After having received market authorisation in Europe and the US for alectinib as second-line treatment for ALK-positive NSCLC, Roche presents data that qualifies the oral drug as first-line therapy.

French cancer specialist Nanobiotix has closed a €25.1m placement of shares being issued to qualified and institutional investors in the US and Europe. The company will use to funds go push commercialisation of its lead candidate NBTXR3.

As cancer immune therapy specialist Adaptimmune’s R&D pipeline has expanded from 9 to 11 candidates and R&D cost rose from US$40.5m to US$63.8m, the company needed more funds.  

In April, Nathalie Moll has taken on her new job as Director General of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). Moll is also Secretary General of Europe’s largest biotech industry group EuropaBio. 

Cancer healthcare company Endomag, founded in 2007 as a spin-out from the University College London (UCL) and the University of Houston, has appointed Peter Keen as non-executive director. Keen will focus on supporting the company as it further extends its international reach.

Menarini-Silicon Biosystems Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bologna-based Menarini Group, has completed the take-over of the Cellsearch Circulating Tumour Cell System from Janssen Diagnostics. 

Help Medicortex to develop a diagnostic kit for brain injury detection.

Japanese pharma major Astellas has announced it will take over private Belgian drug developer Ogeda S.A. for €800m.

Genmab A/S has announced that its CD38-targeting Phase II candidate daratumab did not reach the expected ORR in non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients. Co-developer Janssen has decided to terminate development in three NHL subtypes. 

The evaluation of the European bioeconomy strategy will take longer than initially planned. According to information given at the Biostep Forum in Brussels, results won’t be available before next year and it is still unclear if there will be an update of the strategy adopted in 2012. Several upcoming expert and stakeholder meetings in 2017 will pave the way for a decision in early 2018.