Despite no mega-deals (yet), the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference’s first day brings the usual flurry of deals, including a pair of tie-ups each for Bristol and Pfizer. BioNTech moves into cancer with Crescendo.

Presenting at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Health Care Conference, Coherus BioSciences provided the latest on the firm’s highly-anticipated proposed on-body injector device for pegfilgrastim, days after securing a $300m credit agreement that includes $50m related to the firm’s proposed ranibizumab biosimilar.

As the likely dynamics for US biosimilar competition to Humira come into sharper focus, Coherus has promised that its mid-2023 market entry with its just-approved Yusimry version will be accompanied by a “compelling value proposition,” months after rival Amgen’s biosimilar is expected to launch and around the same time as multiple other rivals are expected to hit the market.

Rapid, uncoordinated growth has turned the PD-1/L1 inhibitor pipeline into a global stampede, FDA’s Pazdur and Beaver say. Solutions like a unified submission pathway and coordinated trial design pose challenges requiring international cooperation among governments and industry alike.