CrossBridge Bio Awarded “Best Drug Developer” at the 2025 World ADC Awards, Celebrating Breakthrough Innovation in Dual-Payload ADCs
CrossBridge Bio, an emerging biopharmaceutical innovator specializing in the development of next-generation dual-payload antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), announced that it has received the prestigious “Best Drug Developer” distinction at the 2025 World ADC Awards. The recognition highlights the company’s leadership in advancing ADC therapies designed to produce safer, deeper, and more durable responses among cancer patients—particularly those who have developed or are at risk of resistance to currently approved ADC treatments.
This award underscores CrossBridge Bio’s scientific strategy and rapid progress in a highly competitive and fast-growing global ADC landscape. The honor is especially significant given the company’s youth; founded within the past five years, CrossBridge Bio has quickly distinguished itself through pioneering platform design, novel program execution, and data-driven innovation.
Recognition from a Leading Global ADC Platform
The World ADC Awards, organized by Hanson Wade, are regarded among the most important acknowledgments in the ADC domain. Each year, the program Drug celebrates organizations and individuals that demonstrate excellence, scientific rigor, and meaningful contributions to advancing ADC research, development, and commercialization.
CrossBridge Bio earned this year’s title after being evaluated by a panel of independent industry experts. The selection committee reviewed global Drug ADC organizations of similar size and age, considering the maturity and novelty of their research Drug programs, the strength of preclinical data, and demonstrated innovation in molecule engineering. The company’s proprietary dual-payload and branched-linker platform design was a central driver of its selection.
According to the competition’s criteria, the “Best Drug Developer” award is reserved for emerging ADC companies—those founded within the last five years—that have already made significant advancements in their pipeline and shown strong scientific differentiation. CrossBridge Bio captured judges’ attention with its ability to engineer synergistic payload combinations into a single ADC molecule and produce compelling preclinical activity suggesting greater durability and response depth.
Industry Leadership Perspective
Speaking on behalf of the company, Michael Torres, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of CrossBridge Bio, shared his enthusiasm about the recognition.
We’re honored to be recognized by the World ADC community. This award reflects our team’s relentless focus on designing ADCs that may meaningfully improve outcomes for patients facing difficult-to-treat cancers and change current clinical practice,” said Dr. Torres.
Dr. Torres emphasized the company’s dedication to addressing two of the most persistent challenges facing current ADC therapies—treatment resistance and short-lived or incomplete responses. He highlighted how CrossBridge Bio’s engineering approach, which incorporates branched linker chemistry and dual-payload delivery, aims to produce ADC therapeutics capable of eliciting deeper, more lasting clinical responses.
“Our dual-payload approach and branched linker chemistry are built to deliver deeper durable responses and to tackle resistance head-on, and we’re excited to advance our lead program toward the clinic,” he added.
The CEO’s remarks reinforce the company’s mission to transform the ADC therapeutic landscape and shift current oncology treatment paradigms.
A New Generation of ADC Engineering
CrossBridge Bio’s proprietary ADC architecture is designed to enhance the therapeutic index—maintaining potent tumor killing activity while sparing normal tissues, and thereby improving safety. The core components of the platform include:
1. Branched Tripeptide Linker Technology
These linkers allow precise attachment of multiple payloads at defined ratios and enable optimized drug release. This approach enhances payload stability and positioning, ultimately improving drug delivery efficiency to tumor cells while minimizing off-target toxicity.
2. Dual-Payload Design
Unlike traditional ADCs that typically incorporate a single cytotoxic payload, CrossBridge Bio’s dual-payload format enables the integration of two synergistic mechanisms. The strategic pairing provides:
- Enhanced tumor cytotoxicity
- Reduced likelihood of emerging drug resistance
- Potential efficacy in heterogeneous tumors that vary in sensitivity
Through these innovations, the company is working to address one of the most challenging biological realities of cancer treatment—tumor adaptability and resistance evolution.
Lead Program: CBB-120
The company’s lead investigational product, CBB-120, exemplifies its platform’s scientific promise. CBB-120 is a TROP-2-targeted ADC designed to deliver a synergistic dual payload combination of a topoisomerase I inhibitor (TOP1i) and an ATR inhibitor (ATRi).
Mechanistic Strengths
- TROP-2 Targeting: TROP-2 is a clinically validated tumor antigen overexpressed in multiple solid cancers, making it an attractive ADC target.
- Dual Payload Advantage: TOP1i and ATRi act on separate but complementary pathways in DNA repair and replication stress responses, creating a powerful tumor-killing effect. Together, they may improve tumor cell eradication even in settings where single-payload ADCs begin to lose efficacy.
Promising Preclinical Data
CBB-120 has shown compelling preclinical activity, including:
- Robust tumor cell killing
- Promising effects in resistant tumor models
- Overall strong proof-of-concept support
The data were recently presented during the 2025 World ADC Conference, where the CBB-120 research session became the most heavily attended non-plenary session in the event’s history—demonstrating broad scientific and industry interest.
As the program advances toward IND-enabling studies, CrossBridge Bio plans to file its Investigational New Drug (IND) application in 2026, an important milestone that would transition CBB-120 into clinical development.
Scientific Leadership Perspective
Dan Pereira, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of CrossBridge Bio, commented on the importance of the award, acknowledging the team’s scientific commitment and global recognition.
“This award highlights the strength of our scientific approach and the dedication of our team,” said Dr. Pereira.
He emphasized that CrossBridge Bio seeks to transcend conventional ADC design models by incorporating dual payloads and proprietary branching linkers engineered for potency, precision, and durability.
We’re developing ADCs that go beyond traditional designs—built to be more durable and address resistant tumors and to make a difference for patients who need new options. It’s exciting to see our work recognized on a global stage.”
Dr. Pereira’s comments reflect the company’s aspirations to broaden the therapeutic potential of ADCs and deliver meaningful benefits for patients with limited options.
About the World ADC Awards
The World ADC Awards program celebrates innovation, leadership, and progress across the full continuum of ADC research and development. Award categories recognize achievements in discovery, development, manufacturing, and organizational excellence. The program is curated and managed by Hanson Wade, an organization that operates specialized scientific conferences worldwide.
The awards are widely regarded as one of the top distinctions in the ADC community, and are determined by experts who evaluate entries based on scientific merit, novelty, technological execution, and demonstrated advancement toward clinical impact.
CrossBridge Bio’s recognition among many competitive programs underscores its emergence as a serious contender among next-generation ADC developers and suggests increasing confidence in its technology platform and development strategy.
About CrossBridge Bio
CrossBridge Bio is a biotechnology company headquartered in Houston, Texas, dedicated to developing next-generation antibody-drug conjugates designed to overcome the biological challenges of tumor resistance and heterogeneity.
At the core of its platform is its EGCit branched linker technology, which allows precise, stable, and efficient delivery of synergistic payloads, with the goal of improving clinical outcomes without compromising safety.
Key pipeline highlights include:
- Lead program, CBB-120, a TROP-2-targeted ADC pairing TOP1i and ATRi payloads
- Planned IND submission in 2026
- Expansion of preclinical pipeline leveraging dual-payload engineering
With a mission to bring more durable and effective ADCs into oncology care, CrossBridge Bio aims to shift clinical standards and provide new therapeutic options for patients with difficult-to-treat malignancies.
CrossBridge Bio’s recognition as the “Best Drug Developer” at the 2025 World ADC Awards represents an important validation of its platform technology, pipeline innovation, and commitment to transforming cancer treatment. The company’s continued progress toward clinical readiness underscores its emergence as a leading next-generation ADC developer with the potential to meaningfully impact patient outcomes worldwide.
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