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Recipharm signs on to manufacture an in-development cancer drug, investing in a Swedish biotech

Swedish contract drugmaker Recipharm is on board to help local biotech LIDDS advance its cancer therapy, agreeing to produce the drug and taking an equity stake in its partner.

Under the agreement, Recipharm will handle manufacturing for Liproca Depot, a targeted prostate cancer therapy slated to enter Phase II development next year. Recipharm is also investing 5 million Swedish kronor ($583,000) in LIDDS, becoming the company's third-largest shareholder.

Liproca Depot is an injectable therapy designed to block the body's androgen receptors by ferrying hydroxyflutamide to the site of tumors with a proprietary drug delivery technology, according to LIDDS.

The deal falls in line with Recipharm's recent run of partnerships, in which the company often invests in its clients in addition to providing production services.

Recipharm has been rapidly expanding since going public in 2014, spending more than $300 million in three buyouts designed to bolster its capacity across Europe. The company has looked to a wide range of deals to broaden its business, sharing the risk of development with its partners and launching joint ventures to move products forward and create new revenue opportunities.

- read the statement (PDF)