Nature of Business	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2024
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Nature of Business	1. Nature of Business LadRx Corporation (“LadRx” the “Company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) is a biopharmaceutical research and development company specializing in oncology. The Company’s focus is on the discovery, research and clinical development of novel anti-cancer drug candidates that employ novel technologies that target chemotherapeutic drugs to solid tumors and reduce off-target toxicities. During 2017, LadRx’s discovery laboratory in Freiburg, Germany, synthesized and tested over 75 rationally designed drug conjugates with highly potent anti-cancer payloads, culminating in the creation of two distinct classes of compounds. Four lead candidates (LADR 7 through LADR-10) were selected based on in vitro and animal studies in several different cancer models, stability, and manufacturing feasibility. In addition, a novel companion diagnostic, ACDx™, was developed to identify patients with cancer who are most likely to benefit from treatment with these drug candidates. On June 1, 2018, the Company launched Centurion BioPharma Corporation (“Centurion”), a wholly-owned private subsidiary, and transferred to Centurion all of its assets, liabilities and personnel associated with the laboratory operations in Freiburg, Germany. On December 21, 2018, LadRx announced that Centurion had concluded the pre-clinical phase of development for its four LADR™ (Linker Activated Drug Release) drug candidates, and for its albumin companion diagnostic (ACDx™). As a result of completing this work, operations taking place at the pre-clinical laboratory in Freiburg, Germany were no longer needed and, accordingly, the lab was closed at the end of January 2019. On March 9, 2022, Centurion merged with and into LadRx, with LadRx absorbing all of Centurion’s assets and continuing after the merger as the surviving entity (the “Merger”). The Merger was implemented through an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to Section 253 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”) and did not require approval from either our or Centurion’s stockholders. The Certificate of Ownership merging Centurion into LadRx was filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware on March 9, 2022. Effective September 26, 2022, we changed our name from CytRx Corporation to LadRx Corporation pursuant to a Certificate of Amendment to our Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”), as amended, filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware. In accordance with the DGCL, our board of directors (the “Board”) approved the name change and the Certificate of Amendment. Pursuant to Section 242(b)(1) of the DGCL, stockholder approval was not required for the name change or the Certificate of Amendment. Aldoxorubicin On July 27, 2017, the Company entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement (the “License Agreement”) with ImmunityBio, Inc. (formerly known as NantCell, Inc. (“NantCell, Inc.”), and which merged with NantKwest Inc. in March 2021 (“ImmunityBio” and together with NantCell, Inc., “NantCell”)), granting to ImmunityBio the exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize aldoxorubicin in all indications. As a result, we are no longer directly working on the development of aldoxorubicin. As part of the License Agreement, ImmunityBio made a strategic investment of $13 million in LadRx’s common stock at $660.00 per share (adjusted to reflect the 2017 reverse stock split), a premium of 92% to the market price on that date. The Company also issued ImmunityBio a warrant to purchase up to 5,000 shares of common stock at $660.00 per share, which such warrant expired on January 26, 2019. ImmunityBio conducted an open-label, randomized, Phase 2 study of a combination of immunotherapy, aldoxorubicin, and standard-of-care chemotherapy versus standard-of-care chemotherapy alone for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer in patients who have had 1 or 2 lines of treatment (Cohorts A and B) or 3 or greater lines of treatment (Cohort C). In June 2022, Immunity Bio presented data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting showing that patients receiving combination immunotherapy with aldoxorubicin plus standard-of-care chemotherapy experienced overall survival of 5.8 months, compared to 3 months for historical control patients that had received only the standard-of-care chemotherapy (n=78, 95% confidence interval of 4 to 6.9 months). Immunity Bio submitted the results of the Phase 2 study to the FDA for registration. The FDA denied the request and asked for a very large clinical trial with cohorts for each of the combination therapies alone, and in permutative combination with the other combination therapies. Immunity Bio chose not to proceed with the FDA’s recommended trial, and aldoxorubicin has been returned to LadRx (see below “Mutual Termination and Release Agreement”). Aldoxorubicin has received Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) by the FDA for the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma (“STS”). ODD provides several benefits including seven years of market exclusivity after approval, certain R&D related tax credits, and protocol assistance by the FDA. European regulators granted aldoxorubicin Orphan designation for STS which confers ten years of market exclusivity among other benefits. Mutual Termination and Release Agreement On June 3, 2024 (the “Effective Date”), we entered into a Mutual Termination and Release Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”) with NantCell and its parent company, ImmunityBio and XOMA (as defined below). Pursuant to the Termination Agreement, the License Agreement will terminate automatically on the Effective Date, and neither the Company nor NantCell will have any continuing obligations to each other than as described in the Termination