Aug 25 (Reuters) - Royalty Pharma ( RPRX ) has agreed to

buy a royalty interest in Amgen's ( AMGN ) drug for small cell

lung cancer from BeOne Medicines for up to $950

million, it said on Monday.

The deal gives Royalty Pharma ( RPRX ) access to roughly 7% of global

net sales of the therapy, Imdelltra, which won U.S. approval

last year for patients with extensive-stage small cell lung

cancer who have failed chemotherapy.

Royalty Pharma ( RPRX ) will pay $885 million upfront, while Chinese

drug developer BeOne will retain an option to sell an additional

portion for up to $65 million within the next 12 months. BeOne,

formerly known as BeiGene, will keep commercial rights to the

therapy in China.

The royalties from the drug are expected to last until

between 2038 and 2041.

This agreement strengthens Royalty Pharma's ( RPRX ) portfolio of

oncology-related royalty streams, the company said. In 2022, it

had bought royalty interests in Roche's lung cancer drug Gavreto

for up to $340 million.

Amgen's ( AMGN ) Imdelltra

reduced the risk of death

by 40% compared with chemotherapy for small cell lung

cancer patients whose disease had worsened after an initial

round of chemo, according to interim data in June from a

late-stage trial.

Imdelltra sales reached $215 million in the first half

of the year and are projected to exceed $2.8 billion by 2035

based on analyst consensus, Royalty Pharma ( RPRX ) said.