ImmunoGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN), a leader in the expanding field of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) for the treatment of cancer, today announced that nine abstracts highlighting the breadth of the Company’s expertise in ADCs will be presented at the upcoming American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting to be held from April 1-5, 2017 in Washington D.C. The presentations at AACR cover a wide array of ADC innovations, including further advancements to linkers and payloads and novel targets for both solid tumors and hematological malignancies.

“ImmunoGen has an unmatched expertise and understanding of the core components of ADCs and the data being presented at AACR further validate our full spectrum of knowledge and leadership in this space,” said Richard Gregory, Ph.D., ImmunoGen’s chief scientific officer. “ImmunoGen will be presenting nine abstracts at the conference with preclinical data demonstrating technology advances that will enable us to continue to drive innovation in ADC approaches.”

ImmunoGen presentations at AACR relate to:

Platform linker and payload innovations

Title: Comparison of site-specific and lysine-linked indolino-benzodiazepine antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) – abstract # 75

  • While site-specific conjugation can lead to improved efficacy and tolerability, the advantages and disadvantages of site-specific conjugation should be carefully considered for every ADC candidate.

Title: Bystander activity and in vivo efficacy of a folate receptor α (FRα)-targeting antibody-drug conjugate with a novel peptide linker – abstract # 71

  • Folate receptor (FRα) is an antigen that is overexpressed on the cell surface of solid tumors including ovarian cancer. M9346A-NL-DM is a novel ADC, employing a new linker, with enhanced bystander activity and anti-tumor activity that can target tumors with heterogeneous expression of FRα.

Title: Peptide-cleavable maytansinoid (ADCs) induce high bystander killing leading to improved anti-tumor activity in vivo – abstract # 2186

  • A new promising type of maytansinoid ADC provides a high degree of bystander killing, improved activity in tumor models in vivo, and has a differentiated mechanism of metabolite release.

Title: Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) of peptide-linked Indolino-Benzodiazepine (IGN) DNA-alkylator provides improved anti-tumor activity over that of a crosslinker – abstract # 53

  • Preclinical research shows that DNA-alkylating IGNs provide improved anti-tumor activity over that of a DNA-crosslinking ADC.

Preclinical research focused on novel targets

Title: Novel antibody-drug conjugates targeting ADAM9-expressing solid tumors demonstrate potent preclinical activity – abstract #37

  • ADAM9 is a promising cell surface target for antibody-drug conjugate development that is overexpressed in multiple solid tumor indications relative to corresponding normal tissues.

Title: Target validation, antibody discovery and preclinical data supporting ADAM9 as an antibody-drug conjugate therapeutic target for solid tumors – abstract #38

  • These data demonstrate that anti-ADAM9 ADCs exhibit antitumor activity against a broad panel of ADAM9-positive malignancies and cause durable remissions in preclinical models at doses expected to be clinically achievable. Anti-ADAM9 ADCs represent a promising therapeutic strategy to a wide range of ADAM9-expressing tumors.

Title: In vitro and in vivo activity of a novel c-Met-targeting antibody-drug conjugate using a DNA-alkylating, indolinobenzodiazepine payload – abstract #45

  • cMet dysregulation and/or overexpression are associated with tumor progression, metastasis and poor prognosis in numerous cancers. An anti-cMet antibody conjugated with the payload DGN549 exhibits compelling, c-Met targeted anti-cancer activity in vitro and in vivo, and represents a promising therapeutic strategy to deliver a potent cytotoxic agent to tumor cells bearing a wide range of c-Met expression.

Preclinical research focused on B-cell targets

Title: A novel CD19-targeting antibody-drug conjugate, huB4-DGN462, shows promising in vitro and in vivo activity in CD19-positive lymphoma models – abstract #2651

  • CD19 is a cell surface membrane protein expressed in most mature and immature B cell neoplasms, which make it a promising target for ADC therapy for B cell malignancies. A novel CD19-targeting ADC presents strong preclinical anti-lymphoma activity.

Title: Increased internalization and processing of the CD37-targeting antibody-drug conjugate, naratuximab emtansine (IMGN529), in the presence of rituximab leads to enhanced potency in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma models – abstract #1073

  • Data show enhanced activity of rituximab plus IMGN529 combination in DLBCL models, supporting the clinical development of this combination.

Additional information – including presentation schedule and full abstracts – can be found at www.aacr.org.

About ImmunoGen, Inc.

ImmunoGen is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that develops targeted cancer therapeutics using its proprietary ADC technology. ImmunoGen's lead product candidate, mirvetuximab soravtansine, is in a Phase 3 trial for FRα-positive platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, and is in Phase 1b/2 testing in combination regimens for earlier-stage disease. ImmunoGen's ADC technology is used in Roche's marketed product, Kadcyla®, in three other clinical-stage ImmunoGen product candidates, and in programs in development by partners Amgen, Bayer, Biotest, CytomX, Lilly, Novartis, Sanofi and Takeda. More information about the Company can be found at www.immunogen.com.

Kadcyla® is a registered trademark of Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.

This press release includes forward-looking statements. For these statements, ImmunoGen claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. It should be noted that there are risks and uncertainties related to the development of novel anticancer products, including risks related to preclinical studies and risks related to new technologies. A review of these risks can be found in ImmunoGen's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2016 and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.