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§ Private Profile · San Diego, CA, USA
Turning Point Therapeutics is a technology company.
Turning Point Therapeutics has raised $125.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Key people at Turning Point Therapeutics.
Turning Point Therapeutics has raised $125.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Turning Point Therapeutics develops precision oncology treatments, specifically focusing on small molecule kinase inhibitors designed to address challenging cancers. Its lead asset, repotrectinib, represents a next-generation therapy engineered to target specific oncogenic drivers like ROS1 and TRK fusions, often implicated in non-small cell lung cancer and other advanced solid tumors. The company's technical approach centers on structure-based drug design, creating inhibitors capable of overcoming common mechanisms of drug resistance seen with existing therapies.
The company was founded in 2013 by Jean Cui and her husband, Y. Peter Li. Cui, a distinguished drug designer with a strong background in targeted cancer therapy, brought her extensive experience to the venture. Their core insight stemmed from the understanding that many patients develop resistance to initial targeted treatments, creating a critical need for novel compounds that could maintain efficacy and extend therapeutic benefit by directly circumventing these resistance mutations.
The products serve cancer patients, particularly those with advanced solid tumors harboring specific genetic alterations or who have progressed on previous lines of treatment. Turning Point Therapeutics envisions a future where its targeted therapies offer significant clinical improvements, providing new options for patients facing limited treatment avenues due to drug resistance. The company aims to make a substantial impact on patient outcomes by delivering highly differentiated and effective precision medicines.
The premise of your query contains an inaccuracy: Turning Point Therapeutics is not a technology company—it is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in precision oncology.
Turning Point Therapeutics is a clinical-stage precision oncology biopharmaceutical company focused on designing and developing therapies that target genetic drivers of cancer.[1] The company develops a pipeline of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) aimed at both treatment-naïve and treatment-resistant cancer patients.[1] Rather than building software or technology platforms for external use, Turning Point creates investigational drug candidates to address specific genetic mutations driving tumor growth in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other advanced solid tumors.[2]
The company's approach centers on precision medicine—developing drugs that bind precisely to their intended molecular targets to maximize efficacy while minimizing resistance.[3] This represents a shift from broad-spectrum cancer treatments toward targeted therapies that work for patients with specific genetic alterations.
Turning Point Therapeutics was founded in October 2013 by Dr. J. Jean Cui, a prominent oncology drug developer who previously led the creation of Pfizer's landmark cancer drugs crizotinib and lorlatinib.[2] The company is based in San Diego, California, and was incorporated with the explicit mission of tackling treatment resistance in cancer patients who had stopped responding to available targeted therapies.[2]
A pivotal moment came in 2022 when Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) acquired Turning Point Therapeutics, recognizing the value of its precision oncology pipeline.[4] As of August 2022, Turning Point operates as a subsidiary of BMS.[1] This acquisition provided the company with BMS's oncology expertise, commercial capabilities, and manufacturing infrastructure to accelerate drug development and commercialization.
Turning Point exemplifies the shift toward precision oncology—a trend where cancer treatments are increasingly tailored to individual tumor genetics rather than cancer type alone.[2] This approach addresses a critical market need: patients who develop resistance to first-line targeted therapies have limited options, and Turning Point's pipeline targets these underserved populations.
The timing is significant because genomic sequencing has become routine in oncology, enabling identification of specific mutations that drive tumor growth. Turning Point's focus on ROS1, NTRK, MET, RET, and ALK alterations targets mutations present in meaningful patient populations but historically underserved by available drugs. The company's acquisition by BMS reflects the pharmaceutical industry's recognition that precision oncology represents the future of cancer treatment and that acquiring specialized biotech companies accelerates access to innovative pipelines.
Turning Point's trajectory will largely depend on clinical and regulatory success of repotrectinib and its pipeline candidates. If repotrectinib achieves the anticipated 2023 U.S. approval and establishes itself as a new standard of care for ROS1-positive NSCLC, it could generate substantial revenue and validate the company's drug discovery platform.[4] Success with additional pipeline programs could expand Turning Point's impact across multiple cancer indications.
As a BMS subsidiary, Turning Point is no longer an independent company navigating funding and commercialization challenges alone. Instead, its future influence will be measured by how effectively its drugs reach patients and whether its precision oncology approach influences broader industry standards for cancer treatment development. The company represents a turning point in oncology—literally and figuratively—where genetic precision increasingly defines therapeutic strategy.
Key people at Turning Point Therapeutics.
Turning Point Therapeutics has raised $125.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $80.0M Debt in October 2018.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 19, 2018 | $80M Debt Financing | Brett Zbar | Cormorant Asset Management, HBM Healthcare Investments, Lilly Asia Ventures, Nextech Invest, OrbiMed, SR ONE | Announced |
| May 1, 2017 | $45M Series C | OrbiMed, SR ONE, Hongbo LU | Abingworth, HBM Partners, ALI Behbahani, Polaris Partners, Vivo Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, SV Tech Ventures | Announced |
Turning Point Therapeutics has raised $125.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Turning Point Therapeutics's investors include Brett Zbar, Cormorant Asset Management, HBM Healthcare Investments, Lilly Asia Ventures, Nextech Invest, OrbiMed, SR One, Hongbo Lu, Abingworth, Hbm Partners, Ali Behbahani, Polaris Partners.
