of these approved drugs are well established therapies and are widely accepted by physicians, patients and third-party payors.

The following table sets forth information about the solid tumor cancer indications we are studying in our Phase 2 clinical trials of MM-121 and MM-141. The U.S. estimated annual incidence is based on information from the American Cancer Society, Cancer Fact & Figures 2018.

 

 

We are also accepting for inclusion in our Phase 1 clinical trial of MM-310 patients with additional solid tumor cancer indications, including prostate and ovarian cancers.

In addition to the marketed therapies for solid tumors listed in the table above, there are a number of products in late stage clinical development to treat solid tumors. These products in development may provide efficacy, safety, convenience and other benefits that are not provided by currently marketed therapies. As a result, they may provide significant competition for any of our product candidates for which we obtain marketing approval.

Collaboration and License Agreements

We are party to certain collaboration and license agreements. We consider the following agreements to be material to our business.

Ipsen

On April 3, 2017, we completed the asset sale with Ipsen. Pursuant to the Asset Purchase and Sale Agreement, dated as of January 7, 2017, or the asset sale agreement, between us and Ipsen, Ipsen acquired our right, title and interest in the commercial business. Pursuant to the asset sale agreement, we received $575.0 million in cash, plus a working capital adjustment of $5.7 million, and are eligible to receive up to $450.0 million in additional regulatory approval-based milestone payments. Ipsen has agreed pursuant to the asset sale agreement to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop ONIVYDE in connection with obtaining the regulatory

12

 

---

 

approval by the FDA of ONIVYDE for certain indications. We also retained the right to receive net milestone payments that may become payable for the ex-U.S. development and commercialization of ONIVYDE for up to $33.0 million pursuant to a license and collaboration agreement, which we refer to as the Baxalta agreement, with Baxalta Incorporated, Baxalta US Inc. and Baxalta GmbH, collectively Baxalta. We entered into the Baxalta agreement in 2014, and on April 3, 2017, the Baxalta agreement was assigned to Ipsen in connection with the completion of the sale of the commercial business.

In connection with the asset sale, we entered into a transition services agreement with Ipsen, pursuant to which we and Ipsen provide certain services to each other for a period of 24 months, including Ipsen’s agreement to manufacture MM-310 and to perform certain quality related services in accordance with a manufacturing services agreement. Additionally, we entered into a sublease agreement with Ipsen under which Ipsen is subleasing approximately 70,237 square feet of our leased space in Cambridge, Massachusetts through the end of our lease term on June 30, 2019.

Dyax

In January 2007, we entered into an amended and restated collaboration agreement with Dyax Corp., or Dyax, which superseded a prior collaboration agreement with Dyax that we entered into in December 2005. Under this collaboration agreement, Dyax used its proprietary phage display technology to identify antibodies that bind to targets of interest to us as therapeutics or diagnostics. Further, Dyax has granted to us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty free right to use and make any and all of the antibodies identified by Dyax for certain research purposes. In order to clinically develop or commercialize any such antibody, however, we must obtain an additional product license from Dyax on a target-by-target basis. We have the option to obtain one or more product licenses on terms set forth in the collaboration agreement, subject to limitations on the availability of each such product license under an agreement between Dyax and Cambridge Antibody Technologies, which has merged with MedImmune, LLC and is now owned by AstraZeneca PLC. In January 2016, Dyax was acquired by Shire plc.

As consideration for the grant of the initial research license, we paid Dyax a research fee based on the total estimated full time equivalent researchers that were required to conduct the research plan and a fee for achieving certain technical milestones. If we elect to obtain a product license with respect to any therapeutic or diagnostic target, we are required to pay to Dyax an additional upfront license fee for the applicable antibody. We also may be required to make additional maximum aggregate development and regulatory milestone payments of $16.2 million for therapeutic products and maximum aggregate regulatory milestone payments of $1.0 million for diagnostic products directed to selected targets. In addition, Dyax is entitled to mid single digit royalties based on net sales of products covered by any product license that we obtain from Dyax. Our obligation to pay royalties to Dyax continues on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis until the later of a specified number of years after the first commercial sale of the product in such country and the expiration of the patent rights covering the product in such country. MM-121 and a component of MM-141 were identified under this agreement, and we have obtained the required target licenses from Dyax by exercising our product license options and paying the applicable license fees. We are obligated to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop and commercialize the antibodies for which we obtain a commercial license.

This agreement will remain in effect, unless terminated earlier, for so long as we or any of our affiliates or sublicensees continue to develop or commercialize products that remain royalty-bearing under the agreement. Either party may terminate the agreement in the event of an uncured material breach by the other party. We also may terminate the agreement in its entirety or on a product-by-product basis at any time upon 90 days’ prior written notice.

Intellectual Property

Our success will significantly depend on our ability to obtain and maintain patent and other proprietary protection for our commercially important technology, inventions and know-how, defend and enforce our patents, preserve the confidentiality of our trade secrets, establish and protect our commercial brands and operate without infringing the valid and enforceable patents and proprietary rights of third parties. To accomplish this, we rely on a combination of intellectual property rights, including patents, trade secrets, copyrights and trademarks, as well as regulatory exclusivity and contractual protections. We aggressively strive to protect the proprietary technology that we believe is important to our business, including seeking and maintaining patents intended to cover our products and compositions, their methods of use and processes for their manufacture, as well as our diagnostic and drug discovery technologies and any other inventions that are commercially important to the development of our business. In some circumstances, we also rely on trade secrets to protect aspects of our business that are not amenable to, or that we do not consider appropriate for, patent protection, such as our proprietary network modeling programs and large scale protein and liposome production methods.

We also rely on trademark protection of our corporate brand. We are the owner of multiple federal trademark registrations in the United States and outside the United States. In addition, we have multiple additional pending trademark registration applications in the United States and other countries covering the MERRIMACK^® word mark and related logos in trademark classes relevant to our products and services.

13

 

---

 

We seek to protect our proprietary technology and processes, in part, by confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, scientific advisors and contractors. We require each of our employees, consultants and advisors to execute a confidentiality and inventions assignment agreement before beginning their employment, consulting or advisory relationship with us. These agreements generally provide that the individual must keep confidential and not disclose to other parties any confidential information developed or learned by the individual during the course of their relationship with us except in limited circumstances. These agreements also generally provide that we will own all inventions conceived by the individual in the course of rendering services to us. We also seek to preserve the integrity and confidentiality of our data and trade secrets by maintaining physical security of our premises and physical and electronic security of our information technology systems. While we have confidence in these individuals, organizations and systems, agreements or security measures may be breached, and we may not have adequate remedies for any breach. In addition, our trade secrets may otherwise become known or be independently discovered by competitors. To the extent that our consultants, contractors or collaborators use intellectual property owned by others in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related or resulting know-how and inventions.

Our commercial success will depend in part on obtaining and maintaining patent protection and trade secret protection of the use, formulation, manufacture and composition of our products and product candidates, as well as successfully asserting and/or defending these patents against third-party challenges. Our ability to protect our products and product candidates from unauthorized making, using, selling, offering to sell or importing by third parties is dependent on the extent to which we have rights under valid and enforceable patents that cover these activities.

As of January 31, 2018, we owned or controlled a total of 29 issued U.S. patents and 165 corresponding issued foreign patents, in addition to 67 pending U.S. patent applications and 156 pending patent applications in the rest of the world. We intend to continue to protect our proprietary technology with additional filings as appropriate. We do not have patents or patent applications in every jurisdiction where there is a potential commercial market for our product candidates. We continually evaluate our patent portfolio and patent strategy and believe our owned and licensed patents and patent applications, as well as applicable periods of regulatory exclusivity available after new product approval, provide us with a competitive advantage; however, if markets where we do not have patents or patent applications become commercially important, our business may be adversely affected.

The latest patent expiration dates for issued patents covering the composition or use of each of our most advanced product candidates as of January 31, 2018 are summarized below. As described in more detail below, the expiration dates in the table below refer to the latest-expiring granted patent covering the product, product candidate, technology or use thereof in the United States, and one or more countries outside of the United States, but do not account for any patent term extension or extended exclusivity terms, such as pediatric extensions, that may be available in the United States and certain foreign jurisdictions.

 

 

The term of individual patents depends upon the legal term for patents in the countries in which they are obtained. In most countries, including the United States, the patent term is 20 years from the earliest filing date of a non-provisional patent application.

In the United States, a patent’s term may be lengthened by patent term adjustment, which compensates a patentee for administrative delays by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in examining and granting a patent, or may be shortened if a patent is terminally disclaimed over an earlier filed patent. In the future, if and when our product candidates receive approval by the FDA or foreign regulatory authorities, we expect to apply for patent term extensions on issued patents covering those products, depending upon the length of the clinical trials for each drug and other factors, including those involved in the filing of a new drug application, or NDA, or a biologics license application, or BLA. The Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984, or the Hatch-Waxman Act, permits a patent restoration term of up to five years as compensation for patent term lost during product development and the FDA regulatory review process, provided the total patent term restoration cannot extend the remaining term of a patent beyond a total of 14 years from the product’s approval date. The patent term restoration period is generally calculated as one-half the time between the effective date of an investigational new drug application, or IND, and the submission date of an NDA, plus the time between the submission date of an NDA and the FDA’s approval of that application. Only one patent applicable to each approved drug is eligible for the extension and the application for extension must be made prior to expiration of the patent. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, in consultation with the FDA, reviews and approves the application for any patent term extension or restoration.

14

 

---

 

Similar provisions are available in Europe and other foreign jurisdictions to extend the term of a patent that covers an approved drug. The stated patent exclusivity dates for patent exclusivity outside of the United States may also be eligible for further extension, and/or regulatory market and/or data exclusivity in certain countries, upon product approval in individual countries for various reasons, including supplemental protection certificate(s) after product approval in eligible countries outside the United States, and/or conducting certain investigations of pediatric exclusivity or use of products covered by the applicable patent.

MM-121 (seribantumab)

We own issued patents in the United States, Europe, Japan and fifteen other countries covering the MM-121 composition through at least 2028, not including additional exclusivity available after product approval from patent term extension, supplemental protection certificates and/or pediatric exclusivity. In addition, we own a granted patent in the United States covering treatment of heregulin positive lung cancers with certain drug combinations through 2034, granted patents in the United States, Europe, Japan and ten other countries covering treatment of patients with certain forms of breast cancer through at least 2031, and multiple pending patent applications in the United States, Europe and other countries covering various related methods of use, including the treatment of patients with heregulin positive forms of cancer (through 2034, if issued), treatment of patients with heregulin positive NSCLC (through 2036, if issued), treatment of patients with certain forms of breast cancer (through 2031 or 2032, if issued) and/or related diagnostic tests and methods (through 2029, if issued).

MM-141 (istiratumab)

We own issued patents in the United States, Europe, Japan and four other countries, and pending patent applications in six additional countries, covering the MM-141 composition through at least 2032, not including additional exclusivity available after product approval from patent term extension, supplemental protection certificates and/or pediatric exclusivity. In addition, we own multiple pending patent applications in the United States and Europe covering methods of treating pancreatic cancer with MM-141 (through 2035, if issued).

MM-310

We have an exclusive license to patent filings covering the MM-310 composition through at least 2037 (if issued) from the University of California. In addition, we own multiple pending patent filings covering the MM-310 liposome composition, companion diagnostic technology for MM-310 and therapeutic uses of MM-310 through at least 2037 (if issued). The expiration dates above do not include any additional exclusivity available after product approval from patent term extension, supplemental protection certificates and/or pediatric exclusivity.

Government Regulation

Government authorities in the United States, at the federal, state and local level, and in other countries extensively regulate, among other things, the research, development, testing, manufacture, including any manufacturing changes, packaging, storage, recordkeeping, labeling, advertising, promotion, distribution, marketing, post-approval monitoring and reporting, import and export of pharmaceutical products, biological products and medical devices, such as those we are developing.

United States drug and biological product approval process

In the United States, the FDA approves new drug products under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or FDCA, while new biologic products are licensed for marketing under the Public Health Service Act, or PHSA. Both drugs and biologics are regulated under the FDCA and implementing regulations. The process of obtaining regulatory approvals and the subsequent compliance with appropriate federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations requires the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources. Failure to comply with the applicable United States requirements at any time during the product development process, approval process or after approval may subject an applicant to a variety of administrative or judicial actions, including, among other things, the FDA’s refusal to approve pending applications, withdrawal of an approval, imposition of a clinical hold, issuance of untitled or warning letters, product recalls, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution injunctions, fines, refusals of government contracts, restitution, disgorgement of profits, civil penalties and criminal prosecution.

15

 

---

 

Generally, the process required by the FDA before a drug or biological product may be marketed in the United States involves the following:

We expect that all of our clinical product candidates will be subject to review as biological products under BLA standards. Although MM-310 contains both drug and biological components, we believe that this combination product would be subject to review as a biological product, pursuant to a BLA.

Preclinical studies and the IND Process

Preclinical studies include laboratory evaluation of product chemistry and formulation, as well as in vitro and animal studies to assess the potential for adverse events and in some cases to establish a rationale for therapeutic use. The conduct of preclinical studies is subject to federal regulations and requirements, including GLP regulations. An IND sponsor must submit the results of the preclinical tests, together with manufacturing information, analytical data, any available clinical data or literature and a proposed protocol for clinical studies, among other things, to the FDA as part of an IND. An IND is an exemption from the FDCA that allows an unapproved product candidate to be shipped in interstate commerce for use in an investigational clinical trial and is a request for FDA authorization to administer such investigational product to humans. Such authorization must be secured prior to interstate shipment and administration of any product candidate that is not the subject of an approved application. Some long-term preclinical testing, such as animal tests of reproductive adverse events and carcinogenicity, may continue after the IND is submitted. An IND automatically becomes effective 30 days after receipt by the FDA, unless before that time the FDA raises concerns or questions related to one or more proposed clinical trials and places the trial on clinical hold. In such a case, the IND sponsor and the FDA must resolve any outstanding concerns before the clinical trial can begin. As a result, submission of an IND may not necessarily result in the FDA allowing clinical trials to commence.

Clinical trials

Clinical trials involve the administration of the investigational new drug to human subjects – healthy volunteers or patients – under the supervision of qualified investigators in accordance with GCP requirements, which include, among other things, the requirement that all research subjects provide their informed consent in writing before their participation in any clinical trial. Clinical trials are conducted under written study protocols detailing, among other things, the objectives of the study, the parameters to be used in monitoring safety and the effectiveness criteria to be evaluated. A protocol for each clinical trial and any subsequent protocol amendments must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND. In addition, an IRB at each institution participating in the clinical trial must review and approve the plan for any clinical trial before it commences at that institution, and the IRB must conduct continuing review and reapprove the study at least annually. The IRB must review and approve, among other things, the study protocol and informed consent information to be provided to study subjects. An IRB may also require the clinical trial at the site to be halted, either temporarily or permanently, for failure to comply with the IRB’s requirements, or may impose other conditions. For clinical trials involving an IND, an IRB must operate in compliance with FDA regulations. Additionally, some trials are overseen by an independent group of qualified experts organized by the trial sponsor, known as a data safety monitoring board, or DSMB. This group provides authorization as to whether or not a trial may move forward at designated check points based on access that only the DSMB maintains to available data from the study.

16

 

---

 

Human clinical trials are typically conducted in three sequential phases, which may overlap or be combined:

Progress reports detailing the results of clinical trials involving an IND must be submitted at least annually to the FDA and more frequently if serious adverse events occur. Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials may not be completed successfully within any specified period, or at all. Furthermore, the FDA or the sponsor may suspend or terminate a clinical trial at any time on various grounds, including a finding that the research subjects are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk. Similarly, an IRB can suspend or terminate approval of a clinical trial at its institution if the clinical trial is not being conducted in accordance with the IRB’s requirements or if the drug or biologic product has been associated with unexpected serious harm to patients.

In some cases, the FDA may approve an application for a product candidate but require the sponsor to conduct additional clinical trials to further assess the product candidate’s safety and effectiveness after approval. Such post-approval trials are typically referred to as Phase 4 clinical trials. These studies are used to gain additional experience from the treatment of a larger number of patients in the intended treatment group and to further document a clinical benefit in the case of drugs approved under accelerated approval regulations.

Disclosure of clinical trial information

Sponsors of applicable clinical trials of FDA regulated products, including drugs, are required to register and disclose certain clinical trial information. Information related to the product, patient population, phase of investigation, study sites and investigators, and other aspects of the clinical trial is then made public on the ClinicalTrials.gov website as part of the registration. Sponsors are also obligated to disclose the results of their clinical trials after completion. Disclosure of the results of these trials can be delayed until the new product or new indication being studied has been approved. Competitors may use this publicly available information to gain knowledge regarding the progress of development programs.

Marketing approval

Assuming successful completion of the required clinical testing, the results of the preclinical and clinical studies, together with detailed information relating to the product’s pharmacology chemistry, manufacture, controls and proposed labeling, among other things, are submitted to the FDA as part of an NDA or BLA requesting approval to market the product for one or more indications. FDA approval of the NDA or BLA is required before marketing of the product may begin in the United States. Under federal law, the submission of most NDAs and BLAs is subject to a substantial application user fee, currently $2,421,495 for an application requiring clinical data for fiscal year 2018, and the sponsor of an approved NDA or BLA is also subject to annual product or program fees, currently $304,162 per program. These fees may be increased or decreased annually.

The FDA conducts a preliminary review of all NDAs and BLAs within the first 60 days after receipt before accepting them for filing based on the agency’s threshold determination that they are sufficiently complete to permit substantive review. The FDA may request additional information rather than accept an NDA or BLA for filing. In this event, the application must be resubmitted with the additional information, which would also be subject to review before the FDA accepts it for filing. Once the submission is accepted for filing, the FDA begins an in-depth substantive review. The FDA has agreed to specified performance goals in the review of NDAs and BLAs. Most such applications for non-priority products are reviewed within ten to twelve months after filing, and most applications for priority review products, that is, drugs and biologics that the FDA determines represent a significant improvement over existing therapy, are reviewed in six to eight months after filing. The review process may be extended by the FDA for three additional months to consider certain late-submitted information or clarification regarding information already provided in the submission. The FDA may also refer applications for novel drugs or biological products or products that present difficult questions of safety or efficacy to an advisory committee, typically a panel that includes clinicians and other experts, for review, evaluation and a recommendation as to whether the application should be approved. The FDA is not bound by the recommendations of an advisory committee, but it considers such recommendations carefully when making decisions.

