Roche is moving beyond its traditional licensing model to partner with Chinese startup Defand Therapeutics for the discovery of new medicines. This approach distinguishes the company from other pharmaceutical firms that have recently focused on licensing existing drug candidates from China.
In separate developments, Bristol Myers Squibb reported that Zenbexus, a treatment recently granted accelerated approval by the FDA for multiple myeloma, reduced the risk of disease progression by 51% compared to standard therapy in a Phase 3 trial. Additionally, generic drugmaker Viatris announced it will acquire Pacira Biosciences, a maker of non-opioid pain therapies, for $1.65 billion.