AstraZeneca invests $2 billion in Summit cancer drug partnership

AstraZeneca agreed to invest $2 billion in newly issued convertible preferred shares of Summit Therapeutics, providing funding to accelerate development of Summit’s cancer drug ivonescimab. The companies will jointly fund clinical trials combining ivonescimab with Summit’s antibody-drug conjugate sonesitatug vedotin in gastrointestinal cancers, while retaining rights to their respective medicines; they also plan to explore a broader program pairing ivonescimab with AstraZeneca cancer drugs. Summit shares rose more than 17% in extended trading after the announcement.