January 27, 2017

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Welcome to FierceLifeSci Weekly Digest, your roundup of the biggest and most popular stories from each of our publications.

Featured Story

Novartis lays out catch-up plan in immuno-oncology fueled by new-gen treatments

Novartis is often said to be lagging behind the leaders in immuno-oncology, but insisted this week it has "a leading, if not THE leading" R&D portfolio this emerging field.


Top Stories Of The Week

Another Opdivo setback for Bristol, this time on the combo front, widening Merck's immuno-oncology lead

So much for Bristol-Myers Squibb keeping pace in the first-line lung cancer combo market. After losing out to rival Merck on the monotherapy front, the New Jersey pharma giant is now falling further behind with its one-two punch, too.

J&J to spin off Actelion R&D unit into new biotech in major M&A deal

Johnson & Johnson has always been partial to a new biotech and under its buyout of Actelion announced early this morning, it’s creating another by spinning off the Swiss company’s research ops.

Merck to pony up $625M plus Keytruda royalties to settle BMS, Ono patent fight

Merck & Co. will pony up $625 million plus 10 years of royalties on its blockbuster PD-1 cancer drug Keytruda to settle its patent dispute with Opdivo maker Bristol-Myers Squibb and its development partner, Ono. The deal gives Bristol-Myers something of a consolation prize after Opdivo’s recent disappointments in non-small cell lung cancer, with a royalty stream that could be "quite significant," one analyst said.

FierceMedicalDevices' 2016 Fierce 15

From video game-based therapies and a liquid biopsy for cancer to deep learning and bioelectronics, 2016’s Fierce 15 are redefining what it means to be a medical device. If they’re not making big bets on nascent technology, they’re reimagining an existing device or therapy to deliver better results.

Pharma's latest idea for getting drug info in front of docs? Give them a single login

Six big pharma companies are joining forces to create a one-step login for doctors and healthcare providers to get drug information. The newly formed Align Biopharma group includes Allergan, AstraZeneca, Biogen, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis and Pfizer, along with Veeva Systems life sciences software solutions company.

Expert 'apprehensive' about Trump's vaccine intentions, but waiting for more details

Having witnessed antivaccine sentiments swell in Texas, Sabin Vaccine Institute President Peter Hotez worries the feelings will intensify around the country. However, even as reports hit that President Donald Trump has met with antivaccine activists, Hotez is “apprehensive” but not ready to sound an alarm on the new administration just yet.

Novel ‘FishTaco’ computational method links gut microbes with disease

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a novel computational method that they believe can be used to determine the influence of individual bacterial species in the microbiome to particular disorders.

Hetero Labs plant hit with Form 483 for suspicious shredding of documents

India’s Hetero Labs has gained attention by launching biosimilars of some of the world’s top cancer drugs in its home country. But now, the Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical firm has drawn scrutiny from the FDA for some dubious practices at a formulations manufacturing plant in Jadcherla.

WuXi AppTec acquires HD Biosciences, prepares IPO for biologics subsidiary

WuXi AppTec, one of the largest CROs in China, has just acquired a Shanghai-based preclinical counterpart, HD Biosciences, building further on its core business.

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