Stave Therapeutics brings together the Malaghan Institute's immunology expertise and the University of Auckland's drug discovery science to tackle one of the most persistent challenges in cancer treatment – the tumour's ability to shut down the immune response that could otherwise destroy it.
Stave Therapeutics was established in 2026 as a new biotechnology venture formed in conjunction with Unruly Partners, the University of Auckland, UniServices and the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research. The company's foundation builds on a long-standing research collaboration between the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre (ACSRC) and the Malaghan, supported by the Maurice Wilkins Centre, the Health Research Council of New Zealand and MBIE's Endeavour Fund.
The underlying research was led by Associate Professors Adam Patterson and Jeff Smaill at the ACSRC, working in close collaboration with Professor Ian Hermans and his team at the Malaghan. The partnership combines the ACSRC's strengths in medicinal chemistry and drug design with the Malaghan's expertise in tumour immunology – together developing compounds that activate immune responses precisely within tumours, rather than broadly across the body.
Stave is currently at the preclinical stage, with the next phase focused on completing preclinical development and progressing toward first-in-human clinical trials.
A new approach to immune resistance
Most cancer patients who receive immunotherapy do not achieve durable benefit. The tumour itself actively suppresses the immune response these treatments depend on. Stave's drug candidates are designed to be used alongside existing immunotherapies to overcome that resistance at its source, re-activating the immune system inside the tumour where treatment most often fails.
The company will initially focus on lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death in New Zealand, with disproportionately high impacts on Māori and communities experiencing socioeconomic deprivation. Because immune checkpoint inhibitors are used across a wide range of cancers – including melanoma, breast, renal and liver cancers – the platform holds significant potential for broader application.
Commercial partnership for public benefit
Stave Therapeutics is a vehicle for taking research from the laboratory towards treatments for patients. The Malaghan's involvement reflects the institute's broader strategy of building commercial partnerships that translate discovery into treatments – and ensuring the benefits of that work are accessible to New Zealanders.
Any revenues generated through successful commercialisation would support further investment in research, helping to fund the next generation of treatments.
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