Business	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2022
Basis of Presentation
Business	1. Business Cara Therapeutics, Inc., or the Company, is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical corporation formed on July 2, 2004. The Company is leading a new treatment paradigm to improve the lives of patients suffering from pruritus. The Company’s primary activities to date have been organizing and staffing the Company, developing its lead product and product candidates, including conducting preclinical and clinical trials of difelikefalin-based product candidates, and raising capital. In August 2021, the Company received U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approval for KORSUVA^TM(difelikefalin) injection, or KORSUVA injection, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease in adults undergoing hemodialysis. The Company has a license agreement with Vifor (International) Ltd., or Vifor International, that provides full commercialization rights of KORSUVA injection to Vifor in dialysis clinics in the U.S. under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby total net sales of KORSUVA injection in the U.S., as recorded by Vifor International, are reduced by Vifor International’s cost of goods sold, or COGS, as well as a marketing and distribution fee owed by the Company based on the level of annual net sales, and the resulting amount is shared according to a 60% (Company)/40% (Vifor International) profit split (excluding sales to Fresenius Medical Center dialysis clinics, compensation for which is governed by the agreement with Vifor Fresenius Medical Care Renal Pharma Ltd., or Vifor), subject to potential temporary adjustment in future years based on certain conditions (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements). Commercial launch of KORSUVA injection began in the U.S. in April 2022 and the Company began recording the associated profit-sharing revenues in the second quarter of 2022. In May 2022, as permitted by the agreements with Vifor International, Vifor International assigned its rights and obligations under the license agreement and a related supply agreement to Vifor. The Company’s rights and obligations under these agreements were unaffected by this assignment and the assignment does not affect the Company’s economic rights under the agreements. Throughout the Notes to Condensed Financial Statements, unless the context requires otherwise, references to Vifor’s commercialization of KORSUVA injection pursuant to this license agreement, and the Company’s provision of KORSUVA injection under this supply agreement, should be understood to refer to Vifor International prior to the assignment and to Vifor following the assignment, as applicable. In April 2022, the European Commission granted marketing authorization to difelikefalin injection under the brand name Kapruvia® (difelikefalin), or Kapruvia, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease in adult hemodialysis patients. The marketing authorization approves Kapruvia for use in all member states of the European Union, or EU, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. In 2018, the Company entered into a license agreement with Vifor that provides full commercialization rights of Kapruvia to Vifor worldwide (excluding the U.S., Japan and South Korea). In markets outside of the U.S., the Company is eligible to receive tiered double-digit royalty payments based on annual net sales, as defined in the agreement with Vifor, of difelikefalin injection in the licensed territories. In the U.S. market, the agreement with Vifor provides that Vifor will promote difelikefalin injection in the dialysis clinics of Fresenius Medical Care North America, or FMCNA, under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby the Company is generally entitled to 50% of the annual net profits (as defined in the agreement with Vifor) based on net FMCNA clinic sales (as defined in the agreement with Vifor) and Vifor is entitled to 50% of such net profits, subject to potential adjustments in a calendar year based on certain conditions (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements). In April 2022, Kapruvia was also approved in the UK. The Company expects commercial launch of Kapruvia in certain EU markets in the second half of 2022. As of June 30, 2022, the Company had raised aggregate net proceeds of approximately $519,600 from several rounds of equity financing, including its initial public offering, or IPO, which closed in February 2014 and four follow-on public offerings of common stock, which closed in July 2019, July 2018, April 2017 and August 2015, respectively, and the issuance of convertible preferred stock and debt prior to the IPO. Including profit share revenue, the Company had also earned approximately $252,700 under its license and supply agreements for difelikefalin, primarily with Vifor International, Vifor, Maruishi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., or Maruishi, and Chong Kun Dang Pharmaceutical Corp., or CKDP, and an earlier product candidate for which development efforts ceased in 2007. In October 2021, the Company received net proceeds of $44,969 from the issuance and sale of 3,282,391 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with U.S. regulatory approval for KORSUVA injection in August 2021. Additionally, in October 2020, the Company received net proceeds of $38,449 from the issuance and sale of 2,939,552 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with the Company’s license agreement with Vifor International. Furthermore, in May 2018, the Company received net proceeds of $14,556 from the issuance and sale of 1,174,827 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with the Company’s license agreement with Vifor (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements). As of June 30, 2022, the Company had unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities of $204,683 and an accumulated deficit of $512,713. The Company has incurred substantial net losses and negative cash flows from operating activities in nearly every fiscal period since inception and expects this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. The Company recognized net losses of $4,206 and $30,745 for the three months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively, and $31,955 and $54,046 for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively, and had net cash used in operating activities of $30,028 and $44,726 for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The Company is subject to risks common to other life science companies including, but not limited to, uncertainty of product development and commercialization, lack of marketing and sales history, development by its competitors of new technological innovations, dependence on key personnel, market acceptance of products, product liability, protection of proprietary technology, ability to raise additional financing, and compliance with FDA and other government regulations. If the Company does not successfully commercialize KORSUVA injection or any of its other product candidates, it will be unable to generate additional recurring product revenue or achieve profitability.

