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Life Sciences Daily Summary

Life Sciences Daily Summary: What Happened on October 24, 2026

Lycia raises $317.5 million in IPO as shares jump 67%

Gilead agreed to pay PepStar $1.275 billion upfront for its early-stage oral drug program. Five-year melanoma data favored combination therapy.

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Today in brief

Lycia raised $317.5 million in an upsized IPO, with shares closing 67% above the $18 offering price.1 A five-year analysis found continued survival and progression-free survival benefits with relatlimab plus nivolumab over nivolumab alone in advanced melanoma.2

Gilead agreed to pay PepStar $1.275 billion upfront for worldwide rights to its oral IL-23 receptor inhibitor program.34 Enhertu failed as a neoadjuvant treatment for early breast cancer.5

Lycia raises $317.5 million in IPO, shares close 67% higher

Lycia priced its upsized IPO at the top of its proposed range, raising $317.5 million at $18 a share.1 The shares reached $36.49 during the session and closed 67% above the offering price.1

The offering valued Lycia at $990.6 million. After the first-day gain, its valuation rose to nearly $1.7 billion.1 Lycia plans to use the proceeds to support three protein-degrading drug candidates for allergic conditions and Graves’ disease.6

Five-year melanoma analysis favors relatlimab plus nivolumab

In the Phase 3 RELATIVITY-047 trial, relatlimab plus nivolumab continued to outperform nivolumab alone for progression-free, overall and melanoma-specific survival at five years.2 The analysis included 714 patients, with a minimum follow-up of 57.3 months.2

The hazard ratios were 0.77 for progression-free survival, 0.78 for overall survival and 0.71 for melanoma-specific survival.2 The safety profile remained consistent with earlier reports.2

Among patients whose tumors had at least 1% PD-L1 expression, higher levels of LAG-3-positive CD8 cells were associated with worse outcomes on nivolumab alone.2 Adding relatlimab was associated with less primary resistance. The authors said the findings support the possibility that it can overcome resistance mediated by LAG-3.2

Gilead pays $1.275 billion upfront for PepStar’s oral drug program

On October 22, Gilead agreed to pay PepStar $1.275 billion upfront for worldwide rights to its oral interleukin-23 receptor inhibitor program, including HCXT-2001.34 The lead candidate is a macrocyclic peptide in Phase 1 testing in healthy volunteers in Australia.34

HCXT-2001 has not yet produced clinical efficacy data.37 Gilead said it sees potential to develop the drug alone or with its oral integrin inhibitor emvistegrast for inflammatory bowel disease.48

In a Phase 2 ulcerative colitis study, emvistegrast produced a clinical response at 12 weeks in 66% of patients on the highest dose, compared with 37% on placebo.47 Combining it with HCXT-2001 remains a potential approach, not a tested regimen.4

Also worth knowing

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    Enhertu failed as a neoadjuvant treatment for early breast cancer.5