Dive Brief:
- Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) and AbbVie are reportedly in discussions about a potential cancer partnership to expand their respective treatment portfolios, according to Bloomberg.
- BI received a cancer-related boost over the weekend, when the European Committee for Medicinal Products (CHMP) recommended an expanded label for its lung cancer drug Giotrif to include second-line treatment of advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the lung.
- AbbVie has worked to bolster its oncology presence, buying Pharmacyclics for $21 billion last year. That deal gave it access to the blockbuster blood cancer drug Imbruvica (ibrutinib), which is jointly developed with Janssen.
Dive Insight:
The rumored talks between BI and AbbVie would represent a continuation of an M&A trend which has seen hundreds of billions in drug company tie-ups over the last year.
A press person at Boehringer Ingelheim declined to comment to BioPharma Dive on the reported discussions. If a partnership with AbbVie does in fact emerge, BI would be able to expand the company’s lung cancer-focused portfolio.
The recent positive opinion from CHMP on Giotrif strengthens the drug’s label, adding to the existing approval for treatment of EGFR-mutated lung cancer. CHMP’s recommendation was based on the LUX-Lung 8 trial which compared Giotrif’s progression free survival (PFS) rates to Genentech’s Tarceva. Giotrif reduced PFS by 19% comparatively.
BI also markets Vargatef for lung cancer treatment.