Business

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2022

1. Business

Cara Therapeutics, Inc., or the Company, is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical corporation formed on July 2, 2004. The Company is leading a new treatment paradigm to improve the lives of patients suffering from pruritus. The Company’s primary activities to date have been organizing and staffing the Company, developing its lead product and product candidates, including conducting preclinical and clinical trials of difelikefalin-based product candidates, and raising capital.

In August 2021, the Company received U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approval for KORSUVA^TM(difelikefalin) injection, or KORSUVA injection, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease in adults undergoing hemodialysis. The Company has a license agreement with Vifor (International) Ltd., or Vifor International, that provides full commercialization rights of KORSUVA injection to Vifor in dialysis clinics in the U.S. under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby total net sales of KORSUVA injection in the U.S., as recorded by Vifor International, are reduced by Vifor International’s cost of goods sold, or COGS, as well as a marketing and distribution fee owed by the Company based on the level of annual net sales, and the resulting amount is shared according to a 60% (Company)/40% (Vifor International) profit split (excluding sales to Fresenius Medical Center dialysis clinics, compensation for which is governed by the agreement with Vifor Fresenius Medical Care Renal Pharma Ltd., or Vifor), subject to potential temporary adjustment in future years based on certain conditions (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements). Commercial launch of KORSUVA injection began in the U.S. in April 2022 and the Company began recording the associated profit-sharing revenues in the second quarter of 2022. In May 2022, as permitted by the agreements with Vifor International, Vifor International assigned its rights and obligations under the license agreement and a related supply agreement to Vifor. The Company’s rights and obligations under these agreements were unaffected by this assignment and the assignment does not affect the Company’s economic rights under the agreements. Throughout the Notes to Condensed Financial Statements, unless the context requires otherwise, references to Vifor’s commercialization of KORSUVA injection pursuant to this license agreement, and the Company’s provision of KORSUVA injection under this supply agreement, should be understood to refer to Vifor International prior to the assignment and to Vifor following the assignment, as applicable.

In April 2022, the European Commission granted marketing authorization to difelikefalin injection under the brand name Kapruvia® (difelikefalin), or Kapruvia, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease in adult hemodialysis patients. The marketing authorization approves Kapruvia for use in all member states of the European Union, or EU, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. In 2018, the Company entered into a license agreement with Vifor that provides full commercialization rights of Kapruvia to Vifor worldwide (excluding the U.S., Japan and South Korea). In markets outside of the U.S., the Company is eligible to receive tiered double-digit royalty payments based on annual net sales, as defined in the agreement with Vifor, of difelikefalin injection in the licensed territories. In the U.S. market, the agreement with Vifor provides that Vifor will promote difelikefalin injection in the dialysis clinics of Fresenius Medical Care North America, or FMCNA, under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby the Company is generally entitled to 50% of the annual net profits (as defined in the agreement with Vifor) based on net FMCNA clinic sales (as defined in the agreement with Vifor) and Vifor is entitled to 50% of such net profits, subject to potential adjustments in a calendar year based on certain conditions (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements). In April 2022, Kapruvia was also approved in the UK. The Company expects commercial launch of Kapruvia in certain EU markets in the second half of 2022.

As of June 30, 2022, the Company had raised aggregate net proceeds of approximately $519,600 from several rounds of equity financing, including its initial public offering, or IPO, which closed in February 2014 and four follow-on public offerings of common stock, which closed in July 2019, July 2018, April 2017 and August 2015, respectively, and the issuance of convertible preferred stock and debt prior to the IPO. Including profit share revenue, the Company had also earned approximately $252,700 under its license and supply agreements for difelikefalin, primarily with Vifor

International, Vifor, Maruishi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., or Maruishi, and Chong Kun Dang Pharmaceutical Corp., or CKDP, and an earlier product candidate for which development efforts ceased in 2007. In October 2021, the Company received net proceeds of $44,969 from the issuance and sale of 3,282,391 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with U.S. regulatory approval for KORSUVA injection in August 2021. Additionally, in October 2020, the Company received net proceeds of $38,449 from the issuance and sale of 2,939,552 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with the Company’s license agreement with Vifor International. Furthermore, in May 2018, the Company received net proceeds of $14,556 from the issuance and sale of 1,174,827 shares of the Company’s common stock to Vifor International in connection with the Company’s license agreement with Vifor (see Note 11, Collaboration and Licensing Agreements).

As of June 30, 2022, the Company had unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities of $204,683 and an accumulated deficit of $512,713. The Company has incurred substantial net losses and negative cash flows from operating activities in nearly every fiscal period since inception and expects this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. The Company recognized net losses of $4,206 and $30,745 for the three months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively, and $31,955 and $54,046 for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively, and had net cash used in operating activities of $30,028 and $44,726 for the six months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

The Company is subject to risks common to other life science companies including, but not limited to, uncertainty of product development and commercialization, lack of marketing and sales history, development by its competitors of new technological innovations, dependence on key personnel, market acceptance of products, product liability, protection of proprietary technology, ability to raise additional financing, and compliance with FDA and other government regulations. If the Company does not successfully commercialize KORSUVA injection or any of its other product candidates, it will be unable to generate additional recurring product revenue or achieve profitability.