A head-spinning change of executives in Europe's leading pharmaceutical companies will see a new head of pharmaceuticals at Bayer and the former incumbent fetching up at Sanofi in the US.

Two Pore Guys has developed a digital, hand-held single-molecule biosensor capable of detecting a wide array of molecules including viruses, bacteria, antibodies and pathogens. The company plans to send the first-generation of the developer kits to strategic partners in mid-2018 and already has inked agreements with human diagnostics, animal health companies and agribusiness giant Monsanto Co.

Bayer AG may more often make headlines for its deal-making in consumer health and agriculture, but the massive German conglomerate sees oncology drugs as a key engine of future success within its high-growth pharmaceuticals business. A Q&A with Robert LaCaze, EVP of Bayer's new Oncology Strategic Business Unit.

The still pending acquisition of Monsanto, crop science problems in Brazil and a weak showing from consumer health in the US cannot disguise the strong growth that Bayer's pharmaceuticals business is continuing to enjoy.