Agreement. Additionally, except that during the 30 day period following the Effective Date (the “Discussion Period”), the Company and NantCell shall engage in good faith discussions regarding the terms of an agreement pursuant to which the Company would have the right to purchase the inventory of aldoxorubicin (including, without limitation, active pharmaceutical ingredient, WPI and finished dose, the “Inventory”) and all other materials necessary for the research, development and commercialization, among others, worldwide as of the Effective Date, at the Company’s expense. Subsequently, the Company and NantCell have agreed the disposition of the Inventory shall be at NantCell’s sole discretion. The Termination Agreement additionally provides for the release of the Company and NantCell from claims, demands and liabilities, among others, and customary representations and warranties, covenants, and other provisions customary for transactions of this nature. In December 2024, the Company announced it is restarting a process to seek marketing approval of aldoxorubicin under the provisions of the FDA’s Section 505(b)(2). The 505(b)(2) pathway is designed for a new drug composition whose active ingredient is the same active ingredient as a drug previously approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Given that the active component of the tumor-targeted drug aldoxorubicin is the already-marketed drug doxorubicin, the 505(b)(2) pathway is available for aldoxorubicin, and greatly reduces the regulatory burden of getting aldoxorubicin to the market by relying on the non-clinical and clinical data history of doxorubicin to demonstrate efficacy and safety. Additionally, the market exclusivity awarded to drugs that have received orphan designation for certain rare diseases, as is the case for aldoxorubicin, is available for drugs approved through the 505(b)(2) process for new drugs. 2023 Reverse Stock Split The Company effected a 1-for-100 reverse stock split (the “Reverse Stock Split”) of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock on May 17, 2023, pursuant to which every 100 shares of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock were converted into one share of common stock without any change in the par value per share. Any fraction of a share of common stock that would otherwise have resulted from the Reverse Stock Split were rounded up to the nearest whole share. All share and per share amounts in this Annual Report have been adjusted to reflect the reverse stock split as if it had occurred at the beginning of the earliest period presented. Corporate Information LadRx is a Delaware corporation, incorporated in 1985. Our corporate offices are located at 11726 San Vicente Boulevard, Suite 650, Los Angeles, California 90049, and our telephone number is (310) 826-5648. Our web site is located at http://www.ladrxcorp.com. We do not incorporate by reference into this Annual Report the information on, or accessible through, our website, and you should not consider it as part of this Annual Report. Going Concern The Company has operated at a loss due to its ongoing expenditures for research and development of its product candidates and for general and administrative purposes, and lack of significant recurring revenues. For the year ended December 31, 2024, it incurred a net loss of $1.6 million, had a loss from operations of $3.6 million, incurred a loss from operations of $3.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, and had total stockholders’ deficit as of December 31, 2024 of $1.4 million. The Company have had no recurring revenue, and it is likely to continue to incur losses unless and until it concludes a successful strategic partnership or financing for its research and development assets. These losses, among other things, have had and will continue to have an adverse effect on the stockholders’ equity and working capital. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with its product development efforts, they are unable to predict when they may become profitable, if at all. If the Company does not become profitable or are unable to maintain future profitability, the market value of its common stock will be adversely affected. These factors individually and collectively raise a substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. In order to fund its business and operations, the Company has relied primarily upon sales of its equity securities, including proceeds from the exercise of stock options and common stock purchase warrants and long-term loan financing. They have received limited funding from their strategic partners and licensees. The Company will ultimately be required to obtain additional funding in order to execute its long-term business plans, although they do not currently have commitments from any third parties to provide them with long-term debt or capital. The Company cannot assure that additional funding will be available on favorable terms, or at all. If they fail to obtain additional funding when needed, the Company may not be able to execute its business plans and its business may suffer, which would have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations and cash flows. We have approximately $1.0 million of contractual obligations in 2025. We have no commitments from third parties to provide us with any additional financing, and we may not be able to obtain future financing on favorable terms, or at all. Failure to obtain adequate financing would adversely affect our ability to operate as a going concern. If we raise additional funds by issuing equity securities, dilution to stockholders may result and new investors could have rights superior to some or all of our existing equity holders. In addition, debt financing, if available, may include restrictive covenants. If adequate funds are not available to us, we may have to liquidate some or all of our assets or to delay or reduce the scope of or eliminate some portion or all of our development programs or clinical trials.

