Aptadel Therapeutics raises 2 million euros and prepares a new round to bring the project to the clinical phase stage

Aptadel Therapeutics takes another step forward in the development of its treatment for Ewing's sarcoma. The biotechnology company, based at the University of Barcelona Parc Científic de Barcelona (PCB-UB), has closed a bridge round of 2 million euros with the entry of the Japanese investment group Newsight Tech Angels, and gets an added injection of capital from its US 
investor, the Little Warrior Foundation (LWF). It is a reflection of the trust the international community has in the project and gives development new impetus at a key stage of growth. 

With this operation, Aptadel Therapeutics begins a new stage of expansion to drive forward development of its pioneering treatment for Ewing's sarcoma. The company is preparing a Series A funding round of 9 million euros, which will allow it to complete the studies required by the regulatory agencies and advance towards the first clinical trials, a key step in bringing this targeted therapy to patients. 

“The funding received is a game changer in the context of childhood cancer, an area with immense impact medically but limited access in terms of private funding. With the new round, we will be able to advance the paediatric programme and expand our platform to reach more patients," said Gisela Lorente, CEO of Aptadel Therapeutics.  

During 2025, the company also received additional institutional support from the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC), which awarded a grant of €450,000 within the framework of the AECC IMPACTO call. This competitive grant reinforces Aptadel's innovative leadership and places it among the top two paediatric oncology companies funded in this line. 

Aptadel Therapeutics's activity is focused on developing new therapies to treat Ewing's sarcoma, a rare childhood cancer that affects bones and soft tissues and has a very low life expectancy due to the lack of effective therapeutic options. With this line of research, the company aspires to create a real alternative for patients who do not currently have specific treatments. “This funding will allow us to continue to perfect how our product behaves in the body to further strengthen its efficacy for the clinical phase," said Lorente. 

The Little Warrior Foundation has reaffirmed its commitment to the company, in which it already invested €480,000 last year. For Piero Spada, the foundation's co-founder, “Aptadel's work represents exactly the type of advancement that paediatric oncology needs. By directly targeting the oncogenic driver EWSR1::FLI1, ADEL-101 offers a promising therapeutic strategy, and the LWF is proud to support its development.” 

“We believe that the future of biotechnology will be built through global collaboration that connects leading edge science with visionary entrepreneurs. Aptadel represents precisely this spirit. We see this collaboration as a powerful example of how innovation coming out of Europe can connect with international capital and networks to accelerate development. We are proud to support Aptadel as they advance their technology into the clinical phase to ultimately bring new hope to patients around the world,” said Toru Jay, founder of Newsight Tech Angels. 

Ewing's sarcoma, a childhood cancer with few therapeutic options 

Ewing's sarcoma is a rare cancer that mainly affects children and adolescents and develops in bones or the soft tissues that surround them. It is an aggressive cancer with a limited survival rate, especially in cases diagnosed at advanced stages or with metastasis. Despite advances in paediatric oncology, the available treatments – chemotherapy, surgery, and radiotherapy – continue to be very intensive, with significant side effects, and do not always manage to slow the disease's progression. 

The lack of specific therapeutic alternatives makes the search for new targeted strategies a priority for the scientific community and for the families affected by the disease. In the face of this scenario, Aptadel Therapeutics is one of a dozen companies dedicated to the development of treatments for childhood cancer in Spain, with a strategy based on a new generation of conjugated RNA molecules (ApDC) that allows selective attack on tumour cells, improving the effectiveness of treatments and reducing adverse effects. 

The ApDC proprietary technology developed by Aptadel is capable of slowing metastasis and precisely directing the drug inside tumour cells. This dual action opens the door to treatments that are potentially more effective and have fewer side effects than those currently used.  

ADEL-101, the company's lead drug candidate, has shown promising activity in both cellular studies and animal specimens with Ewing's sarcoma. The first tests, carried out in animal specimens, indicate that the compound is capable of localising the tumour. 

The challenge now is to improve biodistribution. The team is working to perfect this key stage of preclinical development, an essential step before being able to advance towards regulatory studies and future clinical trials.