ImmunityBio Partners With Biopharma And Cigalah To Launch ANKTIVA In Saudi Arabia And Expand Across MENA, Secures Strategic Distribution Alliance

ImmunityBio has entered into a strategic partnership with Biopharma and Cigalah Healthcare to introduce ANKTIVA® (nogapendekin alfa inbakicept) in Saudi Arabia, with plans to expand across the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The collaboration aims to accelerate commercial access to the company’s immunotherapy through established regional distribution and commercial networks.

“At Cigalah and Biopharma, our goal is to ensure that physicians and their patients have ready access to the most advanced therapies available for the most difficult-to-treat diseases like cancer,” said Tamer Eissa, General Manager, Biopharma. “That is exactly what ImmunityBio brings with ANKTIVA, and we are pleased to partner with them to help extend the lives of bladder and lung cancer patients in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle Eastern countries we serve.”

Under the agreement, Biopharma and Cigalah will manage the commercialisation and distribution of ANKTIVA for two approved indications. These include its use in combination with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) for patients with BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) carcinoma in situ (CIS), with or without papillary disease, and its use in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor for metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To strengthen its regional footprint, ImmunityBio has also established a wholly owned subsidiary in Saudi Arabia to oversee distribution, commercialization, and long-term growth strategies across MENA.

“We’re pleased to partner with two of the largest healthcare and distribution companies to launch to ANKTIVA to patients in Saudi Arabia and, across the broader Middle East and North Africa region,” said Richard Adcock, President and CEO of ImmunityBio. “Their combined world-class commercial infrastructure and proven track record in bringing innovative therapies to patients with serious diseases will help accelerate access to ANKTIVA and support our commitment to serving physicians and health systems throughout the region, including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Egypt.”

The expansion comes amid rising cancer incidence across the region. Lung cancer remains one of the most prevalent malignancies in Saudi Arabia and ranks as the third most common cancer among men over 45, according to the Saudi Ministry of Health. Meanwhile, Lebanon reports the highest global incidence of bladder cancer, with Syria and Egypt also carrying a substantial disease burden. The partnership is positioned to address these significant unmet oncology needs.

“We have just returned from a highly productive trip to the Middle East and met with the leadership of Saudi FDA and the Emirates Drug Establishment (EDE) to advance the development of ANKTIVA for expanded patient and indication access to the Middle East,” said Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, Founder, Executive Chairman, and Global Chief Scientific and Medical Officer of ImmunityBio. “I am highly encouraged by the collaborative engagement of the leadership of the regulatory authorities in the region and their desire to interact with ImmunityBio to expand access of the BioShield platform across multiple tumor types for their citizens. The initial approval by Saudi FDA for ANKTIVA in combination with checkpoint inhibitors, in patients with checkpoint failures in lung cancer has catalysed the opportunity to build on Immunotherapy 2.0 across multiple tumor types with ANKTIVA as the backbone to NK cell therapy.”

ANKTIVA previously received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in April 2024 for use in combination with BCG for BCG-unresponsive NMIBC CIS. Subsequent approvals were granted by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in July 2025, the European Commission in February 2026, and the Saudi Food and Drug Authority in January 2026. The SFDA also approved ANKTIVA in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor for metastatic NSCLC, further supporting its commercial launch in Saudi Arabia