17

 

---

 

Before approving an NDA or BLA, the FDA typically will inspect the facility or facilities where the product is manufactured. The FDA will not approve an application unless it determines that the manufacturing processes and facilities are in compliance with cGMP requirements and adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications. In addition, before approving an NDA or BLA, the FDA will typically inspect one or more clinical sites to assure compliance with GCP and integrity of the clinical data submitted.

The testing and approval process requires substantial time, effort and financial resources, and each may take many years to complete. Data obtained from clinical activities are not always conclusive and may be susceptible to varying interpretations, which could delay, limit or prevent regulatory approval. We may encounter difficulties or unanticipated costs in our efforts to develop our product candidates and secure necessary governmental approvals, which could delay or preclude us from marketing our products.

After the FDA’s evaluation of the NDA or BLA and inspection of the manufacturing facilities, the FDA may issue an approval letter or a complete response letter. An approval letter authorizes commercial marketing of the drug or biological product with specific prescribing information for specific indications. A complete response letter generally outlines the deficiencies in the submission and may require substantial additional testing or information in order for the FDA to reconsider the application. If and when those deficiencies have been addressed to the FDA’s satisfaction in a resubmission of the NDA, the FDA will issue an approval letter. The FDA has committed to reviewing such resubmissions in two or six months depending on the type of information included. Even with submission of this additional information, the FDA ultimately may decide that the application does not satisfy the regulatory criteria for approval.

Even if the FDA approves a product, the agency may limit the approved indications for use for the product, require that contraindications, warnings or precautions be included in the product labeling, require that post-approval studies be conducted to further assess a drug’s safety after approval, require testing and surveillance programs to monitor the product after commercialization, or impose other conditions, including distribution restrictions through a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy or other risk management mechanisms, which can materially affect the potential market and profitability of the product. The FDA may prevent or limit further marketing of a product based on the results of post-market studies or surveillance programs. After approval, some types of changes to the approved product, such as changes in indications, manufacturing changes and labeling, are subject to further testing requirements and FDA review and approval.

Fast track designation

The FDA is required to facilitate the development and expedite the review of drugs and biologics that are intended for the treatment of a serious or life-threatening disease or condition for which there is no effective treatment and which demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs for the condition. Under the fast track program, the sponsor of a new drug or biologic candidate may request the FDA to designate the product for a specific indication as a fast track product concurrent with or after the filing of the IND for the product candidate. The FDA must determine if the product candidate qualifies for fast track designation within 60 days after receipt of the sponsor’s request.

In addition to other benefits, such as the ability to have more frequent interactions with the FDA, the FDA may initiate review of sections of a fast track product’s NDA or BLA before the application is complete. This rolling review is available if the applicant provides and the FDA approves a schedule for the submission of the remaining information and the applicant pays applicable user fees. However, the FDA’s time period goal for reviewing a fast track application does not begin until the last section of the NDA or BLA is submitted. In addition, the fast track designation may be withdrawn by the FDA if the FDA believes that the designation is no longer supported by data emerging in the clinical trial process.

Priority review

Under FDA priority review guidelines, a product candidate may be eligible for review within a six to eight month time frame from the time a complete application is accepted for filing. Products regulated by the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, or CDER, are eligible for priority review if they provide a significant improvement compared to marketed products in the treatment, diagnosis or prevention of a disease. Products regulated by the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research are eligible for priority review if they provide a significant improvement in the safety or effectiveness of the treatment, diagnosis or prevention of a serious or life-threatening disease. A fast track designated product candidate would ordinarily meet the FDA’s criteria for priority review.

18

 

---

 

Accelerated approval

Under the FDA’s accelerated approval regulations, the FDA may approve a drug or biologic for a serious or life-threatening illness that provides meaningful therapeutic benefit to patients over existing treatments based on a surrogate endpoint that is reasonably likely to predict clinical benefit. In clinical trials, a surrogate endpoint is a measurement of laboratory or clinical signs of a disease or condition that substitutes for a direct measurement of how a patient feels, functions or survives. Surrogate endpoints can often be measured more easily or more rapidly than clinical endpoints. A product candidate approved on this basis is subject to rigorous post-marketing compliance requirements, including the completion of Phase 4 or post-approval clinical trials to confirm the effect on the clinical endpoint. Failure to conduct required post-approval studies, or confirm a clinical benefit during post-marketing studies, would allow the FDA to withdraw the drug from the market on an expedited basis. All promotional materials for drug candidates approved under accelerated regulations are subject to prior review by the FDA.

Breakthrough therapy designation

The FDA is also required to expedite the development and review of the application for approval of drugs that are intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition where preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints. Under the breakthrough therapy program, the sponsor of a new drug candidate may request that the FDA designate the drug candidate for a specific indication as a breakthrough therapy concurrent with, or after, the filing of the IND for the drug candidate. The FDA must determine if the drug candidate qualifies for breakthrough therapy designation within 60 days of receipt of the sponsor’s request.

Orphan drugs

Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may grant orphan drug designation to drugs or biologics intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally defined as a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States. Orphan drug designation must be requested before submitting an NDA or BLA. After the FDA grants orphan drug designation, the generic identity of the drug or biologic and its potential orphan use are disclosed publicly by the FDA. Orphan drug designation does not convey any advantage in, or shorten the duration of, the regulatory review and approval process. The first NDA or BLA applicant to receive FDA approval for a particular active ingredient to treat a particular disease with FDA orphan drug designation is entitled to a seven-year exclusive marketing period in the United States for that product, for that indication. During the seven-year exclusivity period, the FDA may not approve any other applications to market the same drug or biologic for the same orphan indication, except in limited circumstances, such as a showing of clinical superiority to the product with orphan drug exclusivity in that it is shown to be safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care. This is the case despite an earlier court opinion holding that the Orphan Drug Act unambiguously required the FDA to recognize orphan exclusivity regardless of a showing of clinical superiority. Orphan drug exclusivity does not prevent the FDA from approving a different drug or biologic for the same disease or condition, or the same drug or biologic for a different disease or condition. Among the other benefits of orphan drug designation are tax credits for certain research and a waiver of the NDA or BLA application user fee.

Pediatric information and exclusivity

Under the Pediatric Research Equity Act of 2003, an NDA, BLA or supplement to an NDA or BLA must contain data from pediatric studies that are adequate to assess the safety and effectiveness of the drug or biological product for the claimed indications in all relevant pediatric subpopulations, and to support dosing and administration for each pediatric subpopulation for which the product is safe and effective. The FDA may, on its own initiative or at the request of the applicant, grant deferrals for submission of some or all pediatric data until after approval of the product for use in adults, or full or partial waivers from the pediatric data requirements. Under the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act, or FDASIA, the FDA has additional authority to take action against manufacturers not adhering to pediatric study requirements. Unless otherwise required by regulation, the pediatric data requirements do not apply to products with orphan drug designation.

Pediatric exclusivity is another type of non-patent exclusivity in the United States and, if granted, provides for the attachment of an additional six months of marketing protection to the term of any existing regulatory exclusivity or patent protection, including the non‑patent and orphan exclusivity. This six month exclusivity may be granted if an application sponsor submits pediatric data that fairly respond to a written request from the FDA for such data. The data do not need to show the product to be effective in the pediatric population studied; rather, if the clinical trial is deemed to fairly respond to the FDA’s request, the additional protection is granted.

19

 

---

 

The Hatch-Waxman Act

Abbreviated new drug applications

In seeking approval for a drug through an NDA, applicants are required to list with the FDA each patent that claims to cover the applicant’s product. Upon approval of a drug, each of the patents listed in the application for the drug is then published in the FDA’s Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations, commonly known as the Orange Book. Drugs listed in the Orange Book can, in turn, be cited by potential competitors in support of approval of an ANDA. Generally, an ANDA provides for marketing of a drug product that has the same active ingredients in the same strengths and dosage form as the listed drug and has been shown through bioequivalence testing to be therapeutically equivalent to the listed drug. Other than the requirement for bioequivalence testing, ANDA applicants are not required to conduct or submit results of preclinical or clinical tests to prove the safety or effectiveness of their drug product. Drugs approved in this way are commonly referred to as “generic equivalents” to the listed drug, and can often be substituted by pharmacists under prescriptions written for the original listed drug.

The ANDA applicant is required to certify to the FDA concerning any patents listed for the approved product in the FDA’s Orange Book. Specifically, the applicant must certify that:

A certification that the new product will not infringe the already approved product’s listed patents or that such patents are invalid is called a Paragraph IV certification. If the ANDA applicant does not challenge the listed patents, the ANDA will not be approved until all the listed patents claiming the referenced product have expired.

If the ANDA applicant has provided a Paragraph IV certification to the FDA, the applicant must also send notice of the Paragraph IV certification to the NDA and patent holders once the ANDA has been accepted for filing by the FDA. The NDA and patent holders may then initiate a patent infringement lawsuit in response to the notice of the Paragraph IV certification. The filing of a patent infringement lawsuit within 45 days after the receipt of a Paragraph IV certification automatically prevents the FDA from approving the ANDA until the earlier of a 30 month period, expiration of the patent, settlement of the lawsuit or a decision in the infringement case that the patent involved is deemed invalid or not infringed.

The ANDA also will not be approved until any applicable non-patent exclusivity, such as exclusivity for obtaining approval of a new chemical entity, listed in the Orange Book for the referenced product has expired. Federal law provides a period of five years following approval of a drug containing no previously approved active ingredients during which ANDAs for generic versions of those drugs cannot be received by the FDA, except that the application may be submitted in four years if it contains a Paragraph IV certification. If there is no listed patent in the Orange Book, there may not be a Paragraph IV certification, and thus, no ANDA may be filed before the expiration of the exclusivity period. Federal law provides for a period of three years of exclusivity following approval of a listed drug that contains previously approved active ingredients but is approved in a new dosage form, route of administration or combination, or for a new use, the approval of which was required to be supported by new clinical trials conducted by or for the sponsor, during which the FDA cannot grant effective approval of an ANDA based on that listed drug.

The FDA must establish a priority review track for certain generic drugs, requiring the FDA to review a drug application within eight (8) months for a drug that has three (3) or fewer approved drugs listed in the Orange Book and is no longer protected by any patent or regulatory exclusivities, or is on the FDA’s drug shortage list. The FDA must also expedite review of ‘‘competitor generic therapies’’ or drugs with inadequate generic competition, including holding meetings with or providing advice to the drug sponsor prior to submission of the application.

Patent term extension

After NDA approval, owners of relevant drug patents may apply for up to a five year patent term extension. The allowable patent term extension is calculated as half of the drug’s testing phase, based on the time between IND application and submission of the NDA, and all of the review phase, based on the time between the NDA submission and approval up to a maximum of five years. The time can be shortened if the FDA determines that the applicant did not pursue approval with due diligence. The total patent term after the extension may not exceed 14 years.

20

 

---

 

For patents that might expire during the application phase, the patent owner may request an interim patent term extension. An interim patent term extension increases the patent term by one year and may be renewed up to four times. For each interim patent term extension granted, the post-approval patent term extension is reduced by one year. The director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office must determine that approval of the drug covered by the patent for which a patent term extension is being sought is likely. Interim patent term extensions are not available for a drug for which an NDA has not been submitted.

Section 505(b)(2) new drug applications

Most drug products obtain FDA marketing approval pursuant to an NDA or an ANDA. A third alternative is a special type of NDA, commonly referred to as a Section 505(b)(2) NDA, which enables the applicant to rely, in part, on the FDA’s previous approval of a similar product, or published literature, in support of its application.

Section 505(b)(2) NDAs often provide an alternate path to FDA approval for new or improved formulations or new uses of previously approved products. Section 505(b)(2) permits the filing of an NDA where at least some of the information required for approval comes from studies not conducted by or for the applicant and for which the applicant has not obtained a right of reference. If the Section 505(b)(2) applicant can establish that reliance on the FDA’s previous approval is scientifically appropriate, it may eliminate the need to conduct certain preclinical or clinical studies of the new product. The FDA may also require companies to perform additional studies or measurements to support the change from the approved product. The FDA may then approve the new product for all or some of the label indications for which the referenced product has been approved, as well as for any new indication sought by the Section 505(b)(2) applicant.

To the extent that the Section 505(b)(2) applicant is relying on studies conducted for an already approved product, the applicant is required to certify to the FDA concerning any patents listed for the approved product in the Orange Book to the same extent that an ANDA applicant would. As a result, approval of a Section 505(b)(2) NDA can be stalled until all the listed patents claiming the referenced product have expired, until any non-patent exclusivity, such as exclusivity for obtaining approval of a new chemical entity, listed in the Orange Book for the referenced product has expired, and, in the case of a Paragraph IV certification and subsequent patent infringement suit, until the earlier of a 30 month period, settlement of the lawsuit or a decision in the infringement case that the patent involved is deemed invalid or not infringed.

Combination products

A combination product is a product comprised of (i) two or more regulated components (i.e., drug/device, biologic/device, drug/biologic or drug/device/biologic) that are physically, chemically, or otherwise combined or mixed and produced as a single entity; (ii) two or more separate products packaged together in a single package or as a unit and comprised of drug and device products, device and biological products, or biological and drug products; (iii) a drug, device, or biological product packaged separately that according to its investigational plan or proposed labeling is intended for use only with an approved individually specified drug, device, or biological product where both are required to achieve the intended use, indication, or effect and where, upon approval of the proposed product, the labeling of the approved product would need to be changed (e.g., to reflect a change in intended use, dosage form, strength, route of administration, or significant change in dose); or (iv) any investigational drug, device, or biological product packaged separately that according to its proposed labeling is for use only with another individually specified investigational drug, device, or biological product where both are required to achieve the intended use, indication, or effect.

The FDA is divided into various branches, or Centers, by product type. Different Centers typically review drug, biologic or device applications. In order to review an application for a combination product, the FDA must decide which Center should be responsible for the review. FDA regulations require that the FDA determine the combination product’s primary mode of action, or PMOA, which is the single mode of a combination product that provides the most important therapeutic action of the combination product. The Center that regulates that portion of the product that generates the PMOA or that has expertise in the relevant therapeutic area becomes the lead evaluator. If there are two independent modes of action, neither of which is subordinate to the other, the FDA makes a determination as to which Center to assign the product based on consistency with other combination products raising similar types of safety and effectiveness questions or to the Center with the most expertise in evaluating the most significant safety and effectiveness questions raised by the combination product. When evaluating an application, a lead Center may consult other Centers but still retain complete reviewing authority, or it may collaborate with another Center, by which the lead Center assigns review of a specific section of the application to another Center, delegating its review authority for that section. Typically, the FDA requires a single marketing application submitted to the Center selected to be the lead evaluator, although the agency has the discretion to require separate applications to more than one Center. One reason to submit multiple evaluations is if the applicant wishes to receive some benefit that accrues only from approval under a particular type of application, like new drug product exclusivity. If multiple applications are submitted, each application may be evaluated by a different lead Center.

21

 

---

 

Biosimilars law

The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009, or BPCIA, amended the PHSA to create a new licensure framework for biosimilar products, which could ultimately subject our biological products to competition. Under the BPCIA, a manufacturer may submit an application for licensure of a biologic product that is “biosimilar to” or “interchangeable with” a referenced, branded biologic product. Previously, there had been no licensure pathway for such biosimilar or interchangeable products. For purposes of the BPCIA, a reference product is defined as the single biological product licensed under a full BLA against which a biological product is evaluated in an application submitted under a follow-on BLA. Biosimilarity sufficient to reference a prior FDA-approved product requires that there be no differences in conditions of use, route of administration, dosage form, and strength, and no clinically meaningful differences between the biological product and the reference product in terms of safety, purity, and potency. Biosimilarity must be shown through analytical studies, animal studies, and at least one clinical trial, absent a waiver by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. A biosimilar product may be deemed interchangeable with a prior approved product if it meets the higher hurdle of demonstrating that it can be expected to produce the same clinical results as the reference product and, for products administered multiple times, the biologic and the reference biologic may be switched after one has been previously administered without increasing safety risks or risks of diminished efficacy relative to exclusive use of the reference biologic.

The BPCIA also created a 12-year period of reference product exclusivity, which can be extended to 12½ years with pediatric exclusivity. The 12-year exclusivity period begins on the date of first licensure of the reference product under the PHSA and during which the licensure of a follow-on application for a biosimilar or interchangeable product cannot be made effective. During the first four years (or four and one-half years with pediatric exclusivity) of the 12-year period, an application for a biosimilar or interchangeable version of the reference product cannot be submitted to the FDA.

The BPCIA includes limits on obtaining 12-year reference product exclusivity for certain changes or modifications to the reference product. A separate 12-year reference product exclusivity period does not apply to:

The FDA has not yet issued proposed regulations setting forth its interpretation of the BPCIA’s provisions but has issued guidance documents and draft guidance documents related to BPCIA implementation concerning biosimilarity and interchangeability, BLA submission requirements, exclusivity, clinical pharmacology, statistics, labeling and naming. As of January 1, 2018, the FDA has approved nine biosimilar products for use in the United States. No interchangeable biosimilars have been approved.

In addition to creating a 12-year period of reference product exclusivity, the BPCIA clarifies the interaction of that exclusivity with orphan drug exclusivity, such that the licensure of a biosimilar or interchangeable version of a reference product that was designated and approved as an orphan drug may only occur after the later of the expiration of any applicable seven-year orphan drug exclusivity or the 12-year reference product exclusivity (or seven and one-half years and 12½ years with pediatric exclusivity).

Like pediatric exclusivity applicable to drug products approved under the FDCA, pediatric exclusivity applicable to biological reference products is subject to an exception. Pediatric exclusivity will not apply to either the 12-year reference product or the seven-year orphan drug exclusivity periods if the FDA determines later than nine months prior to the expiration of such period that the study reports a BLA sponsor submitted in response to a written request for pediatric studies met the terms of that request.

