The company announced a series B-2 financing of $158m that it plans to use for pivotal Phase II development of TORL-1-23, which it called a first-in-class agent.

The second-line indication comes with safety labeling recently approved for BCMA-targeted CAR-T competitor Abecma, particularly around increased early mortality and secondary malignancies.

The US FDA approved Abecma for multiple myeloma after two prior lines of therapy, while the agency was also expected to imminently decide on earlier-line approval for J&J/Legend’s Carvykti.

As China’s fifth approved CAR-T cell therapy, CARSgen/Huadong’s zevorcabtagene autoleucel is priced at $159,735 for a single infusion. Expanding patient access will become a formidable task for the companies, due to the poor prospects of reimbursement coverage by China’s public medical insurance program.