Local knowledge on the regulatory and commercial fronts is an absolute must to succeed in Europe, Patrick Mahaffy tells Scrip a couple of months after the firm's PARP inhibitor Rubraca hit the German market.

Celgene won the first approval for a drug developed under its aggressive deal-making strategy in 2017 and several potential blockbusters in its partnered pipeline are edging closer to the market. Ozanimod will soon face regulatory approval, but the next-in-line acquired asset GED-0301 had a major setback. Scrip considers the contribution externally derived products have made – and will make – to Celgene’s business.

Expansion of 2015 development partnership adds lung and bladder cancer as well as renal and head-and-neck carcinoma to trials of the two immuno-oncology drugs. Jazz licenses Japanese rights to two of its commercial products to Nippon Shinyaku.

A $100 million, non-dilutive investment will keep Acetylon off the market, giving Celgene the right to buy it for a minimum of $500 million up-front within a pre-determined time window. For now, Acetylon retains all rights to its pipeline, including Phase Ib multiple myeloma drug ACY-1215.