Our investigational biological products, if approved, could be considered reference products entitled to 12-year exclusivity. Even if our products are considered to be reference products eligible for exclusivity, another company could market a competing version of any of our biological products if the FDA approves a full BLA for such product containing the sponsor’s own preclinical data and data from adequate and well-controlled clinical trials to demonstrate the safety, purity and potency of their product.

The BPCIA also sets forth a complex mechanism for resolving patent disputes that involves a step-wise exchange of information prior to the initiation of a patent infringement lawsuit against a biosimilar or interchangeable product sponsor. Unlike the Hatch-Waxman Act, the BPCIA provides no automatic stay on approval of a biosimilar or interchangeable product application.

Overview of FDA regulation of companion diagnostics

We are developing in vitro diagnostics for use in selecting the patients that we believe will respond to our cancer therapeutics.

22

 

---

 

The FDA published final guidance in July 2014 that addresses issues critical to developing in vitro companion diagnostics. The guidance provides that in vitro companion diagnostics that are essential for the safe and effective use of a corresponding therapeutic product must be approved contemporaneously with that therapeutic in most circumstances. Based on the guidance and the FDA’s past treatment of companion diagnostics, we believe that the FDA will likely require one or more of our in vitro diagnostics to obtain premarket approval, or PMA, in conjunction with approval of the associated therapeutic, which will involve coordination of review by CDER and by the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health.

Diagnostic tests determined by the FDA to be useful, but not essential, for the safe and effective use of a corresponding therapeutic product are also subject to the same medical device pathways, but their clearance or approval would not be subject to a coordinated review of the diagnostic test and the therapeutic product.

The FDA classifies medical devices into one of three classes. Devices deemed to pose lower risk are placed in either Class I or II, which requires the manufacturer to submit to the FDA a premarket notification requesting permission for commercial distribution. Some low risk devices are exempt from this requirement. Devices deemed by the FDA to pose the greatest risk, such as life-sustaining, life-supporting or implantable devices, or devices deemed not substantially equivalent to a previously cleared 510(k) device, are placed in Class III, requiring a PMA. A medical device, including an in vitro diagnostic, or IVD, to be commercially distributed in the United States must receive either 510(k) clearance or PMA (or be a Class I exempt device that does not require pre-market review) from the FDA prior to marketing. The FDA has previously required in vitro companion diagnostics intended to select the patients who will respond to the product candidate to obtain a PMA simultaneously with approval of the product candidate.

510(k) clearance pathway

If any of the diagnostic products under development were determined by FDA not to be essential to the safe and effective prescription of a corresponding therapeutic product, it is possible that the diagnostic test could require 510(k) clearance. The FDA’s 510(k) clearance pathway usually takes from three to twelve months, but it can take significantly longer. The FDA may require additional information, including clinical data, to make a determination regarding substantial equivalence.

After a device receives 510(k) clearance, any modification that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a new or major change in its intended use, would require a new 510(k) clearance or, depending on the modification, a PMA. The FDA requires each manufacturer to determine whether the proposed change requires submission of a 510(k) notice or a PMA, but the FDA can review any such decision and can disagree with a manufacturer’s determination. If the FDA disagrees with a manufacturer’s determination, the FDA can require the manufacturer to cease marketing and/or recall the modified device until 510(k) clearance or a PMA is obtained. If the FDA requires us to seek 510(k) clearance or a PMA for any modifications to a previously cleared product, we may be required to cease marketing or recall the modified device until we obtain this clearance or approval. Also, in these circumstances, we may be subject to significant regulatory fines or penalties.

PMA pathway

Devices deemed by the FDA to pose the greatest risk, such as life-sustaining, life supporting or implantable devices, or devices deemed not substantially equivalent to a previously 510(k) cleared device or a preamendment Class III device for which PMA applications have not been called, are placed in Class III requiring PMA. The PMA pathway requires proof of the safety and effectiveness of the device to the FDA’s satisfaction. The PMA pathway generally takes from one to three years or even longer from submission of the application. Most companion diagnostic tests have been classified as Class III devices subject to the PMA pathway.

A PMA application for an IVD must provide extensive preclinical and clinical trial data. Preclinical data for an IVD includes many different tests, including how reproducible the results are when the same sample is tested multiple times by multiple users at multiple laboratories. The clinical data need to establish that the test is sufficiently safe, effective and reliable in the intended use population. In addition, the FDA must be convinced that a device has clinical utility, meaning that an IVD provides information that is clinically meaningful. A biomarker’s clinical significance may be obvious, or the applicant may be able to rely upon published literature or submit data to show clinical utility.

A PMA application also must provide information about the device and its components regarding, among other things, device design, manufacturing and labeling. PMA applications are subject to an application fee; for fiscal year 2018, the standard fee for review of a PMA is $310,764 and the small business fee for review of a PMA is $77,691.

As part of the PMA review, the FDA will typically inspect the manufacturer’s facilities for compliance with Quality System Regulation, or QSR, requirements, which impose elaborate design control, testing, manufacturing, control, documentation and other quality assurance procedures.

23

 

---

 

Upon submission, the FDA determines if the PMA application is sufficiently complete to permit a substantive review, and, if so, the FDA accepts the application for filing. The FDA then commences an in-depth review of the PMA application. The entire process typically takes one to three years, but may take longer. The review time is often significantly extended as a result of the FDA asking for more information or clarification of information already provided. The FDA also may respond with a not approvable determination based on deficiencies in the application and require additional clinical trials that are often expensive and time-consuming and can substantially delay approval. During the review period, an FDA advisory committee, typically a panel of clinicians, likely will be convened to review the application and recommend to the FDA whether, or upon what conditions, the device should be approved. Although the FDA is not bound by the advisory panel decision, the panel’s recommendation is important to the FDA’s overall decision making process.

If the FDA’s evaluation of the PMA application is favorable, the FDA typically issues an approvable letter requiring the applicant’s agreement to specific conditions, such as changes in labeling, or specific additional information, such as submission of final labeling, in order to secure final approval of the PMA. If the FDA concludes that the applicable criteria have been met, the FDA will issue a PMA for the approved indications, which can be more limited than those originally sought by the manufacturer. The PMA can include post-approval conditions that the FDA believes necessary to ensure the safety and effectiveness of the device, including, among other things, restrictions on labeling, promotion, sale and distribution. Failure to comply with the conditions of approval can result in material adverse enforcement action, including the loss or withdrawal of the approval.

Even after approval of a PMA, a new PMA or PMA supplement may be required in the event of a modification to the device, its labeling or its manufacturing process. Supplements to a PMA often require the submission of the same type of information required for an original PMA, except that the supplement is generally limited to the information needed to support the proposed change from the product covered by the original PMA.

Clinical trials

A clinical trial is almost always required to support a PMA application. All clinical trials of investigational devices must be conducted in compliance with the FDA’s requirements. If an investigational device could pose a significant risk to patients pursuant to FDA regulations, the FDA must approve an Investigational Device Exemption, or IDE, application prior to initiation of investigational use. IVD trials usually do not require an IDE, as the FDA does not judge them to be a significant risk because the results do not affect the patients in the study. However, for a trial where the IVD result directs the therapeutic care of patients with cancer (companion diagnostics), we believe that the FDA would consider the investigation to present significant risk and require an IDE.

An IDE application must be supported by appropriate data, such as laboratory test results, showing that it is safe to test the device in humans and that the testing protocol is scientifically sound. The FDA typically grants IDE approval for a specified number of patients. A nonsignificant risk device does not require FDA approval of an IDE. Both significant risk and nonsignificant risk investigational devices require approval from IRBs at the study centers where the device will be used.

During the trial, the sponsor must comply with the FDA’s IDE requirements for investigator selection, trial monitoring, reporting and record keeping. The investigators must obtain patient informed consent, rigorously follow the investigational plan and study protocol, control the disposition of investigational devices and comply with all reporting and record keeping requirements. Prior to granting PMA, the FDA typically inspects the records relating to the conduct of the study and the clinical data supporting the PMA application for compliance with applicable requirements.

Although the QSR does not fully apply to investigational devices, the requirement for controls on design and development does apply. The sponsor also must manufacture the investigational device in conformity with the quality controls described in the IDE application and any conditions of IDE approval that the FDA may impose with respect to manufacturing.

Post-market

After a device is on the market, numerous regulatory requirements apply. These requirements include: the QSR, labeling regulations, the FDA’s general prohibition against promoting products for unapproved or “off label” uses, the Medical Device Reporting regulation, which requires that manufacturers report to the FDA if their device may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or malfunctioned in a way that would likely cause or contribute to a death or serious injury if it were to recur, and the Reports of Corrections and Removals regulation, which requires manufacturers to report recalls and field actions to the FDA if initiated to reduce a risk to health posed by the device or to remedy a violation of the FDCA.

The FDA enforces these requirements by inspection and market surveillance. If the FDA finds a violation, it can institute a wide variety of enforcement actions, ranging from a public warning letter to more severe sanctions such as: fines, injunctions and civil penalties; recall or seizure of products; operating restrictions, partial suspension or total shutdown of production; refusing requests for PMA of new products; withdrawing PMAs already granted; and criminal prosecution.

24

 

---

 

Other regulatory requirements

Any drug or biological products manufactured or distributed by us pursuant to FDA approvals are subject to pervasive and continuing regulation by the FDA, including, among other things, requirements relating to recordkeeping, periodic reporting, product sampling and distribution, advertising and promotion and reporting of adverse drug experiences. After approval, most changes to the approved product, such as adding new indications or other labeling claims are subject to prior FDA review and approval.

The FDA may impose a number of post-approval requirements as a condition of approval of an NDA or BLA. For example, the FDA may require post-marketing testing, including Phase 4 clinical trials, and surveillance to further assess and monitor the product’s safety and effectiveness after commercialization. Regulatory approval of oncology products often requires that patients in clinical trials be followed for long periods to determine the overall survival benefit of the drug or biologic.

In addition, drug and biologic manufacturers and other entities involved in the manufacture and distribution of approved drugs and biological products are required to register their establishments with the FDA and state agencies, and are subject to periodic unannounced inspections by the FDA and these state agencies for compliance with cGMP requirements. The FDA was also granted new inspection authorities under FDASIA. Changes to the manufacturing process are strictly regulated and often require prior FDA approval before being implemented. FDA regulations also require investigation and correction of any deviations from cGMP and impose reporting and documentation requirements upon us and any third-party manufacturers that we may decide to use. Accordingly, manufacturers must continue to expend time, money and effort in the areas of production and quality control to maintain cGMP compliance.

Once an approval is granted, the FDA may withdraw the approval if compliance with regulatory requirements and standards is not maintained or if problems occur after the product reaches the market. Later discovery of previously unknown problems with a product, including adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or with manufacturing processes, or failure to comply with regulatory requirements, may result in revisions to the approved labeling to add new safety information, imposition of post-market studies or clinical trials to assess new safety risks or imposition of distribution or other restrictions under a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy program. Other potential consequences include, among other things:

The FDA strictly regulates marketing, labeling, advertising and promotion of products that are placed on the market. Drugs and biologics may be promoted only for the approved indications and in accordance with the provisions of the approved label. The FDA and other agencies actively enforce the laws and regulations prohibiting the promotion of off label uses, and a company that is found to have improperly promoted off label uses may be subject to significant liability. If a company is found to have promoted off-label uses, it may become subject to adverse public relations and administrative and judicial enforcement by the FDA, the Department of Justice or the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as state authorities. This could subject a company to a range of penalties that could have a significant commercial impact, including civil and criminal fines and agreements that materially restrict the manner in which a company promotes or distributes drug products.

Additional provisions

Anti-kickback and false claims laws

In addition to FDA restrictions on marketing of pharmaceutical products, pharmaceutical companies that participate in federal healthcare programs like Medicare or Medicaid are subject to various U.S. federal and state laws that may restrict certain marketing practices. These laws include but are not limited to anti-kickback statutes and false claims statutes. The federal anti-kickback statute prohibits, among other things, knowingly and willfully offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce or in return for purchasing, leasing, ordering or arranging for the purchase, lease or order of any healthcare item or service reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid or other federally financed healthcare programs. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act as amended by the Health Care Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010, collectively the Health Care Reform Laws, amended the intent element of the anti-kickback statute such that liability under the statute can be proved even if a person or entity does not have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it. This statute has been interpreted to apply to arrangements between pharmaceutical

25

 

---

 

manufacturers on the one hand and prescribers, purchasers and formulary managers on the other. Violations of the anti-kickback statute are punishable by imprisonment, criminal fines, civil monetary penalties and exclusion from participation in federal healthcare programs. Although there are a number of statutory exemptions and regulatory safe harbors protecting certain common activities from prosecution or other regulatory sanctions, the exemptions and safe harbors are drawn narrowly, and practices that involve remuneration intended to induce prescribing, purchases or recommendations may be subject to scrutiny if they do not qualify for an exemption or safe harbor. In addition to the federal anti-kickback statute, the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or HIPAA, makes it a crime to knowingly and willfully execute or attempt to execute a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program

The federal civil False Claims Act prohibits any person from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, a false claim for payment to the federal government, or knowingly making, or causing to be made, a false statement to have a false claim paid. Government enforcement agencies and private whistleblowers have initiated investigations or brought private lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies for a variety of allegedly improper promotional or marketing activities, such as allegedly inflating drug prices they report to pricing services, which in turn were used by the government to set Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rates, for allegedly providing free product to customers with the expectation that the customers would bill federal programs for the product, or for engaging in promotion for “off-label” uses. Additionally, the Health Care Reform Laws amended the federal False Claims Act such that a violation of the federal anti-kickback statute can serve as a basis for liability under the False Claims Act. In addition to the federal civil False Claims Act, the federal false statements statute prohibits, among other things, knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up a material fact or making any materially false statement in connection with the delivery of or payment for healthcare benefits, items or services.

The majority of states also have statutes or regulations similar to the federal anti-kickback statute and/or False Claims Act, which apply to items and services reimbursed under Medicaid and other state programs, or, in several states, apply regardless of the payor. In addition, the federal transparency law under the Health Care Reform Laws, known as the Open Payments program, requires manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologics and medical supplies reimbursable under Medicare or Medicaid to report to the Department of Health and Human Services information related to payments and other transfers of value to physicians and teaching hospitals, as well as physician ownership and investment interests, and provides for public reporting of the data reported by manufacturers.

Government price reporting

We would be required to report certain price data and pay certain rebates to the U.S. government as a condition of participation in federal healthcare programs. Medicaid is jointly administered by federal and state governments for the benefit of low income and certain disabled beneficiaries. Under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, we would be required to pay a certain rebate for each unit of product reimbursed by the state Medicaid programs.

Data protection

We are subject to data protection laws and regulations (i.e., laws and regulations that address privacy and data security). The legislative and regulatory landscape for data protection continues to evolve, and in recent years there has been an increasing focus on privacy and data security issues. In the United States, numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including state data breach notification laws, state health information privacy laws and federal and state consumer protection laws govern the collection, use, disclosure and protection of health-related and other personal information. Failure to comply with data protection laws and regulations could result in government enforcement actions (which could include civil or criminal penalties), private litigation and/or adverse publicity and could negatively affect our operating results and business. In addition, we may obtain health information from third parties (e.g., healthcare providers who prescribe our products) that are subject to privacy and security requirements under HIPAA. We could be subject to criminal penalties if we knowingly obtain or disclose individually identifiable health information in a manner that is not authorized or permitted.

Foreign regulation

In order to market any therapeutic or diagnostic product outside of the United States, we need to comply with numerous and varying regulatory requirements of other countries regarding safety and efficacy and governing, among other things, clinical trials, marketing authorization, commercial sales and distribution of our products. Whether or not we obtain FDA approval for a product, we need to obtain the necessary approvals by the comparable regulatory authorities of foreign countries before we can commence clinical trials or marketing of the product in those countries. The approval process varies from country to country and can involve additional product testing and additional administrative review periods. The time required to obtain approval in other countries might differ from and be longer than that required to obtain FDA approval. Regulatory approval in one country does not ensure regulatory approval in another, but a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory approval in one country may negatively impact the regulatory process in others.

26

 

---

 

The European Medicines Agency, or EMA, grants orphan medicinal product designation to promote the development of products that may offer therapeutic benefits for life-threatening or chronically debilitating conditions affecting not more than five in 10,000 people in the European Union. In addition, orphan medicinal product designation can be granted if the drug is intended for a life threatening, seriously debilitating or serious and chronic condition and without incentives it is unlikely that sales of the drug in the European Union would be sufficient to justify developing the drug. Orphan medicinal product designation is only available if there is no other satisfactory method approved in the European Union of diagnosing, preventing or treating the condition, or if such a method exists, the proposed orphan medicinal product will be of significant benefit to patients. Orphan medicinal product designation provides opportunities for free protocol assistance and fee reductions for access to the centralized regulatory procedures. Orphan medicinal product designation also provides ten years of market exclusivity following drug approval. The exclusivity period may be reduced to six years if the designation criteria are no longer met, including where it is shown that the product is sufficiently profitable not to justify maintenance of market exclusivity.

Clinical Trial Approval

Pursuant to the currently applicable Clinical Trials Directive 2001/20/EC and the Directive 2005/28/EC on GCP, a system for the approval of clinical trials in the European Union has been implemented through national legislation of the member states. Under this system, an applicant must obtain approval from the competent national authority of a European Union member state in which the clinical trial is to be conducted, or in multiple member states if the clinical trial is to be conducted in a number of member states. Furthermore, the applicant may only start a clinical trial at a specific study site after the competent ethics committee has issued a favorable opinion. The clinical trial application must be accompanied by an investigational medicinal product dossier with supporting information prescribed by Directive 2001/20/EC and Directive 2005/28/EC and corresponding national laws of the member states and further detailed in applicable guidance documents.

In April 2014, the European Union adopted a new Clinical Trials Regulation (EU) No. 536/2014, which is set to replace the current Clinical Trials Directive 2001/20/EC. The new Clinical Trials Regulation will become directly applicable to and binding in all European Union Member States without the need for any national implementing legislation. The new Clinical Trials Regulation (EU) No. 536/2014 will become applicable no earlier than 2019. It will overhaul the current system of approvals for clinical trials in the European Union and is aimed specifically at simplifying and streamlining the approval of clinical trials in the European Union.

