Foghorn Therapeutics is cutting around 40% of its workforce after it and Eli Lilly agreed to halt development of their experimental cancer treatment.
Announced on Thursday, the decision brings an end to a collaboration between the drugmakers established in 2021, that was originally valued at up to $1.6bn. Results from an early-stage cancer therapy trial did not demonstrate sufficient effectiveness to justify further testing, according to Forghorn.
The drug, FHD-909, was designed for certain lung cancers and other solid tumours carrying alterations in the SMARCA4 gene. Although Foghorn described the treatment as generally safe, its activity against cancer fell short of the threshold needed to progress.
The companies will also stop a separate programme focused on SMARCA2, a protein that helps regulate gene activity and supports the survival of some cancer cells.
For Eli Lilly, the failure follows a string of successes for the US pharmaceuticals company.
In August, the company’s Foundayo (orforglipron) secured double approval in the UK making it an early contender in a new wave of oral weight loss pills set to hit the UK market over the next few months.
On Wednesday, it also announced that its new experimental combination weight loss drug outperformed its blockbuster Zepbound (tirzepatide) in a head-to-head trial, cementing its position as a leader in the ever-growing GLP-1 industry.
Foghorn, whose latest annual report recorded a workforce of 106 employees at the end so of 2026, expects to complete the redundancies during the fourth quarter.
Charges associated with the reductions are expected to total around $2.3m and will leave approximately 65 employees at the company when complete.
Following the partnership’s closure, Foghorn will now concentrate on its independently developed portfolio, including experimental therapies for blood cancer, prostate cancer and hormone-sensitive breast cancer, alongside an oral treatment being investigated for inflammatory diseases.
The company is not the first this year to make massive layoffs to its staff. Just last month, both ArsenalBio and TScan Therapeutics announced plans to cut their numbers but huge proportions.
ArsenalBio announced a restructuring after halting development of its ex vivo autologous cell therapies for solid tumours, retaining only a core team to pursue an in vivo CAR-T strategy.
Overall, 99 jobs were cut, representing the majority of a workforce that stood at 127 employees following earlier reductions in 2025.
Fellow US biotech TScan shared plans to reduce its workforce by around 75% as it also shifted focus to cell engineering projects.
Foghorns latest cuts saw the company’s shares down more than 48% in premarket trading.
Featured image: Rafael Henrique on AdobeStock
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