After the transition is complete, Caforio will continue as chair of Bristol Myers’ board of directors, although it is not typical for U.S-based drugmakers to permanently split the CEO and board chair roles. The company said his tenure as chair will be “for a transition period to be determined by the board.”
Taking Boerner’s place as chief commercial officer will be Adam Lenkowsky, currently Bristol Myers’ head of major markets. That transition is effective immediately with Boerner’s elevation to COO.
A medical doctor, Caforio assumed the CEO’s role from Lamberto Andreotti in 2015 after having worked in numerous roles across the company, including as chief commercial officer and COO.
His tenure as Bristol Myers chief was defined by the company’s development of the blood thinner Eliquis and the cancer immunotherapy Opdivo into blockbuster medicines, as well as a string of big-ticket acquisitions, most notably a $74 billion acquisition of Celgene. That deal brought in the fast-selling blood cancer treatment Revlimid, making Bristol Myers one of the largest oncology companies, as well as the cancer cell therapies Abecma and Breyanzi, which now figure more prominently in its plans.
Yet Bristol Myers also misstepped under Caforio, choosing a clinical development plan for Opdivo that backfired and allowed rival Merck & Co. to take a leading position in the market for cancer immunotherapies. A big bet on an experimental immunotherapy developed by biotechnology company Nektar Therapeutics also didn’t pan out. READ MORE
By Jonathan Gardner
Source: biopharmadive.com
Novartis will acquire Mariana’s lead candidate MC-339, a radioligand therapy (RLT) designed to target small-cell lung cancer. Last year, Mariana had raised $175m in a Series B round from several funds and pharma giant Eli Lilly.
The company’s aspiration to expand the use of its obesity products to cardiovascular indications has been successful. In March, its blockbuster drug Wegovy was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases in obese or overweight adults.
Massachusetts-based Deciphera brings to the table an extensive kinase inhibitor pipeline, kinase drug discovery expertise, and a strong commercial and sales platform in the US and European markets that is meant to advance Ono’s capabilities and presence in the oncology space.