Conditional Marketing Authorization

In the European Union, the EMA supports the development of medicines that address unmet medical needs of patients. In the interest of public health, applicants may be granted a conditional marketing authorization for such medicines where the benefit of immediate availability outweighs the risk of less comprehensive data than normally required, based on the scope and criteria defined in legislation and guidelines.

Medicines for human use are eligible if they belong to at least one of these categories:

Conditional marketing authorization may be granted if the CHMP finds that all the following requirements are met:

Brexit and the Regulatory Framework in the United Kingdom

On June 23, 2016, the electorate in the United Kingdom voted in favor of leaving the European Union (commonly referred to as Brexit). Thereafter, on March 29, 2017, the country formally notified the European Union of its intention to withdraw pursuant to Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. The withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union will take effect either on the

27

 

---

 

effective date of the withdrawal agreement or, in the absence of agreement, two years after the United Kingdom provided notice of withdrawal. Since the regulatory framework for pharmaceutical products in the United Kingdom is derived from European Union directives and regulations, Brexit could materially impact the future regulatory regime which applies to products and the approval of product candidates in the United Kingdom. It remains to be seen how, if at all, Brexit will impact regulatory requirements for product candidates and products in the United Kingdom.

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Various federal and foreign laws govern our international business practices with respect to payments to government officials. Those laws include the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, which prohibits U.S. companies and their representatives from paying, offering to pay, promising or authorizing the payment of anything of value to any foreign government official, government staff member, political party or political candidate for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business or to otherwise obtain favorable treatment or influence a person working in an official capacity. In many countries, the healthcare professionals we may interact with may meet the FCPA’s definition of a foreign government official. The FCPA also requires public companies to make and keep books and records that accurately and fairly reflect their transactions and to devise and maintain an adequate system of internal accounting controls.

We are subject also to the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, or Bribery Act, which proscribes giving and receiving bribes in the public and private sectors, bribing a foreign public official, and failing to have adequate procedures to prevent employees and other agents from giving bribes. U.S. companies that conduct business in the United Kingdom generally will be subject to the Bribery Act. Penalties under the Bribery Act include potentially unlimited fines for companies and criminal sanctions for corporate officers under certain circumstances. Other countries have enacted similar anti-corruption laws and/or regulations.

21st Century Cures Act and new FDA regulations

In December 2016, Congress passed the 21^st Century Cures Act, or the Cures Act. This law is intended to enable the acceleration of the discovery, development and delivery of 21^st century cures, among other things. Provisions in that law, such as those applying to precision medicine, technical updates to clinical trial databases and advancing new drug therapies, could apply directly or indirectly to our activities. At this point, however, it is not clear how that law will be implemented and what effect it may have on our business.

In addition to new legislation, FDA regulations and policies are often revised or interpreted by the agency in ways that may significantly affect our business and our products. It is impossible to predict whether further legislative changes will be enacted or whether FDA regulations, guidance, policies or interpretations changed or what the effect of such changes, if any, may be.

Healthcare reform

A primary trend in the U.S. healthcare industry and elsewhere is cost containment. There have been a number of federal and state proposals during the last few years regarding the pricing of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products, limiting coverage and reimbursement for drugs and other medical products, government control and other changes to the healthcare system in the United States. By way of example, the U.S. and state governments continue to propose and pass legislation designed to reduce the cost of healthcare. In March 2010, the U.S. Congress enacted the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, which, among other things, includes changes to the coverage and payment for products under government healthcare programs.

Since enactment of the ACA, there have been numerous legal challenges and legislative actions to repeal and replace provisions of the law. For example, with enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which was signed by President Trump on December 22, 2017, the U.S. Congress repealed the “individual mandate.” The repeal of this provision, which requires most Americans to carry a minimal level of health insurance, will become effective in 2019. According to the U.S. Congressional Budget Office, the repeal of the individual mandate will cause 13 million fewer Americans to be insured in 2027, and premiums in insurance markets may rise.

Further, there have been several recent U.S. congressional inquiries and proposed federal and proposed and enacted state legislation designed to, among other things, bring more transparency to drug pricing, review the relationship between pricing and manufacturer patient programs, reduce the costs of drugs under Medicare and reform government program reimbursement methodologies for drug products. At the federal level, the U.S. Congress and the Trump administration have each indicated that it will continue to seek new legislative and/or administrative measures to control drug costs. At the state level, individual states are increasingly aggressive in passing legislation and implementing regulations designed to control pharmaceutical and biological product pricing.

28

 

---

 

Pharmaceutical coverage, pricing and reimbursement

The containment of healthcare costs has become a priority of federal, state and foreign governments, and the prices of drugs have been a focus in this effort. The U.S. government, state legislatures and foreign governments have shown significant interest in implementing cost containment programs to limit the growth of government-paid healthcare costs, including price controls, restrictions on reimbursement and requirements for substitution of generic products for branded prescription drugs. Adoption of such controls and measures, and tightening of restrictive policies in jurisdictions with existing controls and measures, could limit payments for any drug products for which we obtain regulatory approval and could adversely affect our net revenue and results.

Beyond the United States, pricing and reimbursement schemes vary widely from country to country. Some countries provide that drug products may be marketed only after a reimbursement price has been agreed. Some countries may require the completion of additional studies that compare the cost-effectiveness of a particular product candidate to currently available therapies. For example, the European Union provides options for its member states to restrict the range of drug products for which their national health insurance systems provide reimbursement and to control the prices of medicinal products for human use. European Union member states may approve a specific price for a drug product or may instead adopt a system of direct or indirect controls on the profitability of the company placing the drug product on the market. Other member states allow companies to fix their own prices for drug products, but monitor and control company profits. The downward pressure on healthcare costs in general, particularly prescription drugs, has become very intense. As a result, increasingly high barriers are being erected to the entry of new products. In addition, in some countries, cross-border imports from low-priced markets exert competitive pressure that may reduce pricing within a country. There can be no assurance that any country that has price controls or reimbursement limitations for drug products will allow favorable reimbursement and pricing arrangements for any of our products.

Employees

As of January 31, 2018, we had 72 full-time employees, of whom 48 are engaged in research and development. None of our employees is represented by a labor union or covered by collective bargaining agreements.

We consider our relationship with our employees to be good.

Segment, Geographic and Financial Information

Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise engaging in business activities for which discrete financial information is available and regularly reviewed by the chief operating decision maker in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance. We view our operations and manage our business in one operating segment and we operate in only one geographic region (the United States).

Financial information about (1) our net product revenue and other revenues, net loss per share available to common stockholders and our total assets is provided in our consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and (2) our research and development expenses in each of the last three fiscal years is provided in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Information about our dependence on limited amounts of customers is provided in Note 1, “Nature of the Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies – Concentration of Credit Risk” in the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

In August 2010, we acquired a controlling financial interest in Silver Creek Pharmaceuticals Inc., or Silver Creek. At such time we had the ability to direct the activities of Silver Creek that most significantly impacted Silver Creek’s economic performance through our ownership percentage and through the board of director seats we controlled, and as such Silver Creek was consolidated in our financial statements. In the third quarter of 2017, Silver Creek completed its Series C preferred stock financing, which reduced our ownership percentage of Silver Creek below 50% and resulted in us no longer controlling the Silver Creek board of directors, and as a result Silver Creek was deconsolidated from our financial statements. Information about the deconsolidation of Silver Creek from our financial statements is provided in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

In September 2017, we filed an amendment to our certificate of incorporation to effect a one-for-ten reverse stock split of our issued and outstanding common stock, or the reverse split, and on September 6, 2017, the reverse split was effective for trading purposes. Additional information about the reverse split is provided in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

29

 

---

 

Our Corporate Information

We were originally incorporated in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1993 and reincorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware in October 2010. Our principal executive offices are located at One Kendall Square, Suite B7201, Cambridge, MA 02139, and our telephone number is (617) 441-1000.

Information Available on the Internet

We maintain a website with the address www.merrimack.com. We are not including the information contained on our website as a part of, or incorporating it by reference into, this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports, are available to you free of charge through the “SEC Filings” link in the “Investors” section of our website as soon as reasonably practicable after those materials have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. We also make available on our website our corporate governance guidelines, the charters for our audit committee, corporate governance and nominating committee, organization and compensation committee and executive committee, and our code of business conduct and ethics, which applies to our directors, officers and employees, and such information is available in print and free of charge to any of our stockholders who requests it. In addition, we intend to disclose on our website any amendments to, or waivers from, our code of business conduct and ethics that are required to be publicly disclosed pursuant to rules of the SEC.

30

 

---

 

Item 1A. Risk Factors

The following risk factors and other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K should be carefully considered. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we presently deem less significant may also impair our business operations. Please see page 2 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a discussion of some of the forward-looking statements that are qualified by these risk factors. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and future growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

Risks Related to the Sale of the Commercial Business to Ipsen

Because the commercial business represented all of our revenues for fiscal year 2016 and the three months ended March 31, 2017, our business following the sale of the commercial business is substantially different than it was prior to such sale.

As a result of the completion of the asset sale with Ipsen, Ipsen acquired our right, title and interest in the commercial business. The commercial business represented all of our revenues for the fiscal year 2016 and the three months ended March 31, 2017. Following the asset sale, we retained only the pipeline business. Our results of operations and financial condition may be materially affected if we fail to grow the pipeline business, if we are unable to raise additional capital when needed to run the pipeline business, if we must incur significant costs in order to raise additional capital to run the pipeline business or if we are unable to successfully develop and commercialize our remaining product candidates.

We are, and in the future may be, subject to securities litigation, which is expensive and could divert our attention.

We have been, and may in the future be, subject to securities class action litigation in connection with the asset sale. Securities litigation against us could result in substantial costs and divert our management’s attention, which could seriously harm our business. For instance, a putative stockholder class action suit was filed by a purported stockholder of ours in the Superior Court of Massachusetts for the County of Middlesex against us and our directors. The case was captioned Robert Garfield v. Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc., et al., or the Garfield Action. The Garfield Action complaint alleged that our directors breached their fiduciary duties by entering into the asset sale agreement and that the definitive proxy statement relating to the asset sale contained inadequate disclosures and omissions. Although we believed that the Garfield Action was without merit, to avoid the risk of the litigation delaying or adversely affecting the asset sale and to minimize the expense of defending the litigation related to the asset sale, we agreed to make supplemental disclosures related to the asset sale and to pay the plaintiff’s counsel $375,000 in attorney’s fees in connection with the resolution of the Garfield Action. As a result, the plaintiff concluded that the claims in the Garfield Action were mooted, and the Garfield Action was dismissed with prejudice. Nonetheless, there can be no guarantee that there will not be additional securities class action litigation in connection with the asset sale.

There can be no guarantee that Ipsen will comply with its obligation to use commercially reasonable efforts in connection with the development of ONIVYDE or that the milestones set forth in the Baxalta agreement will be achieved.

Ipsen has agreed to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop ONIVYDE in connection with obtaining the regulatory approval by the FDA of ONIVYDE for certain indications. Although the results of this approval process may enable Ipsen to achieve the milestones necessary for us to receive the contingent payments under the asset sale agreement, there is no guarantee that Ipsen will take the steps set forth in the asset sale agreement and that such development will lead to the successful approval of ONIVYDE for such additional indications. Therefore, there can be no guarantees that any of the milestones set forth in the asset sale agreement will be achieved and that we will receive any future contingent payments.

Additionally, although the asset sale agreement entitles us to receive certain net milestone payments of up to $33.0 million that may become payable under the Baxalta agreement, achievement of such milestones and payment of any or all of the $33.0 million is not guaranteed.

Ipsen did not assume any of the excluded liabilities under the asset sale agreement.

Pursuant to the asset sale agreement, Ipsen assumed only certain specified liabilities set forth in the asset sale agreement and did not assume all of the liabilities associated with the commercial business. Certain liabilities remain with us post-closing. While we believe that we have adequately accrued for these liabilities or are adequately insured against certain of the risks associated with such excluded liabilities, there can be no assurances that additional expenditures will not be incurred in resolving any such liabilities.

31

 

---

 

The asset sale agreement may expose us to contingent liabilities.

We have agreed to indemnify Ipsen for certain breaches of representations, warranties or covenants made by us in the asset sale agreement and for certain specified existing litigation. We have agreed that if we cannot pay our indemnification obligations, Ipsen will have set-off rights against any future contingent payments. Significant indemnification claims by Ipsen could further materially and adversely affect our financial condition and/or significantly reduce any future contingent payments.

Risks Related to Our Financial Position and Need for Additional Capital

We have incurred significant losses since our inception. We expect to incur operating losses for the foreseeable future and may never achieve or maintain profitability.

Since inception, we have incurred significant operating losses. Our net loss from continuing operations before income tax benefit was $118.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2017, $169.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 and $162.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. As of December 31, 2017, we had an accumulated deficit of $482.8 million. To date, we have financed our operations primarily through private placements of convertible preferred stock, collaborations, public offerings of our securities, secured debt financings, sales of ONIVYDE and the asset sale of ONIVYDE. We have devoted substantially all of our efforts to research and development, including clinical trials and recently to commercialization of our first product, ONIVYDE, which was sold to Ipsen. We have not completed development of or commercialized any other product candidates or diagnostics other than ONIVYDE. We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and increasing operating losses for at least the next several years. We anticipate that our expenses will increase substantially as we:

To become and remain profitable, we must succeed in developing and commercializing products with significant market potential. This will require us to be successful in a range of challenging activities, including discovering product candidates, completing preclinical testing and clinical trials of our product candidates, obtaining regulatory approval for these product candidates and manufacturing, marketing and selling or partnering those products for which we may seek and receive regulatory approval. We may never succeed in these activities and may never generate revenues that are significant or large enough to achieve profitability. Even if we do achieve profitability, we may not be able to sustain or increase profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. Our failure to become and remain profitable would depress the value of our company and could impair our ability to raise capital, expand our business, diversify our product offerings or continue our operations. A decline in the value of our company could also cause our stockholders to lose all or part of their investment.

We will need substantial additional funding. If we are unable to raise capital when needed, we would be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our product development programs or commercialization efforts.

We will need substantial additional funding in connection with our continuing operations. We expect to continue to incur significant research and development expenses in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly as we continue the research, development and clinical trials of, and seek regulatory approval for, our product candidates. If we are unable to raise capital when needed or on attractive terms, we would be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our research and development programs or commercialization efforts.

Upon the closing of the asset sale with Ipsen, which occurred on April 3, 2017, we received a $575.0 million upfront cash payment from Ipsen, subject to the working capital adjustment. We used these proceeds to redeem the 2022 notes, including payment of the $175.0 million outstanding aggregate principal amount, interest through the redemption date and an additional make-whole premium payment of approximately $20.1 million, and our board of directors declared a special cash dividend of $140.0 million, which was payable on May 26, 2017 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 17, 2017. Additionally, if certain milestones under the Baxalta agreement are met, we currently expect to receive up to an aggregate of $33.0 million in net milestone payments in future periods. As a result of the cash received from the consummation of the asset sale, we believe that at our currently forecasted spending rates, our existing financial resources, together with the net milestone payments we expect to receive under the Baxalta agreement, assuming certain milestones under such agreement are met, will be sufficient to fund our planned operations into the second half of 2019. We have based this estimate on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could use our available

32

 

---

 

capital resources sooner than we currently expect. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with the development and commercialization of our product candidates, and the extent to which we may utilize collaborations with third parties to participate in their development and commercialization, we are unable to estimate the amounts of increased capital outlays and operating expenditures associated with our current and anticipated clinical trials. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:

Conducting preclinical testing and clinical trials is a time-consuming, expensive and uncertain process that takes years to complete, and we may never generate the necessary data required to obtain regulatory approval and, even if regulatory approval is obtained, achieve product sales of any of our product candidates. In addition, any of our product candidates, even if approved, may not achieve commercial success. If we fail to generate sufficient revenues from collaborations or the commercialization of any of our product candidates, we will need to continue to rely on additional financing to achieve our business objectives.

Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our existing stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or product candidates.

We do not have any committed external source of funds. Sources of funds may not be available or, if available, may not be available on terms satisfactory to us and could result in significant stockholder dilution.

Until such time, if ever, as we can generate sufficient product revenues, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity offerings, debt financings, collaborations, licensing arrangements and other marketing and distribution arrangements. We also could engage in discussions with third parties regarding partnerships, joint ventures, combinations or divestitures of one or more of our businesses as we seek to further the development of our research programs, improve our cash position and maximize stockholder value. There can be no assurance as to the timing, terms or consummation of any financing, collaboration, licensing arrangement or other marketing and distribution arrangement, partnership, joint venture, combination or divestiture.

On December 15, 2017, we filed a registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC to allow the issuance of our securities from time to time in one or more offerings of up to $150,000,000 in aggregate dollar amount. This registration statement was declared effective by the SEC on January 5, 2018. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, the ownership interest of our existing common stockholders will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of our stockholders. Debt financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends, and these covenants may also require us to attain certain levels of financial performance and we may not be able to do so; any such failure may result in the acceleration of such debt and the foreclosure by our creditors on the collateral we used to secure the debt. The debt issued in a debt financing would also be senior to our outstanding shares of capital stock upon our liquidation. Significant indebtedness and the pledge of our assets as collateral in the future could limit our ability to obtain additional debt financing. If we raise additional funds through marketing and distribution arrangements or other collaborations, strategic alliances or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our technologies, future revenue streams, research programs or product candidates or to grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. If we are unable to raise additional funds through equity or debt financings when needed, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our product development or commercialization efforts or grant rights to develop and market product candidates that we would otherwise prefer to develop and market ourselves.

33

 

---

 

Future indebtedness may limit cash flow available to invest in the ongoing needs of our business.

We have had in the past, and may in the future have, a significant amount of indebtedness. In July 2013, we issued $125.0 million aggregate principal amount of 4.50% convertible notes due 2020, or convertible notes. In December 2015, we issued $175.0 million aggregate principal amount of 11.50% senior secured notes due 2022, or 2022 notes. Although we used a portion of the proceeds from the asset sale to fully extinguish the 2022 notes, and we extinguished all but $56,000 of the aggregate remaining principal amount of the convertible notes in connection with the settlement of the litigation described in Item 3, “Legal Proceedings” below and a related cash tender offer to purchase the convertible notes that we completed on November 10, 2017, we could in the future incur additional indebtedness.

