Affimed Therapeutics

Affimed is a publicly traded, clinical stage biopharmaceutical company based in Heidelberg, Germany. It focuses discovering and developing targeted immuno-oncology therapies. Founded in 2000 by a group led by Professor Melvyn Little at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Affimed has a number of clinical and pre-clinical programs in development based on its ROCK (Redirected Optimized Cell Killing) platform and its tetravalent bispecific immune cell engagers.

The ROCK platform allows for antibody engineering of highly customizable NK and T-cell engagers to generate clinical candidates tailored to multiple disease indications and settings.

Affimed has three programs under the innate cell engagers area, AFM 13, AFM 24, and AFM 26. AFM13 is a treatment aimed at treating Hodgkin Lymphoma. There are several studies running in this program, where it is being tested by itself and in combination with other therapeutics. The studies are at various stages of development from pre-IND to Phase 2. AFM24 is a potential treatment for solid tumors that is in the pre-IND stage. AFM 26 is another potential treatment for multiple myeloma which is in the pre-IND stage. This program is being conducted in partnership with another pharmaceutical company.

In the T-Cell engager area, Affimed has two product candidates, AFM11 and AMV564 (Amphivena). AFM11 is aimed as a therapeutic for non-hodgkin lymphoma and acute lymphocytic leukemia. It is Phase 1 clinical studies for both types of cancers. Amphivena is also a therapeutic targeting acute myeloid leukemia and is in Phase 1 of clinical studies. This program, however, is licensed by Affimed from another company.