Aktis Oncology, a company that makes special drugs to treat cancer, announced on Thursday that it raised $318 million from its initial public offering (IPO). This is the first time a biotech company has done an IPO in 2026. The company sold 17.65 million shares at $18 each, which was more than they originally planned. They were able to sell more shares because Eli Lilly, a big pharmaceutical company that has worked with Aktis before, bought $100 million worth of shares. Aktis will start trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange on Friday under the symbol ‘AKTS’. Aktis, based in Boston, is working on a new type of cancer drug that can target tumors in ways that other similar drugs can’t. Their most advanced drug, AKY-1189, is designed to target a specific protein called Nectin-4, which is also targeted by Pfizer’s bladder cancer drug Padcev. Aktis is also studying if this drug can be used to treat other types of cancer. They expect to have results from early tests in the first quarter of 2027. Another drug they’re working on, AKY-2519, targets a protein called B7-H3, which is found in many solid tumors. Tumors with high levels of B7-H3 are usually hard to treat with other cancer therapies. The partnership with Lilly could also lead to more targets for Aktis’s drugs. Before the IPO, Aktis had already raised $346 million from private investors to support their drug development. Last year, it was tough for biotech companies to raise money through IPOs, with only a few companies succeeding. Only one of those was a cancer drug developer. However, companies that make radiopharmaceuticals, like Aktis, have attracted big pharmaceutical companies like Lilly, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Novartis. Novartis, in particular, has had success with its radiopharmaceuticals, which has led other companies to invest in this area. Aktis’s IPO is the third-largest in the radiopharmaceutical sector since the start of 2024, behind only Kyverna Therapeutics and CG Oncology.