Substantial debt combined with our other financial obligations and contractual commitments could have significant adverse consequences, including:

To the extent we seek funds from external sources in the future, such funds may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, a failure to comply with the covenants under any future debt instruments could result in an event of default under those instruments, and such debt instruments could require covenants and pledges of our assets as collateral which could limit our ability to obtain other debt financing.

The recently passed comprehensive tax reform bill could adversely affect our business and financial condition.

On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed into law new legislation that significantly revises the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The newly enacted federal income tax law, among other things, contains significant changes to corporate taxation, including reduction of the corporate tax rate from a top marginal rate of 35% to a flat rate of 21%, limitation of the tax deduction for net interest expense to 30% of adjusted earnings (except for certain small businesses), limitation of the deduction for net operating losses to 80% of current year taxable income and elimination of net operating loss carrybacks, in each case, for losses arising in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 (though any such net operating losses may be carried forward indefinitely), one time taxation of offshore earnings at reduced rates regardless of whether they are repatriated, elimination of U.S. tax on foreign earnings (subject to certain important exceptions), immediate deductions for certain new investments instead of deductions for depreciation expense over time, and modifying or repealing many business deductions and credits. Notwithstanding the reduction in the corporate income tax rate, the overall impact of the new federal tax law is uncertain and our business and financial condition could be adversely affected. In addition, it is uncertain how various states will respond to the newly enacted federal tax law. The impact of this tax reform on holders of our common stock is also uncertain and could be adverse. We urge our stockholders to consult with their legal and tax advisors with respect to this legislation and the potential tax consequences of investing in or holding our common stock.

We might not be able to utilize a significant portion of our net operating loss carryforwards and research and development tax credit carryforwards.

As of December 31, 2017, we had federal net operating loss carryforwards of $138.1 million, which begin to expire in 2034, and state net operating loss carryforwards of $223.4 million, which begin to expire in 2028. As of December 31, 2017, we also had federal research and development tax credit carryforwards of $28.8 million and state research and development tax credit carryforwards $18.7 million, which begin to expire in 2022 and 2026, respectively. These net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards could expire unused and be unavailable to offset our future income tax liabilities. Under the newly enacted federal income tax law, federal net operating losses incurred in 2018 and in future years may be carried forward indefinitely, but the deductibility of such federal net operating losses is limited. It is uncertain how various states will respond to the newly enacted federal tax law. If our ability to use our historical net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards is materially limited, it would harm our future operating results by effectively increasing our future tax obligations.

34

 

---

 

Our investments are subject to risks that could result in losses.

We have invested and plan to continue to invest our cash in a variety of financial instruments, principally securities issued by the U.S. government and its agencies, investment grade corporate bonds, including commercial paper, and money market instruments. All of these investments are subject to credit, liquidity, market and interest rate risk. Such risks, including the failure or severe financial distress of the financial institutions that hold our cash, cash equivalents and investments, may result in a loss of liquidity, impairment to our investments, realization of substantial future losses, or a complete loss of the investments in the long-term, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, liquidity and financial condition. In order to manage the risk to our investments, we maintain an investment policy that, among other things, limits the amount that we may invest in any one issue or any single issuer and requires us to only invest in high credit quality securities, but there can be no guarantee that our investments will not result in losses.

A decrease in the carrying value of our equity holdings in Silver Creek could adversely affect our balance sheet.

In August 2010, we acquired 12,000,000 shares of Series A preferred stock of Silver Creek in exchange for our grant to Silver Creek of technology licenses. As these shares represented a controlling financial interest, we consolidated Silver Creek in our consolidated financial statements. In the third quarter of 2017, Silver Creek completed its Series C preferred stock financing, which reduced our ownership percentage of Silver Creek below 50% and resulted in us deconsolidating Silver Creek from our consolidated financial statements. As a result of the deconsolidation, we now account for our investment in Silver Creek under the equity method of accounting. The carrying value of our shares of Series A preferred stock of Silver Creek was $10.6 million at December 31, 2017.  There can be no guarantee that the value of our investment in Silver Creek will not realize a substantial future loss or complete loss of value, which would in turn adversely affect our balance sheet.

Risks Related to the Development and Commercialization of Our Product Candidates

We depend heavily on the success of our clinical stage product candidates. All of our product candidates are in preclinical and clinical development. Clinical trials of our product candidates may not be successful. If we are unable to successfully commercialize our product candidates, or experience significant delays in doing so, our business will be materially harmed.

We invest a significant portion of our efforts and financial resources in the development of our clinical stage product candidates for the treatment of various types of cancer. All of our product candidates are still in preclinical and clinical development. Our ability to generate meaningful product revenues will depend heavily on the successful development of our product candidates. The success of our product candidates, which include both our product candidates and companion diagnostic candidates, will depend on several factors, including the following:

If we do not achieve one or more of these factors in a timely manner or at all, we could experience significant delays or an inability to successfully develop our product candidates, which would materially harm our business.

For example, in connection with our strategic review of our pipeline which was completed in January 2017, we amended several of our clinical trials, such as our SHERLOC and CARRIE clinical trials, resulting in changes to their power, design and timing, and also discontinued several trials, including our Phase 2 clinical trial of MM-302.

35

 

---

 

If clinical trials of our product candidates fail to demonstrate safety and efficacy to the satisfaction of the FDA or similar regulatory authorities outside the United States or do not otherwise produce positive results, we may incur additional costs or experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete, the development and commercialization of our product candidates.

We may never receive approval to commercialize our product candidates in the United States or other jurisdictions. Before obtaining regulatory approval for the sale of our product candidates, we must conduct extensive clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of our product candidates in humans. Clinical testing is expensive, difficult to design and implement, can take many years to complete and is uncertain as to outcome. A failure of one or more of our clinical trials can occur at any stage of testing. The outcome of preclinical testing and early clinical trials may not be predictive of the success of later clinical trials, and successful interim results of a clinical trial do not necessarily predict successful final results.

We may experience numerous unexpected events during, or as a result of, clinical trials that could delay or prevent our ability to receive regulatory approval or commercialize our product candidates, including:

For example, in December 2016, we decided to discontinue our Phase 2 clinical trial of MM-302 in combination with trastuzumab in patients with ErbB2 (HER2) positive, locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer based on an opinion from the Data Safety Monitoring Board that continuing the clinical trial would be unlikely to demonstrate benefit over the comparator treatments. Additionally, the previous Phase 2 clinical trials of MM-121 in unselected patient populations with NSCLC, ovarian cancer and breast cancer did not meet their primary endpoints.

Preclinical and clinical data may not be predictive of the success of later clinical trials, and are often susceptible to varying interpretations and analyses. Many companies that have believed their product candidates performed satisfactorily in preclinical studies and clinical trials have nonetheless failed to obtain marketing approval of their products.

If we are required to conduct additional clinical trials or other testing of our product candidates beyond those that we currently contemplate, if we are unable to successfully complete clinical trials of our product candidates or other testing, if the results of these trials or tests are not positive or are only modestly positive or if there are safety concerns, we may:

36

 

---

 

Delays in testing or approvals may result in increases to our product development costs. We do not know whether any clinical trials will begin as planned, will need to be restructured or will be completed on schedule, or at all.

Significant clinical trial delays also could shorten any periods during which we may have the exclusive right to commercialize our product candidates or allow our competitors to bring products to market before we do and impair our ability to commercialize our product candidates and may harm our business and results of operations.

If serious adverse or undesirable side effects are identified during the development of our product candidates or following their approval and commercialization, we may need to modify or abandon our development or marketing of such product or product candidate.

All of our product candidates are still in preclinical or clinical development and their risk of failure is high. It is impossible to predict when or if any of our product candidates will prove effective or safe in humans or will receive regulatory approval, and it is impossible to ensure that safety or efficacy issues will not arise following regulatory approval. Currently marketed therapies for solid tumors are generally limited to some extent by their toxicity. Use of our product candidates as monotherapies in clinical trials also has resulted in adverse events consistent in nature with other marketed therapies. When used in combination with other marketed or investigational therapies, our product candidates may exacerbate adverse events associated with the other therapy. If our products or product candidates, either alone or in combination with other therapies, result in undesirable side effects or have characteristics that are unexpected, we may need to modify or abandon their development or marketing.

If we experience delays in the enrollment of patients in our clinical trials, our receipt of necessary regulatory approvals could be delayed or prevented.

We may not be able to initiate or continue clinical trials for our product candidates if we are unable to locate and enroll a sufficient number of eligible patients to participate in these trials to obtain a statistically significant result as required by the FDA or other regulatory authorities. In addition, many of our competitors have ongoing clinical trials for product candidates that could be competitive with our product candidates. Patients who would otherwise be eligible for our clinical trials may instead enroll in clinical trials of our competitors’ product candidates or rely upon treatment with existing therapies that may preclude them from eligibility for our clinical trials.

Enrollment delays in our clinical trials may result in increased development costs for our product candidates, which would cause the value of the company to decline and limit our ability to obtain additional financing. Our inability to enroll a sufficient number of patients for any of our current or future clinical trials would result in significant delays or may require us to abandon one or more clinical trials altogether.

In general, we forecast enrollment for our clinical trials based on experience from previous clinical trials and monitor enrollment to be able to make adjustments to clinical trials when appropriate, including as a result of slower than expected enrollment that we experience from time to time in our clinical trials. It is possible that slow enrollment could require us to make adjustments to our clinical trials. If these adjustments do not overcome problems with slow enrollment, we could experience significant delays or abandon the applicable clinical trial altogether.

If we are unable to successfully develop companion diagnostics for our product candidates, or experience significant delays in doing so, we may not realize the full commercial potential of our product candidates.

An important component of our business strategy is to develop, either alone or together with third parties, companion diagnostics for each of our product candidates. There has been limited success to date industry-wide in developing companion diagnostics. To be successful, we will need to address a number of scientific, technical, regulatory and logistical challenges.

All of our companion diagnostic candidates are in preclinical or clinical development. We have limited experience in the development of companion diagnostics and may not be successful in developing appropriate diagnostics to pair with any of our product candidates that receive marketing approval. The FDA and similar regulatory authorities outside the United States are generally expected to regulate in vitro companion diagnostics as medical devices and to require separate regulatory approval prior to commercialization. Given our limited experience in developing diagnostics, we expect to rely in part on third parties for their design, development and manufacture. If we, or any third parties that we engage to assist us, are unable to successfully develop companion diagnostics for our product candidates, or experience delays in doing so, the development of our product candidates may be adversely

37

 

---

 

affected, our product candidates may not receive marketing approval and we may not realize the full commercial potential of any product candidates that receive marketing approval. As a result, our business would be harmed, possibly materially.

Any of our product candidates that receive regulatory approval may fail to achieve the degree of market acceptance by physicians, patients, healthcare payors and others in the medical community necessary for commercial success.

Even if any of our product candidates receive marketing approval, they may nonetheless not gain sufficient market acceptance by physicians, patients, healthcare payors and others in the medical community. If these products do not achieve an adequate level of acceptance, we may not generate significant product revenues and we may not become profitable. The degree of market acceptance of our product candidates, if approved for commercial sale, will depend on a number of factors that may be uncertain or subjective, including:

We face substantial competition, which may result in others discovering, developing or commercializing products before or more successfully than we do.

The development and commercialization of new therapeutic and diagnostic products is highly competitive. We face competition with respect to our current product candidates, and will face competition with respect to any products that we may seek to develop or commercialize in the future, from major pharmaceutical companies, specialty pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies worldwide. Several large pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies currently market and sell products for the treatment of the solid tumor indications for which we are developing our product candidates. Potential competitors also include academic institutions, government agencies and other public and private research organizations that conduct research, seek patent protection and establish collaborative arrangements for research, development, manufacturing and commercialization. Many of these competitors are attempting to develop therapeutics for our target indications.

We are developing our product candidates for the treatment of solid tumors. There are a variety of available therapies marketed for solid tumors. In many cases, these drugs are administered in combination to enhance efficacy. Some of these drugs are branded and subject to patent protection, and others are available on a generic basis. Many of these approved drugs are well established therapies and are widely accepted by physicians, patients and third-party payors. This may make it difficult for us to achieve our business strategy of replacing existing therapies with our product candidates.

There are also a number of products in late stage clinical development to treat solid tumors. Our competitors may develop products that are more effective, safer, more convenient or less costly than any that we are developing or that would render our product candidates obsolete or non-competitive. Our competitors may also obtain FDA or other regulatory approval for their products more rapidly than we may obtain approval for ours. In addition, our ability to compete may be affected because in many cases insurers or other third-party payors seek to encourage the use of generic products. There are many generic products currently on the market for the indications that we are pursuing, and additional products are expected to become available on a generic basis over the coming years.

Many of our competitors have significantly greater financial resources and expertise in research and development, manufacturing, preclinical testing, conducting clinical trials, obtaining regulatory approvals and marketing approved products than we do. Mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and diagnostic industries may result in even more resources being concentrated among a smaller number of our competitors. Smaller or early stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies. These third parties compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel, establishing clinical trial sites and patient registration for clinical trials, as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to, or necessary for, our programs.

38

 

---

 

Even if we are able to commercialize any of our product candidates, those product candidates may become subject to unfavorable pricing regulations, third-party reimbursement practices or healthcare reform initiatives, which could harm our business.

The regulations that govern marketing approvals, pricing and reimbursement for new therapeutic and diagnostic products vary widely from country to country. Some countries require approval of the sale price of a product before it can be marketed. In many countries, the pricing review period begins after marketing or product licensing approval is granted. In some foreign markets, prescription pharmaceutical pricing remains subject to continuing governmental control even after initial approval is granted. As a result, we might obtain regulatory approval for a product in a particular country, but then be subject to price regulations that delay our commercial launch of the product and negatively impact the revenues we are able to generate from the sale of the product in that country. Adverse pricing limitations may hinder our ability to recoup our investment in one or more product candidates, even if our product candidates obtain regulatory approval.

Our ability to commercialize any approved products successfully also will depend in part on the extent to which coverage and reimbursement for these products and related treatments will be available from third-party payors, including government payors such as Medicare and Medicaid, private health insurers and managed care organizations. There have been, and we expect there will continue to be, legislative and regulatory proposals to change the healthcare system in ways that could impact our ability to sell our products profitably. A primary trend in the U.S. healthcare industry and elsewhere is cost containment. The federal government, state legislatures and foreign governments have shown significant interest in implementing cost containment programs to limit the growth of government-paid healthcare costs, including price controls, restrictions on reimbursement and requirements for substitution of generic products for branded prescription drugs. Adoption of such controls and measures, and tightening of restrictive policies in jurisdictions with existing controls and measures, could limit payments for pharmaceuticals and the other product candidates that we are developing and could have a material adverse effect our net revenue and results.

Third-party payors decide which drugs they will pay for and establish reimbursement and co-pay levels. The growing emphasis on managed care in the United States has increased and we expect will continue to increase the pressure on drug pricing. Third-party payors are increasingly challenging the prices charged for medical products and services and examining the medical necessity and cost-effectiveness of medical products and services, in addition to their safety and efficacy. If these third-party payors do not consider our products to be cost-effective compared to other available therapies, they may not cover our products after approval as a benefit under their plans or, if they do, the level of payment may not be sufficient to allow us to sell our products at a profit. In order to secure coverage and reimbursement for any product that might be approved for sale, we may need to conduct expensive pharmacoeconomic studies in order to demonstrate the medical necessity and cost-effectiveness of the product, in addition to the costs required to obtain FDA or other comparable regulatory approvals. Even with clinical trials, our product candidates may be considered less safe, less effective or less cost-effective than other products, and third-party payors may not provide coverage and reimbursement for our products or any of our product candidates that we commercialize, in whole or in part.

The process for determining whether a payor will provide coverage for a drug product may be separate from the process for setting the price or reimbursement rate that the payor will pay for the drug product once coverage is approved. Third-party payors may limit coverage to specific drug products on a formulary, which might not include all of the approved drugs for a particular indication, and a payor’s decision to provide coverage for a drug product does not imply that an adequate reimbursement rate will be approved.

We cannot be sure that reimbursement will be available for any product that we commercialize and, if reimbursement is available, what the level of reimbursement will be. Reimbursement may impact the demand for, or the price of, any product for which we obtain marketing approval. Third-party reimbursement may not be sufficient to enable us to maintain price levels high enough to realize an appropriate return on our investment in product development. Obtaining reimbursement for our products may be particularly difficult because of the higher prices often associated with products administered under the supervision of a physician. In addition, coverage policies, third-party reimbursement rates and drug pricing regulation may change at any time. Thus, even if favorable coverage and reimbursement status is attained for one or more products for which we receive regulatory approval, less favorable coverage policies and reimbursement rates may be implemented in the future. The marketability of any products for which we receive regulatory approval for commercial sale may also suffer if the government and third-party payors fail to provide adequate coverage and reimbursement. If reimbursement is not available or is available only to limited levels, we may not be able to successfully commercialize any product candidate that we successfully develop.

Moreover, there may be significant delays in obtaining reimbursement for any approved products, and coverage may be more limited than the purposes for which the product is approved by the FDA or regulatory authorities in other countries. Eligibility for reimbursement does not imply that any product will be paid for in all cases or at a rate that covers our costs, including research, development, manufacture, sale and distribution. Interim payments for new products, if applicable, may also not be sufficient to cover our costs and may not be made permanent. Payment rates may vary according to the use of the product and the clinical setting in which it is used, may be based on payments allowed for lower cost products that are already reimbursed, and may be incorporated into existing payments for other services. Net prices for products may be reduced by mandatory discounts or rebates required by

39

 

---

 

government healthcare programs or private payors and by any future weakening of laws that presently restrict imports of products from countries where they may be sold at lower prices than in the United States. Third-party payors often rely upon Medicare coverage policy and payment limitations in setting their own reimbursement policies. Our inability to promptly obtain coverage and appropriate payment rates from both government-funded and private payors for new products that we develop could therefore have a material adverse effect on our operating results, our ability to raise capital needed to commercialize products, and our overall financial condition.

