AstraZeneca licenses Enhertu from Daiichi Sankyo (2019)
AstraZeneca paid $1.35 billion upfront plus milestone payments for rights to Enhertu, an antibody-drug conjugate, in markets outside Japan. The drug was later approved for several cancers and became one of the world's top-selling oncology treatments.
Enhertu generated billions in annual sales and became a cornerstone of AstraZeneca's oncology line.
The deal set the template for big upfront-plus-milestone ADC licensing arrangements across the industry.
The structure of Roche's Hansoh deal—large upfront payment, milestone-loaded—mirrors the Enhertu model, the industry's proof that licensed ADCs can become blockbusters.
