AACR spotlights dual-payload ADCs as the modality nears the clinic

Lilly’s announcement this week that it will acquire CrossBridge and its lead dual-payload ADC underscores growing interest in a strategy designed to overcome payload resistance and solid tumor heterogeneity. The trend is also evident in abstracts released ahead of AACR 2026.

On Tuesday, Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE:LLY) announced that it would acquire Houston-based CrossBridge Bio Inc., which was founded in 2023 to develop next-generation antibody-drug conjugates, for up to $300 million. The biotech’s lead preclinical therapy, CBB-120, is a TROP2-targeted dual payload ADC designed to release both a topoisomerase inhibitor and an ATR inhibitor...