Product liability lawsuits against us could cause us to incur substantial liabilities and to limit commercialization of any products that we may develop.

We face an inherent risk of product liability exposure related to the testing of our product candidates in human clinical trials and an even greater risk related to the commercial sale of any products that we may develop. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against claims that any of our product candidates caused injuries, we will incur substantial liabilities. Regardless of merit or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in:

We currently hold $10.0 million in product liability insurance coverage, which may not be adequate to cover all liabilities that we may incur. Insurance coverage is increasingly expensive. We may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost or in an amount adequate to satisfy any or every liability that may arise.

We may expend our limited resources to pursue a particular product candidate or indication and fail to capitalize on product candidates or indications that may be more profitable or for which there is a greater likelihood of success.

Because we have limited financial and managerial resources, we focus on research programs and product candidates for specific indications. As a result, we may forego or delay pursuit of opportunities with other product candidates or other indications that later prove to have greater commercial potential. Our resource allocation decisions may cause us to fail to capitalize on viable commercial products or profitable market opportunities. Our spending on current and future research and development programs and product candidates for specific indications may not yield any commercially viable products.

We also may not be successful in our efforts to identify or discover new or additional product candidates beyond our current preclinical and clinical product candidates. Research programs to identify new product candidates require substantial technical, financial and human resources. These research programs may initially show promise in identifying potential product candidates, yet fail to yield product candidates for clinical development.

If we do not accurately evaluate the commercial potential or target market for a particular product candidate, we may relinquish valuable rights to that product candidate through collaboration, licensing or other royalty arrangements in cases in which it would have otherwise been more advantageous for us to retain sole development and commercialization rights.

If we fail to comply with environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, we could become subject to fines or penalties or incur costs that could have a material adverse effect on the success of our business.

We are subject to numerous environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, including those governing laboratory procedures and the handling, use, storage, treatment and disposal of hazardous materials and wastes. Our operations involve the use of hazardous and flammable materials, including chemicals and radioactive and biological materials. Our operations also produce hazardous waste products. We generally contract with third parties for the disposal of these materials and wastes. We also store certain low level radioactive waste at our facilities until the materials can be properly disposed of. We cannot eliminate the risk of contamination or injury from these materials. In the event of contamination or injury resulting from our use of hazardous materials, we could be held liable for any resulting damages, and any liability could exceed our resources. We also could incur significant costs associated with civil or criminal fines and penalties.

40

 

---

 

Although we maintain workers’ compensation insurance to cover us for costs and expenses we may incur due to injuries to our employees resulting from the use of hazardous materials, this insurance may not provide adequate coverage against potential liabilities. We do not maintain insurance for environmental liability or toxic tort claims that may be asserted against us in connection with our storage, use or disposal of biological, hazardous or radioactive materials.

In addition, we may be required to incur substantial costs to comply with current or future environmental, health and safety laws and regulations. These current or future laws and regulations may impair our research, development or production efforts. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations also may result in substantial fines, penalties or other sanctions.

Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates could substantially increase the costs of our clinical trial programs.

A significant portion of our clinical trial activities are conducted outside of the United States, and associated costs may be incurred in the local currency of the country in which the trial is being conducted, which costs could be subject to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates. At present, we do not engage in hedging transactions to protect against uncertainty in future exchange rates between particular foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar. A decline in the value of the U.S. dollar against currencies in geographies in which we conduct clinical trials could have a negative impact on our research and development costs. We cannot predict the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, and foreign currency fluctuations in the future may adversely affect our development costs.

Risks Related to Our Dependence on Third Parties

We may depend on collaborations with third parties for the development and commercialization of our product candidates. If those collaborations are not successful, we may not be able to capitalize on the market potential of these product candidates.

Depending on our capital requirements, development and commercialization costs, need for additional therapeutic expertise and other factors, it is possible that we will enter into additional development and commercialization arrangements with respect to either oncology product candidates or product candidates in other therapeutic areas.

Our potential collaborators for any distribution, marketing, licensing or broader collaboration arrangements include large and mid-size pharmaceutical companies, regional and national pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies. We will have limited control over the amount and timing of resources that our collaborators dedicate to the development or commercialization of our product candidates. Our ability to generate revenues from these arrangements will depend on our collaborators’ abilities to successfully perform the functions assigned to them in these arrangements.

Collaborations involving our product candidates pose the following risks to us:

41

 

---

 

Collaboration agreements may not lead to development or commercialization of product candidates in the most efficient manner or at all. In addition, there have been a significant number of recent business combinations among large pharmaceutical companies that have resulted in a reduced number of potential future collaborators. If a present or future collaborator of ours were to be involved in a business combination, the continued pursuit and emphasis on our product development or commercialization program could be delayed, diminished or terminated.

For instance, although it is not a collaboration agreement, Ipsen has agreed pursuant to the asset sale agreement to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop ONIVYDE in connection with obtaining the regulatory approval by the FDA of ONIVYDE for certain indications. Although the results of this approval process may enable Ipsen to achieve the milestones necessary for us to receive the contingent payments under the asset sale agreement, there is no guarantee that Ipsen will take the steps set forth in the asset sale agreement and that such development will lead to the successful approval of ONIVYDE for such additional indications. Therefore, there can be no guarantees that any of the milestones set forth in the asset sale agreement will be achieved and that we will receive any future contingent payments. Similarly, although the asset sale agreement entitles us to receive certain net milestone payments of up to $33.0 million under the Baxalta agreement, achievement of such milestones and payment of any or all of the $33.0 million is not guaranteed.

If we are not able to establish additional collaborations, we may have to alter our development plans.

Our product development programs and the potential commercialization of any approved product candidates will require substantial additional cash to fund expenses. For some of our product candidates, we may decide to collaborate with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for the development and potential commercialization of those product candidates.

We face significant competition in seeking appropriate collaborators. Collaborations are complex and time-consuming to negotiate and document. We may also be restricted under existing collaboration agreements from entering into agreements on certain terms with other potential collaborators. We may not be able to negotiate collaborations on acceptable terms, or at all. If that were to occur, we may have to curtail the development of a particular product candidate, reduce or delay its development program or one or more of our other development programs, delay its potential commercialization or reduce the scope of our sales or marketing activities, or increase our expenditures and undertake development or commercialization activities at our own expense. If we elect to increase our expenditures to fund development or commercialization activities on our own, we may need to obtain additional capital, which may not be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. If we do not have sufficient funds, we will not be able to bring our product candidates to market and generate product revenue.

We rely on third parties to conduct our clinical trials, and those third parties may not perform satisfactorily, including failing to meet deadlines for the completion of such trials.

We do not independently conduct clinical trials of our product candidates. We rely on third parties, such as contract research organizations, clinical data management organizations, medical institutions and clinical investigators, to perform this function. Our reliance on these third parties for clinical development activities reduces our control over these activities but does not relieve us of our responsibilities. We remain responsible for ensuring that each of our clinical trials is conducted in accordance with the general investigational plan and protocols for the trial. Moreover, the FDA and other international regulatory agencies require us to comply with standards, commonly referred to as good clinical practices, for conducting, recording and reporting the results of clinical trials to assure that adverse event data are reported within required timeframes, that data and reported results are credible and accurate and that the rights, integrity and confidentiality of patients in clinical trials are protected. Furthermore, these third parties may also have relationships with other entities, some of which may be our competitors. If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties, meet expected deadlines or conduct our clinical trials in accordance with regulatory requirements or our stated protocols, we will not be able to obtain, or may be delayed in obtaining, regulatory approvals for our product candidates and will not be able to, or may be delayed in our efforts to, successfully commercialize our product candidates.

We also rely on other third parties to store and distribute supplies for our clinical trials. Any performance failure on the part of our existing or future distributors could delay clinical development or regulatory approval of our product candidates or commercialization of our products or cause us to incur additional costs, producing additional losses and depriving us of potential product revenue.

42

 

---

 

We also intend to utilize companion diagnostics in several of our current and planned clinical trials, including our current clinical trials of MM-121, MM-141 and MM-310, to preselect patients who will receive specified treatment regimens. We will rely on third party laboratories to test patient samples in connection with such companion diagnostics. Any failure on the part of these laboratories to properly perform such testing could jeopardize those clinical trials and delay or prevent the approval of the associated product candidate.

Risks Related to the Manufacturing of Our Product Candidates

We rely on third parties for the production of our product candidates. This increases the risk that we will not have sufficient quantities of our product candidates at an acceptable cost or on an acceptable schedule, which could delay, prevent or impair our development or commercialization efforts.

We rely on third-party manufacturers for most of the aspects of the production of our product candidates, including the production of bulk drug substance and fill finish and labeling activities. Reliance on third-party manufacturers entails risks, including:

Third-party manufacturers may not be able to comply with current good manufacturing practices, or cGMP, or Quality System Regulation, or QSR, or similar regulatory requirements outside the United States. Our failure, or the failure of our third-party manufacturers, to comply with applicable regulations could result in sanctions being imposed on us, including fines, injunctions, civil penalties, delays, suspension or withdrawal of approvals, license revocation, seizures or recalls of products, operating restrictions and criminal prosecutions, any of which could significantly and adversely affect supplies of our product candidates.

For instance, in 2010, a former fill finish third-party contractor that we used to fill and package MM-121 experienced FDA inspection issues with its quality control processes that resulted in a formal warning letter from the FDA. As a result, we pulled some MM-121 from clinical trial sites and replaced it with MM-121 that was filled by a different contractor. This restocking resulted in a few patients missing one or two doses of MM-121. It is possible that we could experience similar issues with other contractors.

Furthermore, our products may compete with the products of other companies for access to manufacturing facilities. Because there are a limited number of manufacturers that operate under cGMP or QSR regulations and that might be capable of manufacturing for us at an appropriate scale, we may not have access to such manufacturers.

In connection with the asset sale, we entered into a transition services agreement with Ipsen, pursuant to which we and Ipsen are providing certain services to each other for a period of 24 months, including Ipsen’s agreement to manufacture MM-310 pursuant to a manufacturing services agreement. We are also party to a manufacturing agreement with Samsung for the manufacture of MM-121 and performance of associated quality related services. Although we are discussing arrangements with other third parties for our other product candidates, we do not currently have agreements for such arrangements in place and may be unable to conclude such agreements or to do so on acceptable terms.

We also rely on certain single suppliers for certain materials that we use for the manufacture of our product candidates. We purchase these materials from our suppliers on a purchase order basis and do not have long-term supply agreements in place. Any performance failure or refusal to supply on the part of our existing or future suppliers could delay clinical development, marketing approval or commercialization of our products. If our current suppliers cannot perform as agreed, we may be required to replace one or more of these suppliers. Although we believe that there may be a number of potential long-term replacements to each supplier, we may incur added costs and delays in identifying and qualifying any such replacements.

We also rely upon third-party manufacturers to provide us with necessary reagents and instruments to develop, test and manufacture our in vitro diagnostics.

Our dependence upon others for the manufacture of our product candidates and companion diagnostics may adversely affect our future profit margins and our ability to commercialize any products that receive regulatory approval on a timely and competitive basis.

43

 

---

 

Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property

If we fail to fulfill our obligations under our intellectual property licenses with third parties, we could lose license rights that are important to our business.

We are a party to a number of intellectual property license agreements with third parties, including with respect to MM-121, MM-141 and MM-310, and expect to enter into additional license agreements in the future. Our existing license agreements impose, and we expect that our future license agreements will impose, various diligence, milestone payment, royalty, insurance and other obligations on us. If we fail to comply with these obligations, our licensors may have the right to terminate these agreements, in which event we might not be able to develop and market any product that is covered by these agreements. Termination of these licenses or reduction or elimination of our licensed rights may result in our having to negotiate new or reinstated licenses with less favorable terms. The occurrence of such events could materially harm our business.

If we are unable to obtain and maintain patent protection for our technology and products, or if our licensors are unable to obtain and maintain patent protection for the technology or products that we license from them, our competitors could develop and commercialize technology and products similar or identical to ours, and our ability to successfully commercialize our technology and products may be adversely affected.

Our success depends in large part on our and our licensors’ ability to obtain and maintain patent protection in the United States and other countries with respect to our proprietary technology and products. In some circumstances, we may not have the right to control the preparation, filing and prosecution of patent applications, or to maintain the patents, covering technology or products that we license from third parties. Therefore, we cannot be certain that these patents and applications will be prosecuted and enforced in a manner consistent with the best interests of our business. In addition, if third parties who license patents to us fail to maintain such patents, or lose rights to those patents, the rights we have licensed may be reduced or eliminated.

We have sought to protect our proprietary position by filing patent applications in the United States and abroad related to our novel technologies and products that are important to our business. This process is expensive and time-consuming, and we may not be able to file and prosecute all necessary or desirable patent applications at a reasonable cost or in a timely manner. It is also possible that we will fail to identify patentable aspects of our research and development output before it is too late to obtain patent protection.

The patent position of biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies generally is highly uncertain, involves complex legal and factual questions and has in recent years been the subject of much litigation. As a result, the issuance, scope, validity, enforceability and commercial value of our and our licensors’ patent rights are highly uncertain. Our and our licensors’ pending and future patent applications may not result in patents being issued that protect our technology or products or that effectively prevent others from commercializing competitive technologies and products. Changes in either the patent laws or interpretation of the patent laws in the United States and other countries may diminish the value of our patents or narrow the scope of our patent protection. The laws of foreign countries may not protect our rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States. Publications of discoveries in the scientific literature often lag behind the actual discoveries, and patent applications in the United States and other jurisdictions are typically not published until 18 months after filing, or in some cases not at all. Therefore, we cannot be certain that we or our licensors were the first to make the inventions claimed in our owned and licensed patents or pending patent applications, or that we or our licensors were the first to file for patent protection of such inventions. Assuming the other requirements for patentability are met, the first to file a patent application is entitled to the patent. Under the America Invents Act enacted in 2011, the United States moved to this first to file system in 2013 from the previous system under which the first to make the claimed invention was entitled to the patent. We may become involved in opposition, interference or derivation proceedings challenging our patent rights or the patent rights of others. An adverse determination in any such proceeding could reduce the scope of, or invalidate, our patent rights, allow third parties to commercialize our technology or products and compete directly with us, without payment to us, or result in our inability to manufacture or commercialize products without infringing third-party patent rights.

Even if our owned and licensed patent applications issue as patents, they may not issue in a form that will provide us with any meaningful protection, prevent competitors from competing with us or otherwise provide us with any competitive advantage. Our competitors may be able to circumvent our owned or licensed patents by developing similar or alternative technologies or products in a non-infringing manner. The issuance of a patent is not conclusive as to its scope, validity or enforceability, and our owned and licensed patents may be challenged in the courts or patent offices in the United States and abroad. Such challenges may result in patent claims being narrowed, invalidated or held unenforceable, which could limit our ability to stop or prevent us from stopping others from using or commercializing similar or identical technology and products, or limit the duration of the patent protection of our technology and products. Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting such candidates might expire before or shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, our owned and licensed patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.

44

 

---

 

We may become involved in lawsuits to protect or enforce our patents, which could be expensive, time-consuming and unsuccessful.

Competitors may infringe our patents. To counter infringement or unauthorized use, we may be required to initiate infringement lawsuits, which can be expensive and time-consuming. In addition, in an infringement proceeding, a court may decide that a patent of ours is invalid or unenforceable, or may refuse to stop the other party from using the technology at issue on the grounds that our patents do not cover the technology in question. An adverse result in any litigation proceeding could put one or more of our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation.

Third parties may initiate legal proceedings alleging that we are infringing their intellectual property rights, the outcome of which would be uncertain and could have a material adverse effect on the success of our business.

Our commercial success depends upon our ability and the ability of our collaborators to develop, manufacture, market and sell our products and product candidates and use our proprietary technologies without infringing the enforceable proprietary rights of third parties. We may become party to, or threatened with, future adversarial proceedings or litigation regarding intellectual property rights with respect to our products and technology, including interference or derivation proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Third parties may assert infringement claims against us based on existing patents or patents that may be granted in the future. If we are found to infringe a third party’s intellectual property rights, we could be required to obtain a license from such third party to continue developing and marketing our products and technology. However, we may not be able to obtain any required license on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Even if we were able to obtain a license, it could be non-exclusive, thereby giving our competitors access to the same technologies licensed to us. We could be forced, including by court order, to cease commercializing the infringing technology or product. In addition, we could be found liable for monetary damages. A finding of infringement could prevent us from commercializing our product candidates or force us to cease some of our business operations, which could materially harm our business. Claims that we have misappropriated the confidential information or trade secrets of third parties can have a similar negative impact on our business.

We may be subject to claims that our employees have wrongfully used or disclosed alleged trade secrets of their former employers.

Many of our employees were previously employed at universities or other biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, including our competitors or potential competitors. Although we try to ensure that our employees do not use the proprietary information or know-how of others in their work for us, we may be subject to claims that we or these employees have used or disclosed intellectual property, including trade secrets or other proprietary information, of any such employee’s former employer. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims. If we fail in defending any such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights or personnel. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management.

Intellectual property litigation could cause us to spend substantial resources and distract our personnel from their normal responsibilities.

Even if resolved in our favor, litigation or other legal proceedings relating to intellectual property claims may cause us to incur significant expenses, and could distract our technical and management personnel from their normal responsibilities. In addition, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments and if securities analysts or investors perceive these results to be negative, it could have a substantial adverse effect on the price of our common stock. Such litigation or proceedings could substantially increase our operating losses and reduce our resources available for development activities. We may not have sufficient financial or other resources to adequately conduct such litigation or proceedings. Some of our competitors may be able to sustain the costs of such litigation or proceedings more effectively than we can because of their substantially greater financial resources. Uncertainties resulting from the initiation and continuation of patent litigation or other proceedings could have a material adverse effect on our ability to compete in the marketplace.

If we are unable to protect the confidentiality of our trade secrets, our business and competitive position would be harmed.