Nature of Business

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2024

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

1. Nature of Business

LadRx Corporation (“LadRx” the “Company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) is a biopharmaceutical research and development company specializing in oncology. The Company’s focus is on the discovery, research and clinical development of novel anti-cancer drug candidates that employ novel technologies that target chemotherapeutic drugs to solid tumors and reduce off-target toxicities. During 2017, LadRx’s discovery laboratory in Freiburg, Germany, synthesized and tested over 75 rationally designed drug conjugates with highly potent anti-cancer payloads, culminating in the creation of two distinct classes of compounds. Four lead candidates (LADR 7 through LADR-10) were selected based on in vitro and animal studies in several different cancer models, stability, and manufacturing feasibility. In addition, a novel companion diagnostic, ACDx™, was developed to identify patients with cancer who are most likely to benefit from treatment with these drug candidates.

On June 1, 2018, the Company launched Centurion BioPharma Corporation (“Centurion”), a wholly-owned private subsidiary, and transferred to Centurion all of its assets, liabilities and personnel associated with the laboratory operations in Freiburg, Germany. On December 21, 2018, LadRx announced that Centurion had concluded the pre-clinical phase of development for its four LADR™ (Linker Activated Drug Release) drug candidates, and for its albumin companion diagnostic (ACDx™). As a result of completing this work, operations taking place at the pre-clinical laboratory in Freiburg, Germany were no longer needed and, accordingly, the lab was closed at the end of January 2019.

On March 9, 2022, Centurion merged with and into LadRx, with LadRx absorbing all of Centurion’s assets and continuing after the merger as the surviving entity (the “Merger”). The Merger was implemented through an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to Section 253 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”) and did not require approval from either our or Centurion’s stockholders. The Certificate of Ownership merging Centurion into LadRx was filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware on March 9, 2022.

Effective September 26, 2022, we changed our name from CytRx Corporation to LadRx Corporation pursuant to a Certificate of Amendment to our Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”), as amended, filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware. In accordance with the DGCL, our board of directors (the “Board”) approved the name change and the Certificate of Amendment. Pursuant to Section 242(b)(1) of the DGCL, stockholder approval was not required for the name change or the Certificate of Amendment.

Aldoxorubicin

On July 27, 2017, the Company entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement (the “License Agreement”) with ImmunityBio, Inc. (formerly known as NantCell, Inc. (“NantCell, Inc.”), and which merged with NantKwest Inc. in March 2021 (“ImmunityBio” and together with NantCell, Inc., “NantCell”)), granting to ImmunityBio the exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize aldoxorubicin in all indications. As a result, we are no longer directly working on the development of aldoxorubicin. As part of the License Agreement, ImmunityBio made a strategic investment of $13 million in LadRx’s common stock at $660.00 per share (adjusted to reflect the 2017 reverse stock split), a premium of 92% to the market price on that date. The Company also issued ImmunityBio a warrant to purchase up to 5,000 shares of common stock at $660.00 per share, which such warrant expired on January 26, 2019.

ImmunityBio conducted an open-label, randomized, Phase 2 study of a combination of immunotherapy, aldoxorubicin, and standard-of-care chemotherapy versus standard-of-care chemotherapy alone for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer in patients who have had 1 or 2 lines of treatment (Cohorts A and B) or 3 or greater lines of treatment (Cohort C). In June 2022, Immunity Bio presented data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting showing that patients receiving combination immunotherapy with aldoxorubicin plus standard-of-care chemotherapy experienced overall survival of 5.8 months, compared to 3 months for historical control patients that had received only the standard-of-care chemotherapy (n=78, 95% confidence interval of 4 to 6.9 months). Immunity Bio submitted the results of the Phase 2 study to the FDA for registration. The FDA denied the request and asked for a very large clinical trial with cohorts for each of the combination therapies alone, and in permutative combination with the other combination therapies. Immunity Bio chose not to proceed with the FDA’s recommended trial, and aldoxorubicin has been returned to LadRx (see below “Mutual Termination and Release Agreement”).

Aldoxorubicin has received Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) by the FDA for the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma (“STS”). ODD provides several benefits including seven years of market exclusivity after approval, certain R&D related tax credits, and protocol assistance by the FDA. European regulators granted aldoxorubicin Orphan designation for STS which confers ten years of market exclusivity among other benefits.

