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.

Celgene Corp. will pursue accelerated approval later this year for AG-221 (enasidenib), the lead drug candidate under its partnership with Agios Pharmaceuticals Inc., which may separately seek accelerated approval for its wholly-owned drug AG-120 in 2017, giving Agios's precision medicines a foothold in the oncology market while the collaborators work to expand the labeling for their drugs.

Biopharma financing decreased by 16% in Q2 to $4.8 billion, while the total value of acquisitions nearly doubled to $22 billion, including AbbVie's $9.8 billion takeover of Stemcentrx. Alliances garnered an aggregate potential deal value of $23.1 billion, led by Allergan's CNS agreement with Heptares.