In addition to our patented technology and products, we rely on trade secrets, including unpatented know-how, technology and other proprietary information, to maintain our competitive position. We seek to protect these trade secrets, in part, by entering into non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements with parties that have access to them, such as our employees, corporate collaborators, outside scientific collaborators, sponsored researchers, contract manufacturers, consultants, advisors and other third parties. We also enter into confidentiality and invention or patent assignment agreements with our employees and consultants. Any of these parties may breach these agreements and disclose our proprietary information, and we may not be able to obtain adequate remedies for such

45

 

---

 

breaches. Enforcing a claim that a party illegally disclosed or misappropriated a trade secret is difficult, expensive and time-consuming, and the outcome is unpredictable. In addition, some courts inside and outside the United States are less willing or unwilling to protect trade secrets. If any of our trade secrets were to be lawfully obtained or independently developed by a competitor, we would have no right to prevent them from using that technology or information to compete with us. If any of our trade secrets were to be disclosed to or independently developed by a competitor, our competitive position would be harmed.

We may not be able to obtain, maintain or protect proprietary rights necessary for the continued development and commercialization of our products, product candidates and research technologies, including as a result of challenges from companies who seek to sell generic or biosimilar versions of our products after expiration of any regulatory exclusivity but prior to the applicable patent expiration.

Our commercial success depends in large part on obtaining and maintaining U.S. and foreign patent protection for our products, our product candidates and our research technologies and successfully enforcing and defending these patents against third-party challenges, including with respect to generic or biosimilar challenges. The validity of our patents in one or more jurisdictions may be challenged by third parties, resulting in our patents being deemed invalid, unenforceable or narrowed in scope, which could compromise the scope or duration of our exclusive rights in the relevant product, product candidate or technology. For example, the validity of a U.S. patent can be challenged in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (e.g., through an Inter Partes Review and/or Post Grant Review proceeding) and/or in U.S. federal district court.

In addition, our patents may also be challenged in a federal court in connection with a third party’s abbreviated new drug application, or ANDA, a Section 505(b)(2) new drug application, or NDA, or an abbreviated Biologic License Application, or aBLA, seeking FDA approval to market a generic version or a biosimilar version of our products, resulting in a patent challenge to one or more patents listed in the Orange Book for our product or that protect our biologic product. This patent challenge can result in one or more of those patents for our products being deemed uninfringed, invalid, unenforceable and/or narrowed in scope, which could compromise the scope or duration of our exclusive rights in the relevant product. An ANDA, Section 505(b)(2) NDA or aBLA can be filed after FDA approval of a product and the expiration of any relevant regulatory exclusivity. Other challenges to a patent may be mounted without regard to the date of an FDA approval.

Our patents as issued or as subsequently limited by any litigation might not contain claims that are sufficiently broad to prevent others from circumventing our patent protection and utilizing our technologies. For instance, the issued patents relating to our product candidates may be limited to a particular indication and/or composition and may not cover similar compositions that have similar clinical properties. Consequently, our competitors may independently develop competing products that do not infringe our patents or other intellectual property. Also, our pending patent applications may not issue, and we may not receive any additional patents. We cannot be sure that our patents and patent applications, including our own and those that we have rights to under licenses from third parties, will adequately protect our intellectual property for a number of reasons, including, among other things, the following: (i) the patent positions of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies can be highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions; (ii) the actual protection afforded by a patent can vary from country to country and may depend upon the type of patent, the scope of its coverage and the availability of legal remedies in the country; (iii) the laws of foreign countries in which we market our products may afford little or no effective protection to our intellectual property, thereby easing our competitors' ability to compete with us in such countries; (iv) intellectual property laws and regulations and legal standards relating to the validity, scope and enforcement of patents covering pharmaceutical and biotechnological inventions are continually developing and changing, both in the United States and in other important markets outside the United States; (v) third parties may challenge, infringe, circumvent or seek to invalidate existing or future patents owned by or licensed to us; and (vi) the coverage claimed in a patent application can be significantly reduced before the patent is issued, and, as a consequence, our and our partners' patent applications may result in patents with narrower coverage than we desire or have planned for.

Risks Related to Regulatory Approval of Our Product Candidates

If we are not able to obtain required regulatory approvals, we will not be able to commercialize our product candidates, and our ability to generate revenue will be materially impaired.

Our product candidates, including our clinical stage product candidates, and the activities associated with their development and commercialization, including their design, testing, manufacture, safety, efficacy, recordkeeping, labeling, storage, approval, advertising, promotion, sale and distribution, import, export, sampling and marketing are subject to comprehensive regulation by the FDA and other regulatory agencies in the United States and by comparable authorities in other countries. Failure to obtain regulatory approval for a product candidate will prevent us from commercializing the product candidate. ONIVYDE was our first and only product candidate to receive regulatory approval, and so we have only limited experience in filing and supporting the applications necessary to gain regulatory approvals. Securing regulatory approval requires the submission of extensive preclinical and clinical data and supporting information to the FDA and other regulatory agencies for each therapeutic indication to establish the product

46

 

---

 

candidate’s safety and efficacy. Securing regulatory approval also requires the submission of information about the product manufacturing process to, and inspection of manufacturing facilities by, the FDA or other regulatory agencies. Our product candidates may not be effective, may be only moderately effective or may prove to have undesirable or unintended side effects, toxicities or other characteristics that may preclude our obtaining regulatory approval or prevent or limit commercial use.

The process of obtaining regulatory approvals is expensive, may take many years if additional clinical trials are required, if approval is obtained at all, and can vary substantially based on a variety of factors, including the type, complexity and novelty of the product candidates involved. Changes in regulatory approval policies during the development period, changes in or the enactment of additional statutes or regulations, changes in regulatory review for each submitted product application or approval of other products for the same indication may cause delays in the approval or rejection of an application. Regulatory agencies have substantial discretion in the approval process and may refuse to accept any application or may decide that our data is insufficient for approval and require additional preclinical, clinical or other studies. In addition, varying interpretations of the data obtained from preclinical and clinical testing could delay, limit or prevent regulatory approval of a product candidate. Any regulatory approval we ultimately obtain may be limited or subject to restrictions or post-approval commitments that render the approved product not commercially viable.

If we continue to pursue development of companion diagnostics to identify patients who are likely to benefit from our product candidates, failure to obtain approval for the companion diagnostic may prevent or delay approval of the product candidate.

We are attempting to develop companion diagnostics to identify patients who are likely to benefit from our product candidates. We currently rely on and expect to continue to rely on third parties for much of the development, testing and manufacturing of our companion diagnostics. We will likely rely on such third parties to also obtain any required regulatory approval for and then commercially supply such companion diagnostics. All of our companion diagnostic candidates are in preclinical development or clinical feasibility testing. We have very limited experience in the development of diagnostics and, even with the help of third parties with greater experience, may fail to obtain the required diagnostic product marketing approval, which could prevent or delay approval of the product candidate.

In July 2014, the FDA issued final guidance that stated that if safe and effective use of a therapeutic depends on an in vitro diagnostic, then the FDA generally will not approve the therapeutic unless the FDA approves or clears this “in vitro companion diagnostic device” at the same time that the FDA approves the therapeutic. The approval or clearance of the in vitro diagnostic most likely will occur through the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health. Even with the issuance of the final guidance, the FDA’s expectations for in vitro companion diagnostics remain unclear in some respects. The FDA’s developing expectations will affect our in vitro companion diagnostics. In particular, the FDA may limit our ability to use retrospective data, otherwise disagree with our approaches to trial design, biomarker qualification, clinical and analytical validity and clinical utility, or make us repeat aspects of the trial or initiate new trials.

Because our companion diagnostic candidates are at an early stage of development, we cannot yet know what the FDA will require for any of these tests. For our clinical stage product candidates, we are attempting to develop an in vitro companion diagnostic that will help identify patients likely to benefit from the therapy. Whether the FDA will consider these in vitro diagnostics to be “in vitro companion diagnostic devices” that require simultaneous approval or clearance with the therapeutics will depend on whether the FDA views the diagnostics to be essential to the safety and efficacy of these therapeutics.

Based on the FDA’s past practice with companion diagnostics, if we are successful in developing a diagnostic for any of our clinical stage product candidates, we would expect that FDA approval of an in vitro companion diagnostic would be required for approval and subsequent commercialization of each such product candidate. We are not aware of any currently available diagnostics that, if necessary, would otherwise allow us to proceed with the approval and subsequent commercialization of our product candidates despite a delay in or failure of our attempts to develop diagnostics.

Because we expect to rely on third parties for various aspects of the development, testing and manufacture, as well as for regulatory approval for and commercial supply, of our companion diagnostics, the commercial success of any of our product candidates that require a diagnostic will be tied to and dependent on the continued ability of such third parties to make the diagnostic commercially available on reasonable terms in the relevant geographies.

If we fail to maintain orphan drug designation for MM-121 or MM-141, we will have to rely on other rights and protections.

We obtained orphan drug designation in the United States for MM-121 for the treatment of heregulin positive non-small cell lung cancer and for MM-141 for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. In the United States, under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may designate a product as an orphan drug if it is a drug intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally defined as a patient population of fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States.

47

 

---

 

In the United States, the company that first obtains FDA approval for a designated orphan drug for the specified rare disease or condition receives orphan drug marketing exclusivity for that drug for that indication for a period of seven years. This orphan drug exclusivity prevents the FDA from approving another application, including a full NDA, to market the same drug for the same orphan indication, except in limited circumstances. For purposes of small molecule drugs, the FDA defines the term “same drug” to mean a drug that contains the same active molecule and that is intended for the same use as the approved orphan drug. Orphan drug exclusivity may be lost if the FDA determines that the request for designation was materially defective or if the manufacturer is unable to assure sufficient quantity of the drug to meet the needs of patients with the rare disease or condition. Additionally, maintenance of the orphan drug designation requires the company holding such designation to continue to actively pursue development in that indication.

Even if we obtain orphan drug exclusivity for a product, that exclusivity may not effectively protect the product from competition because different drugs can be approved for the same condition. Even after an orphan drug is approved, the FDA can subsequently approve the same drug for the same condition if the FDA concludes that the later drug is clinically superior in that it is shown to be safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care.

On August 3, 2017, Congress passed the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017, or FDARA. FDARA, among other things, codified the FDA’s pre-existing regulatory interpretation to require that a drug sponsor demonstrate the clinical superiority of an orphan drug that is otherwise the same as a previously approved drug for the same rare disease in order to receive orphan drug exclusivity. The new legislation reverses prior precedent holding that the Orphan Drug Act unambiguously requires that the FDA recognize the orphan exclusivity period regardless of a showing of clinical superiority. The FDA may further reevaluate the Orphan Drug Act and its regulations and policies. We do not know if, when or how the FDA may change the orphan drug regulations and policies in the future, and it is uncertain how any such changes might affect our business. Depending on what changes the FDA may make to its orphan drug regulations and policies, our business could be adversely impacted.

Our product candidates for which we intend to seek approval as biological or drug products may face competition sooner than expected.

With the enactment of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009, or BPCIA, as part of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, or the Health Care Reform Laws, an abbreviated pathway for the approval of biosimilar and interchangeable biological products was created. The abbreviated regulatory pathway establishes legal authority for the FDA to review and approve biosimilar biologics, including the possible designation of a biosimilar as “interchangeable” based on their similarity to existing brand product. Under the BPCIA, an application for a biosimilar product cannot be approved by the FDA until twelve years after the original branded product was approved under a biologics license application, or BLA. The BPCIA is complex and has yet to be fully interpreted and implemented by the FDA. As a result, its ultimate impact, implementation and meaning is subject to uncertainty. While it is uncertain when any such processes may be fully adopted by the FDA, any such processes could have a material adverse effect on the future commercial prospects for our biological products.

We believe that any of our products approved as a biological product under a BLA should qualify for the twelve year period of exclusivity. However:

Moreover, the extent to which a biosimilar, once approved, will be substituted for any one of our reference products in a way that is similar to traditional generic substitution for non-biological products is not yet clear and will depend on a number of marketplace and regulatory factors that are still developing.

In addition, a drug product approved under an NDA could face generic competition earlier than expected. The enactment of the Generic Drug User Fee Amendments of 2012 as part of the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act of 2012 established a user fee program that will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for the FDA’s generic drug review program. Funding from the user fee program, along with performance goals that the FDA negotiated with the generic drug industry, is significantly decreasing the timeframe for FDA review and approval of generic drug applications.

48

 

---

 

Failure to obtain regulatory approval in international jurisdictions would prevent us from marketing our products abroad.

We intend to market any product for which we obtain marketing approval, either ourselves or with commercialization partners, both within and outside the United States. This may increase the risks described below with respect to our compliance with foreign regulations.

In order to market and sell any approved products in the European Union and many other jurisdictions, we or our commercialization partners must obtain separate regulatory approvals and comply with numerous and varying regulatory requirements. The approval procedure varies among countries and can involve additional testing, including sometimes additional testing in children. The time required to obtain approval in foreign countries may differ substantially from that required to obtain FDA approval. The regulatory approval process outside the United States generally includes all of the risks associated with obtaining FDA approval. In addition, in many countries outside the United States, it is required that the product be approved for reimbursement before the product can be sold in that country. We or our future commercialization partners may not obtain approvals from regulatory authorities outside the United States on a timely basis, if at all. Approval by the FDA does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries or jurisdictions, and approval by one regulatory authority outside the United States does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries or jurisdictions or by the FDA. We or our future commercialization partners may not be able to file for regulatory approvals and may not receive necessary approvals to commercialize our products in any market.

Additionally, on June 23, 2016, the electorate in the United Kingdom voted in favor of leaving the European Union, commonly referred to as Brexit. On March 29, 2017, the country formally notified the European Union of its intention to withdraw pursuant to Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Since a significant proportion of the regulatory framework in the United Kingdom is derived from European Union directives and regulations, the referendum could materially impact the regulatory regime with respect to the approval of our product candidates in the United Kingdom or the European Union. Any delay in obtaining, or an inability to obtain, any marketing approvals as a result of Brexit or otherwise would prevent us from commercializing our product candidates in the United Kingdom and/or the European Union and restrict our ability to generate revenue and achieve and sustain profitability. If any of these outcomes occur, we may be forced to restrict or delay efforts to seek regulatory approval in the United Kingdom and/or European Union for our product candidates, which could significantly and materially harm our business.

Any product for which we obtain marketing approval could be subject to restrictions or withdrawal from the market and we may be subject to penalties if we fail to comply with regulatory requirements or if we experience unanticipated problems with our products, when and if any of them are approved.

Any product for which we may obtain marketing approval, along with the manufacturing processes, post-approval clinical data, labeling, advertising and promotional activities for such product, will be subject to continual requirements of and review by the FDA and other regulatory authorities. These requirements include submissions of safety and other post-marketing information and reports, registration and listing requirements, cGMP or QSR requirements relating to quality control, quality assurance and corresponding maintenance of records and documents, requirements regarding the distribution of samples to physicians and recordkeeping. Even if regulatory approval of a product is granted, the approval may be subject to limitations on the indicated uses for which the product may be marketed or to the conditions of approval, or contain requirements for costly post-marketing testing and surveillance to monitor the safety or efficacy of the product. Later discovery of previously unknown problems with our products, manufacturers or manufacturing processes, or failure to comply with regulatory requirements, may result in actions such as:

49

 

---

 

The FDA has sweeping inspection authorities to enforce the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Under the statute, a drug or biologic will be considered adulterated, with possible resulting civil and criminal penalties, if the owner or operator of the establishment where it is made, processed, packed or held delays, denies, limits or refuses inspection. The FDA employs a risk-based inspection schedule to ensure compliance. The law grants the FDA authority to require a drug or biologics manufacturer to provide, in advance or instead of an inspection, and at the manufacturer’s expense, any records or other information that the agency may otherwise inspect at the facility. The FDA may also share inspection information with foreign governments under certain circumstances.

The FDA also has broad authority to take action against manufacturers of drugs or biologics that are not adhering to pediatric study requirements, which apply even if the manufacturer is not seeking to market the drug or biologic to pediatric patients. As of April 2013, the FDA must issue non-compliance letters to companies who do not meet the pediatric study requirements. Any company receiving a non-compliance letter would have an opportunity to respond, and the non-compliance letter and company response would become publicly available.

Current and future legislation may increase the difficulty and cost for us and any future collaborators to obtain marketing approval of and commercialize our product candidates and affect the prices we, or they, may obtain.

In the United States and some foreign jurisdictions, there have been and continue to be a number of legislative and regulatory changes and proposed changes regarding the healthcare system that could, among other things, prevent or delay marketing approval of our product candidates, restrict or regulate post-approval activities and affect our ability, or the ability of any future collaborators, to profitably sell any products for which we, or they, obtain marketing approval. We expect that current laws, as well as other healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in more rigorous coverage criteria and in additional downward pressure on the price that we, or any future collaborators, may receive for any approved products.

In March 2010, the ACA was enacted, which includes measures that have significantly changed healthcare financing by both governmental and private insurers. Since enactment of the ACA, there have been numerous legal challenges and legislative actions to repeal and replace provisions of the law, and we expect these to continue. For example, with enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which was signed by President Trump on December 22, 2017, the U.S. Congress repealed the “individual mandate.” The repeal of this provision, which requires most Americans to carry a minimal level of health insurance, will become effective in 2019. According to the U.S. Congressional Budget Office, the repeal of the individual mandate will cause 13 million fewer Americans to be insured in 2027 and premiums in insurance markets may rise. Additionally, on January 22, 2018, President Trump signed a continuing resolution on appropriations for fiscal year 2018 that delayed the implementation of certain ACA-mandated fees, including the so-called “Cadillac” tax on certain high cost employer-sponsored insurance plans, the annual fee imposed on certain health insurance providers based on market share and the medical device excise tax on non-exempt medical devices.

The U.S. Congress may consider other legislation to replace elements of the ACA during the next Congressional session. These healthcare reforms, as well as other healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in additional reductions in Medicare and other healthcare funding, more rigorous coverage criteria, new payment methodologies and additional downward pressure on the price for any approved product and/or the level of reimbursement physicians receive for administering any approved product. Reductions in reimbursement levels may negatively impact the prices or the frequency with which products are prescribed or administered. Any reduction in reimbursement from Medicare or other government programs may result in a similar reduction in payments from private payors.