Mutual Termination and Release Agreement

On June 3, 2024 (the “Effective Date”), we entered into a Mutual Termination and Release Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”) with NantCell and its parent company, ImmunityBio and XOMA (as defined below). Pursuant to the Termination Agreement, the License Agreement will terminate automatically on the Effective Date, and neither the Company nor NantCell will have any continuing obligations to each other than as described in the Termination Agreement. Additionally, except that during the 30 day period following the Effective Date (the “Discussion Period”), the Company and NantCell shall engage in good faith discussions regarding the terms of an agreement pursuant to which the Company would have the right to purchase the inventory of aldoxorubicin (including, without limitation, active pharmaceutical ingredient, WPI and finished dose, the “Inventory”) and all other materials necessary for the research, development and commercialization, among others, worldwide as of the Effective Date, at the Company’s expense. Subsequently, the Company and NantCell have agreed the disposition of the Inventory shall be at NantCell’s sole discretion.

The Termination Agreement additionally provides for the release of the Company and NantCell from claims, demands and liabilities, among others, and customary representations and warranties, covenants, and other provisions customary for transactions of this nature.

In December 2024, the Company announced it is restarting a process to seek marketing approval of aldoxorubicin under the provisions of the FDA’s Section 505(b)(2). The 505(b)(2) pathway is designed for a new drug composition whose active ingredient is the same active ingredient as a drug previously approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Given that the active component of the tumor-targeted drug aldoxorubicin is the already-marketed drug doxorubicin, the 505(b)(2) pathway is available for aldoxorubicin, and greatly reduces the regulatory burden of getting aldoxorubicin to the market by relying on the non-clinical and clinical data history of doxorubicin to demonstrate efficacy and safety. Additionally, the market exclusivity awarded to drugs that have received orphan designation for certain rare diseases, as is the case for aldoxorubicin, is available for drugs approved through the 505(b)(2) process for new drugs.

2023 Reverse Stock Split

The Company effected a 1-for-100 reverse stock split (the “Reverse Stock Split”) of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock on May 17, 2023, pursuant to which every 100 shares of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock were converted into one share of common stock without any change in the par value per share. Any fraction of a share of common stock that would otherwise have resulted from the Reverse Stock Split were rounded up to the nearest whole share. All share and per share amounts in this Annual Report have been adjusted to reflect the reverse stock split as if it had occurred at the beginning of the earliest period presented.

Corporate Information

LadRx is a Delaware corporation, incorporated in 1985. Our corporate offices are located at 11726 San Vicente Boulevard, Suite 650, Los Angeles, California 90049, and our telephone number is (310) 826-5648. Our web site is located at http://www.ladrxcorp.com. We do not incorporate by reference into this Annual Report the information on, or accessible through, our website, and you should not consider it as part of this Annual Report.

Going Concern

The Company has operated at a loss due to its ongoing expenditures for research and development of its product candidates and for general and administrative purposes, and lack of significant recurring revenues. For the year ended December 31, 2024, it incurred a net loss of $1.6 million, had a loss from operations of $3.6 million, incurred a loss from operations of $3.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, and had total stockholders’ deficit as of December 31, 2024 of $1.4 million. The Company have had no recurring revenue, and it is likely to continue to incur losses unless and until it concludes a successful strategic partnership or financing for its research and development assets. These losses, among other things, have had and will continue to have an adverse effect on the stockholders’ equity and working capital. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with its product development efforts, they are unable to predict when they may become profitable, if at all. If the Company does not become profitable or are unable to maintain future profitability, the market value of its common stock will be adversely affected. These factors individually and collectively raise a substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

In order to fund its business and operations, the Company has relied primarily upon sales of its equity securities, including proceeds from the exercise of stock options and common stock purchase warrants and long-term loan financing. They have received limited funding from their strategic partners and licensees. The Company will ultimately be required to obtain additional funding in order to execute its long-term business plans, although they do not currently have commitments from any third parties to provide them with long-term debt or capital. The Company cannot assure that additional funding will be available on favorable terms, or at all. If they fail to obtain additional funding when needed, the Company may not be able to execute its business plans and its business may suffer, which would have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations and cash flows. We have approximately $1.0 million of contractual obligations in 2025.

We have no commitments from third parties to provide us with any additional financing, and we may not be able to obtain future financing on favorable terms, or at all. Failure to obtain adequate financing would adversely affect our ability to operate as a going concern. If we raise additional funds by issuing equity securities, dilution to stockholders may result and new investors could have rights superior to some or all of our existing equity holders. In addition, debt financing, if available, may include restrictive covenants. If adequate funds are not available to us, we may have to liquidate some or all of our assets or to delay or reduce the scope of or eliminate some portion or all of our development programs or clinical trials.