Top performers in today’s health care market are transforming their growth strategies. They excel at category leadership, cost reduction and customer-focused innovation. Complexity – in strategy, portfolios, operations, organizations and people – is a little-noticed impediment to achieving margin-busting growth, on target and on time.

Mid-size biopharma companies are industry’s “stealth” players, occupying a small but important space in the race for new innovative therapies. In Vivo explores the growth prospects of one of the more prominent entrants in this space, Merck KGAA, whose fortunes depend heavily on building a strong oncology and immunology franchise in the US market.

Catenion updates its annual list of the year's top pharma R&D performers. R&D productivity declined for the first time since 2014. Mid pharmas continue to dominate the top 10, but big pharmas are making inroads.

Mesenchymal cell specialist Mesoblast came back from a near-death experience in 2016 when Teva returned a key asset. But recent success in a Phase III trial in acute GVHD has brought it some attention. Now it needs to repeat the achievement in advanced heart failure and find a partner for its burgeoning pipeline.

Commitment by biopharma to the development of new abuse-deterrent formulations of opioid pain medications is hampered by unresolved issues of development complexity; cost and willingness of payers to reimburse; and regulatory requirements for extensive, industry-financed postmarketing studies. Less addictive alternatives to existing opioid drugs that effectively address the overdose challenge where it’s particularly lethal – through injecting and inhaling rather than oral formulation abuse – are unlikely to enter widespread use anytime soon.

As new scientific breakthroughs are shaking the foundations of pharma and biotech R&D, In Vivo sat down with Bayer's Kemal Malik to hear how the German big pharma is responding to the challenges with its ground-breaking LEAPS program.

 The UK continues to press for favorable trading and regulatory conditions with the EU in its Brexit planning. But EU negotiators seem likely to play it by the book, with no favors shown. The medtech industry watched as the EU withdrawal agreement was approved by the EU27 at the March 2018 Euro Summit. Some weeks prior to that, MedTech Europe chief executive Serge Bernasconi told In Vivo of his fears for EU medtech if the industry was too slow in preparing for UK withdrawal. 

Industry veteran Tadataka Yamada draws on his multidisciplinary background for perspectives on what’s new – and what isn’t – in a field where every researcher has at some point experienced the same teachable moment:  when you strive to make a medicine, so many things can go wrong.

It seems only a matter of time that the leaders of established biopharma will need to redefine core functions such as research, manufacturing and marketing around a new vision.

The leading medtechs are starting to develop models for providers that show how to implement successful digital strategies, a trend that is serving to put pressure on companies that are yet to make a commitment, says ZS Associates' Pete Masloski.

A once-in-a-generation opportunity has opened to digitally redesign a core part of the biopharma business. Capturing the opportunity requires vision and leadership; it’s not about the technology.

Johnson & Johnson's global CareAdvantage system, a tool to help hospital systems deliver quality care efficiently and affordably, was launched in spring 2017. Almost a year into the initiative, Hugo Breda, the group’s EMEA vice president, explains the role that J&J plays as it brings its unique care provision concept to clients.

Derived from Strategic Transactions, Informa’s premium source for tracking life sciences deal activity, the Dealmaking column is a survey of recent health care transactions listed by relevant industry segment – In Vitro Diagnostics, Medical Devices, and Pharmaceuticals – and then categorized by type – Acquisition, Alliance, or Financing. This month’s column covers deals announced in March 2018.