Further, there have been several recent U.S. congressional inquiries and proposed federal and proposed and enacted state legislation designed to, among other things, bring more transparency to product pricing, review the relationship between pricing and manufacturer patient programs, reduce the costs of products under Medicare and reform government program reimbursement methodologies for products. At the federal level, the U.S. Congress and the Trump administration have each indicated that it will continue to seek new legislative and/or administrative measures to control costs. At the state level, individual states are increasingly aggressive in passing legislation and implementing regulations designed to control pharmaceutical and biological product pricing. In addition, regional healthcare authorities and individual hospitals are increasingly using bidding procedures to determine what pharmaceutical products and which suppliers will be included in their prescription product and other healthcare programs. These measures could reduce the ultimate demand for our product candidates, once approved, or put pressure on our product pricing.

Legislative and regulatory proposals have also been made to expand post-approval requirements and restrict sales and promotional activities for pharmaceutical products. We cannot be sure whether additional legislative changes will be enacted, or

50

 

---

 

whether the FDA regulations, guidance or interpretations will be changed, or what the impact of such changes on the marketing approvals of our product candidates, if any, may be. In addition, increased scrutiny by Congress of the FDA’s approval process may significantly delay or prevent marketing approval, as well as subject us and any future collaborators to more stringent product labeling and post-marketing testing and other requirements.

Risks Related to Commercialization of Our Product Candidates

The FDA and other regulatory agencies strictly regulate the promotional claims that may be made about prescription products. If we are found to have improperly promoted off-label uses for any product for which we receive marking approval, we may become subject to significant fines and other liability.

The FDA and other regulatory agencies strictly regulate the promotional claims that may be made about prescription products. In particular, a product may not be promoted for uses that are not approved by the FDA or such other regulatory agencies as reflected in the product’s approved labeling. If we are found to have promoted for off-label uses, we may become subject to significant government fines and other related liability. For example, the U.S. government has levied large civil and criminal fines against companies for alleged improper promotion and has enjoined several companies from engaging in off-label promotion. The government has also required companies to enter into complex multi-year corporate integrity agreements and/or non-prosecution agreements that can impose significant restrictions and other burdens on the affected companies.

In addition, incentives under applicable U.S. laws encourage employees and physicians to report violations of rules governing promotional activities for pharmaceutical products. These incentives could lead to so called whistleblower lawsuits as part of which such persons seek to collect a portion of moneys allegedly overbilled to government agencies due to, for example, promotion of pharmaceutical products beyond labeled claims. Such lawsuits, whether with or without merit, are typically time consuming and costly to defend. Such suits may also result in related stockholder lawsuits, which are also costly to defend.

Our relationships with customers and payors will be subject to applicable anti-kickback, fraud and abuse and other healthcare laws and regulations, which could expose us to criminal sanctions, civil penalties, contractual damages, reputational harm and diminished profits and future earnings.

Healthcare providers, physicians and others play a primary role in the recommendation and prescription of products for which we obtain marketing approval. Arrangements with third-party payors and customers may expose us to broadly applicable fraud and abuse and other healthcare laws and regulations that may constrain the business or financial arrangements and relationships through which we market, sell and distribute any products for which we obtain marketing approval. Restrictions under applicable federal, state and foreign healthcare laws and regulations include the following:

51

 

---

 

Efforts to ensure that our business arrangements with third parties comply with applicable healthcare laws and regulations involve substantial costs. It is possible that governmental authorities will conclude that our business practices may not comply with current or future statutes, regulations or case law involving applicable fraud and abuse or other healthcare laws and regulations. If our operations are found to be in violation of any of these laws or any other governmental regulations that may apply to us, we may be subject to significant civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, fines, exclusion from government funded healthcare programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations. If any of the physicians or other providers or entities with whom we do business are found to be not in compliance with applicable laws, they may be subject to criminal, civil or administrative sanctions, including exclusions from government funded healthcare programs. Even if we are not determined to have violated these laws, government investigations into these issues typically require the expenditure of significant resources and generate negative publicity, which could also harm our financial condition. Responding to government investigations or whistleblower lawsuits, defending any claims raised, and any resulting fines, damages, penalties, settlement payments or administrative actions, as well as any related actions brought by stockholders or other third parties, could have a material impact on our reputation, business and financial condition and divert the attention of our management from operating our business.

Our corporate compliance efforts cannot guarantee that we are in compliance with all potentially applicable regulations.

The development, manufacturing, pricing, sales, coverage and reimbursement of our products, together with our general operations, are and will be subject to extensive regulation by federal, state and other authorities within the United States and numerous entities outside of the United States. While we have implemented a corporate compliance program based on what we believe are the current best practices, we cannot provide any assurance that governmental authorities will find that our business practices comply with current or future administrative or judicial interpretations of potentially applicable laws and regulations. If we fail to comply with any of these laws and regulations, we could be subject to a range of regulatory actions, including suspension or termination of clinical trials, the failure to approve a product candidate, restrictions on our products or manufacturing processes, withdrawal of products from the market, significant fines, disqualification or debarment from participation in federally-funded healthcare programs or other sanctions or litigation, any of which events may have a significant adverse impact on our business.

Risks Related to Data Protection and Cybersecurity

Our failure to comply with data protection laws and regulations could lead to government enforcement actions, private litigation and/or adverse publicity and could negatively affect our operating results and business.

We are subject to data protection laws and regulations that address privacy and data security. The legislative and regulatory landscape for data protection continues to evolve, and in recent years there has been an increasing focus on privacy and data security issues. In the United States, numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including state data breach notification laws, state health

52

 

---

 

information privacy laws and federal and state consumer protection laws govern the collection, use, disclosure and protection of health-related and other personal information. Failure to comply with data protection laws and regulations could result in government enforcement actions, which could include civil or criminal penalties, private litigation and/or adverse publicity and could negatively affect our operating results and business. In addition, we may obtain health information from third parties (e.g., healthcare providers who prescribe our products) that are subject to privacy and security requirements under HIPAA. We could be subject to criminal penalties if we knowingly obtain or disclose individually identifiable health information in a manner that is not authorized or permitted.

The collection and use of personal health data in the European Union is governed by the provisions of the Data Protection Directive. This directive imposes several requirements relating to the consent of the individuals to whom the personal data relates, the information provided to the individuals, notification of data processing obligations to the competent national data protection authorities and the security and confidentiality of the personal data. The Data Protection Directive also imposes strict rules on the transfer of personal data out of the European Union to the United States. Failure to comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Directive and the related national data protection laws of the European Union Member States may result in fines and other administrative penalties.

Significant disruptions of information technology systems or security breaches could adversely affect our business.

We are increasingly dependent upon information technology systems, infrastructure and data to operate our business. In the ordinary course of business, we collect, store and transmit large amounts of confidential information (including, among other things, trade secrets or other intellectual property, proprietary business information and personal information). It is critical that we do so in a secure manner to maintain the confidentiality and integrity of such confidential information. We also have outsourced elements of our operations to third parties, and as a result we manage a number of third-party vendors who may or could have access to our confidential information. The size and complexity of our information technology systems, and those of third-party vendors with whom we contract, and the large amounts of confidential information stored on those systems, make such systems vulnerable to service interruptions or to security breaches from inadvertent or intentional actions by our employees, third-party vendors, and/or business partners, or from cyber-attacks by malicious third parties. Cyber-attacks are increasing in their frequency, sophistication and intensity, and have become increasingly difficult to detect. Cyber-attacks could include the deployment of harmful malware, ransomware, denial-of-service attacks, social engineering and other means to affect service reliability and threaten the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information.

Significant disruptions of our information technology systems, or those of our third-party vendors, or security breaches could adversely affect our business operations and/or result in the loss, misappropriation and/or unauthorized access, use or disclosure of, or the prevention of access to, confidential information, including, among other things, trade secrets or other intellectual property, proprietary business information and personal information, and could result in financial, legal, business and reputational harm to us. For example, any such event that leads to unauthorized access, use or disclosure of personal information, including personal information regarding our patients or employees, could harm our reputation, require us to comply with federal and/or state breach notification laws and foreign law equivalents, and otherwise subject us to liability under laws and regulations that protect the privacy and security of personal information. Security breaches and other inappropriate access can be difficult to detect, and any delay in identifying them may lead to increased harm of the type described above. While we have implemented security measures to protect our information technology systems and infrastructure, there can be no assurance that such measures will prevent service interruptions or security breaches that could adversely affect our business.

Risks Related to Employee Matters and Managing Growth

Our future success depends on our ability to retain our key executives and to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel.

We are highly dependent on the principal members of our executive and scientific teams. Although we have formal employment agreements with each of our executive officers, these agreements do not prevent our executives from terminating their employment with us at any time. We do not maintain “key person” insurance for any of our executives or other employees. The loss of the services of any of these persons could impede the achievement of our research, development and commercialization objectives.

Recruiting and retaining qualified scientific, clinical, manufacturing and sales and marketing personnel will also be critical to our success. We may not be able to attract and retain these personnel on acceptable terms given the competition among numerous pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for similar personnel. We also experience competition for the hiring of scientific and clinical personnel from universities and research institutions. In addition, we rely on consultants and advisors, including scientific and clinical advisors, to assist us in formulating our research and development and commercialization strategy. Our consultants and advisors may be employed by employers other than us and may have commitments under consulting or advisory contracts with other entities that may limit their availability to us.

53

 

---

 

We have entered into and may continue to enter into or seek to enter into business combinations, acquisitions or divestitures which may be difficult to consummate, disrupt our business, divert management attention or dilute stockholder value.

As part of our business strategy, we may enter into business combinations, acquisitions or divestitures. Although we consummated the asset sale to Ipsen in April 2017, we have limited experience in making acquisitions and divestitures. In addition, acquisitions and divestitures are typically accompanied by a number of risks, including:

If we are not successful in completing acquisitions or divestitures that we may pursue in the future, we would be required to reevaluate our business strategy and we may have incurred substantial expenses and devoted significant management time and resources in seeking to complete the acquisitions or divestitures. In addition, with future acquisitions, we could use substantial portions of our available cash as all or a portion of the purchase price or could issue additional securities as consideration for these acquisitions, which could cause our stockholders to suffer significant dilution.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

Our executive officers, directors and principal stockholders maintain the ability to significantly influence all matters submitted to stockholders for approval.

Our executive officers, directors and stockholders who own more than 5% of our outstanding common stock, in the aggregate, beneficially own a large portion of our capital stock. As a result, if these stockholders were to choose to act together, they would be able to significantly influence all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval, as well as our management and affairs. For example, these persons, if they choose to act together, would significantly influence the election of directors and approval of any merger, consolidation or sale of all or substantially all of our assets. This concentration of voting power could discourage, delay or prevent an acquisition of our company on terms that other stockholders may desire.

Provisions in our corporate charter documents and under Delaware law could make an acquisition of us, which may be beneficial to our stockholders, more difficult and may prevent attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management.

Provisions in our corporate charter and our bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of us that stockholders may consider favorable, including transactions in which our stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares. These provisions could also limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock, thereby depressing the market price of our common stock. In addition, these provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our board of directors. Because our board of directors is responsible for appointing the members of our management team, these provisions could in turn affect any attempt by our stockholders to replace current members of our management team. Among others, these provisions:

54

 

---

 

Moreover, because we are incorporated in Delaware, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which prohibits a person who owns in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock from merging or combining with us for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which the person acquired in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock, unless the merger or combination is approved in a prescribed manner.

Our stock price has been and may in the future be volatile, which could cause holders of our common stock to incur substantial losses.

Our stock price has been and in the future may be subject to substantial price volatility. The stock market in general and the market for biotechnology companies in particular have experienced extreme volatility that has often been unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. As a result of this volatility, our stockholders could incur substantial losses. The market price for our common stock may be influenced by many factors, including:

Because we do not anticipate paying regular cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future, capital appreciation, if any, will be the sole source of gain for holders of our common stock.

We have not historically declared or paid cash dividends on our common stock. Although our board of directors declared a special cash dividend of $140.0 million, which was payable on May 26, 2017 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 17, 2017, we do not currently intend to pay any regular cash dividends in the foreseeable future. In addition, the terms of any future debt agreements may preclude us from paying dividends. As a result, capital appreciation, if any, of our common stock will be the sole source of gain for holders of our common stock for the foreseeable future.

Future sales of shares of our common stock, including by us or our directors and executive officers, or shares issued upon the exercise of currently outstanding options could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well.

A substantial portion of our outstanding common stock can be traded without restriction at any time. In addition, a portion of our outstanding common stock is currently restricted as a result of federal securities laws, but can be sold at any time subject to applicable volume limitations. As such, sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market could occur at any time. These sales, or the perception in the market that the holders of a large number of shares intend to sell shares, by us or others, could reduce the market price of our common stock. In addition, we have a significant number of shares that are subject to outstanding options. The exercise of these options and the subsequent sale of the underlying common stock could cause a further decline in our stock price. For instance, in April 2016, we issued an aggregate of 1,236,766 shares of our common stock to certain

55

 

---

 

holders of our convertible notes who had agreed to convert an aggregate of $64.2 million of convertible notes. Any such sales also might make it difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate. We cannot predict the size of future issuances or the effect, if any, that any future issuances may have on the market price for our common stock.

Furthermore, on December 15, 2017, we filed a registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC to allow the issuance of our securities from time to time in one or more offerings of up to $150,000,000 in aggregate dollar amount. This registration statement was declared effective by the SEC on January 5, 2018. Any sale of additional shares of our common stock or other securities could reduce the market price of our common stock.

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments

None.

Item 2. Properties

Our principal facilities consist of approximately 112,300 square feet of research and office space located at One Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The lease on our principal facilities expires in June 2019. In connection with the completion of the asset sale, on April 3, 2017, we entered into a sublease with Ipsen, pursuant to which Ipsen is subleasing approximately 70,237 square feet of space in our Cambridge, Massachusetts facility through the end of the term of the lease in June 2019.

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

On March 15, 2017, the trustee and certain holders of our convertible notes filed a lawsuit filed in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, captioned Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, Wolverine Flagship Fund Trading Limited, Highbridge International LLC, and Highbridge Tactical Credit & Convertibles Master Fund, L.P. v. Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc., or the Delaware Action. The Delaware Action complaint alleged that the sale of the commercial business to Ipsen was a sale of “substantially all” of our assets and therefore constituted a Fundamental Change (as defined in the indenture governing the convertible notes) as of the closing of the asset sale, which would trigger (a) certain obligations under the indenture governing the convertible notes, including an offer to repurchase the convertible notes, and (b) an event of default if Ipsen does not assume the obligations under the indenture and execute a supplemental indenture with respect to the convertible notes. In connection with plaintiffs’ withdrawal of a motion for a preliminary injunction, in April 2017, we deposited into an escrow account $60.0 million in proceeds from the asset sale. On October 6, 2017, we entered into the settlement agreement to resolve the Delaware Action. In accordance with the settlement agreement, we paid $32.5 million in cash to the noteholder plaintiffs, which represents $0.90 per each $1.00 of convertible notes held by the noteholder plaintiffs, plus accrued and unpaid interest on the convertible notes held by the noteholder plaintiffs through October 2, 2017. The noteholder plaintiffs collectively held approximately $35.8 million aggregate principal amount of the convertible notes. In addition, we paid a total of $3.8 million in attorneys’ fees and expenses to the plaintiffs’ attorneys. The noteholder plaintiffs have executed a full release in favor of us for any claims arising out of or related to the Delaware Action or the convertible notes.

On February 28, 2017, the Garfield Action was filed by a purported stockholder of ours in the Superior Court of Massachusetts for the County of Middlesex against us and our directors. The case is captioned Robert Garfield v. Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc., et al. The Garfield Action complaint alleged that our directors breached their fiduciary duties by entering into the asset sale agreement with Ipsen and that the definitive proxy statement relating to the asset sale contained inadequate disclosures and omissions. Although we believed that the Garfield Action was without merit, to avoid the risk of the litigation delaying or adversely affecting the asset sale and to minimize the expense of defending the litigation related to the asset sale, we agreed to make supplemental disclosures related to the asset sale and to pay the plaintiff’s counsel $375,000 in attorney’s fees in connection with the resolution of the Garfield Action. As a result, the Garfield Action was dismissed with prejudice.

We are not currently a party to any other material legal proceedings.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.

56

 

---

 

PART II

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Our common stock is publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “MACK”. The following table sets forth, for the quarterly periods indicated, the high and low sales prices of our common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Global Market for each quarter in the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017.

 

 

Holders

As of January 31, 2018, there were approximately 124 holders of record of our common stock. This number does not include beneficial owners whose shares are held by nominees in street name.

Dividends

Although our board of directors declared a special cash dividend of $140.0 million, which was payable on May 26, 2017 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 17, 2017, we do not currently intend to pay any regular cash dividends in the foreseeable future, nor have we ever declared or paid any other cash dividends on our common stock.

Corporate Performance Graph

The following performance graph and related information shall not be deemed to be “soliciting material” or to be “filed” with the SEC for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, nor shall such information be incorporated by reference into any future filing under the Exchange Act or Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, except to the extent that we specifically incorporate it by reference into such filing.

57

 

---

 

The following graph compares the performance of our common stock to the Nasdaq Composite Index and to the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index from December 31, 2012 through December 31, 2017. The comparison assumes $100 was invested after the market closed on December 31, 2012 in our common stock and in each of the foregoing indices. The stock price performance included in this graph is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance.

COMPARISON CUMULATIVE TOTAL RETURN

Among the Nasdaq Composite Index, the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index and Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

 

58

 

---

 

Item 6. Selected Financial Data

You should read the following selected consolidated financial data together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes appearing at the end of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” section of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We have derived the consolidated statements of operations data for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2017 and 2016 from our audited consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We have derived the consolidated statement of operations data for the year ended December 31, 2014 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2015 from our audited consolidated financial statements not included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We have derived the consolidated statement of operations data for the year ended December 31, 2013 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2014 and 2013 from our unaudited consolidated financial statements not included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This data has been updated to account for the commercial business as a discontinued operation and to retroactively reflect the one-for-ten reverse stock split of our issued and outstanding common stock effected in September 2017. Our historical results for any prior period are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected in any future period.

 

 

59

 

---