With at least two potential candidates being touted as potential best-in-class by their sponsors, the oral SERD market is shaping up to be highly competitive. Sanofi has taken an early lead in expanding the scope of its Phase III breast cancer program.

Oncology is an area where the Swiss major has long been a dominant player, and Bill Anderson highlighted programs to Scrip which Roche hopes will help extend that dominance.

Celularity launched with $250m to develop cell therapies with technology licensed from Celgene and others, while mRNA specialist Moderna brought in another $500m mega round and Generation Bio closed a $100m Series B to fund ongoing gene therapy programs.

J&J’s chief scientific officer Dr. Paul Stoffels tells Scrip that flexibility is a hallmark of how the company goes about its collaborations, including the new $30bn deal with Actelion. Stoffels is also hoping to progress the science for a new TB medicine via a unique collaboration in India.