Expanded indications will be key for Novartis's Beovu and a successful diabetic macular edema trial has provided a fillip, a week after the wet AMD-approved drug posted a 44% slump in sales.

Chinese domestic firms have gained a flurry of novel drug approvals at home, including the first globally for an anti-PD-1 antibody for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Agenus’ recent submission of balstilimab joins novel checkpoint inhibitors from Incyte expecting FDA action this year; Junshi and Coherus’ ongoing rolling BLA for toripalimab is the first from the multiple PD-1/L1 inhibitor candidates developed in China that are vying to enter the US market.

Coherus BioSciences has sold a little under 2.5 million shares to partner Junshi Biosciences, giving the firm additional capital following a large debt financing last year.