Member Profile: TILT Biotherapeutics – Developer of a Virus-Based Cancer Therapy

TILT Biotherapeutics is a Finnish drug development company founded in 2013 with the goal of transforming the treatment of solid tumors using oncolytic viruses—that is, viruses designed to selectively recognize and destroy cancer cells while simultaneously activating the body’s immune system to attack the tumor. The company’s technology is based on adenoviruses—common cold viruses—that have been genetically modified through TILT's research to destroy only cancer cells.

The modified adenovirus cannot cause the common cold and does not harm healthy cells. Instead, it has been engineered to replicate exclusively in cancer cells. As it replicates, it breaks down the tumor and activates the body’s immune defenses by producing two carefully selected molecules (signaling agents) that enhance immune system activity within the tumor.

TILT’s approximately 15-person team operates in Helsinki. The company’s founder and CEO, cancer physician and University of Helsinki professor Akseli Hemminki, is among the world's most renowned developers of oncolytic viruses. In addition, the company has a U.S.-based subsidiary focused on clinical development, established in 2022.

Clinical Development: Phase I Completed, Moving Toward the Next Phase in 2026

TILT’s lead product, TILT-123, is the company’s most advanced drug candidate. Its development has progressed significantly:

• Three clinical Phase I trials completed; the treatments have been shown to be safe.

• The drug candidate has been administered to nearly 100 cancer patients participating in the company’s studies.

• The investigational drug has been tested in solid tumors, ovarian cancer, melanoma, lung cancer, and head and neck cancer.

The Phase I trials also investigated the virus’s mechanism of action:

• Does it replicate in the tumor?

• Does it activate the immune system?

• How should the drug be dosed

• Does the virus find distant tumors?

These findings form the basis for planning the next phase. TILT has reviewed its clinical strategy, with next trials and Phase II beginingin towards the end of this year.

The use of TILT-123 is mainly being studied in combination therapies with other cancer treatments, such as immune-modulating drugs or T-cell therapies.

U.S. Phase II/III Players Are Driving the Field Forward

Globally, there are several companies developing oncolytic viruses, of which three U.S.-based players are currently the most advanced, progressing in Phase II/III trials. According to TILT Biotherapeutics’ Chief Operating Officer Aino Kalervo, their success would be an important for the field:

“If even one of them receives marketing approval, it could pull the whole field forward.”

Approval of the next oncolytic virus therapy could increase confidence in the technology and could also accelerate the progress of TILT and other companies in the field from research toward the market.

What Differentiates TILT from Its Competitors?

TILT stands out in the international competitive landscape particularly due to its technology design philosophy and features:

• Intravenous (IV) administration is possible, facilitating treatment delivery and patient recruitment.

• Dual-level selectivity ensures that the virus replicates and produces selected molecules (IL-2, TNF) only in cancer cells.

• The virus’s payload, or transgenes, has been chosen based on their ability to stimulate immune responses specifically via T cells.

• The technology has been designed from the outset to support T-cell therapies—especially in solid tumors, where such therapies currently have limited efficacy.

Funding and Ownership Structure

TILT is a private, venture capital–backed company that has raised a total of €72 million in funding:

• Over €50 million in equity

• Approximately €20 million in non-dilutive funding (grants, loans—Business Finland—and licensing revenues)

The company’s most recent funding round was completed in spring 2025, totaling USD 25 million (approximately €23 million), and was carried out in two tranches.

Major investors include:

• Lifeline Ventures

• EIC Fund

• Tesi – Finnish Industry Investment

• Stephen Industries

TILT also has as broad base of small investors, having completed three funding rounds in collaboration with Springvest.

The company is planning another funding round in 2026 to further support the later-stage development and commercialization of TILT-123 and to increase the company’s visibility in international markets.

Outlook

Drug development is a long process, and potential marketing approval would realistically only be possible in the 2030s. TILT is currently focused on launching two new clinical programs and on the subsequent decisions regarding later-stage drug development that these programs will enable.

However, early clinical data have already indicated that TILT-123 is working as intended: to date the treatments tested have been safe, activation of the immune system has been observed, and treatment responses have been seen in some patients.

https://tiltbio.com/