Sun Pharma will acquire Organon for $11.75 billion. Astellas projects Xtandi sales to decline in fiscal year 2026. BeOne Medicines is joining the PD-1xVEGF race with an option for a trispecific antibody. And more.
1. Sun Pharma strikes biopharma's largest deal of '26 with $11.75B buyout of Organon
Sun Pharma has struck a deal to buy Organon for $11.75 billion in the largest biopharma acquisition so far this year and the largest ever by an Indian drugmaker. The deal will make Sun the No. 7 top seller of biosimilars. And Organon’s skin cream Vtama fits in Sun’s specialty dermatology business. Organon’s 2025 sales matched Sun’s own last year.
2. Astellas counts on new medicines to offset projected Xtandi decline in fiscal 2026
Astellas indicated that global sales of Pfizer-partnered Xtandi had peaked in fiscal 2025 at about $6 billion. With a U.S. price cut scheduled to begin in 2027, the company expects Xtandi sales to drop 5.3% in fiscal 2026. Five strategic brands led by Pfizer-partnered Padcev are expected to keep Astellas sales in the black before this fiscal year ends in March 2027.
3. Astellas thins early pipeline, swaps out struggling rare disease gene therapy
Astellas has halted development of its gene therapy AT132, also called resamirigene bilparvovec, for the rare disease X-linked myotubular myopathy, in favor of a new candidate, ASP2957, which has shown “high muscle specificity and reduced liver targeting” in preclinical studies, according to Astellas CEO Naoki Okamura.
4. BeOne signs $2B deal for option on preclinical trispecific antibody from China’s Huahui
BeOne Medicines is buying into the PD-1xVEGF field through a deal with China’s Huahui Health. For $20 million upfront, BeOne gained an option to buy Huahui’s PD-1xCTLA-4xVEGF-A trispecific antibody. BeOne will pay $100 million if it exercises the option, with up to $1.9 billion in potential milestone payments. The candidate hasn’t yet reported any clinical data.
5. Pfizer’s victory in delaying Vyndamax generics is mixed bag for BridgeBio: analysts
Pfizer has reached settlements with three companies, including India’s Cipla, to postpone generics to the blockbuster transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) med Vyndamax into 2031. Other terms of the deals were not disclosed. Last year, the drug generated global sales of $6.3 billion, reflecting 17% growth from 2024.
6. Erasca hits ‘home run’ with cancer data as analyst suggests stock drop prompted by patient death
Erasca’s pan-RAS med, licensed from China’s Joyo Pharmatech, reported a 40% response rate in 20 second-line patients with KRAS G12X-mutated pancreatic cancer. The number compares favorably to the 19.6% rate by Revolution Medicines’ daraxonrasib in a previous trial. However, the death of a 66-year-old patient who developed pneumonitis about one month after starting the Erasca drug caused concern among investors.
Other News of Note:
7. Daiichi pushes back annual report, citing reviews amid ‘rapidly changing business conditions’
8. Protagonist opts for $475M in Takeda payouts instead of splitting US rusfertide profits
9. House panel calls for banning China data from FDA drug trial applications (Endpoints News)
10. UK to accept more China clinical trial data as power shifts (Bloomberg)