Novartis has agreed to buy Synnovation Therapeutics’ potential treatment for HR+/HER2- breast cancer in a deal worth up to $3bn.

Pikavation, a subsidiary of Synnovation, will be acquired by Novartis for its portfolio of pan-mutant selective PI3Kα inhibitor programmes, including SNV4818, for $2bn upfront and future milestone payments of up to $1bn.

SNV4818, an oral drug, is currently being evaluated for breast cancer and other advanced solid tumours in a phase 1/2 study. In patients with HR+/HER2- breast cancer, around 40% potentially face more serious disease progression due to PI3Kα mutations in their tumours.

Current PI3Kα inhibitors target both mutant and normal PI3Kα, which makes them more difficult for patients to tolerate, resulting in fewer patients continuing with treatment.

SNV4818 is designed to spare normal PI3Kα in healthy cells while targeting the mutated PI3Kα enzyme found in cancer cells.

By specifically targeting the mutated PI3Kα enzyme, SNV4818 aims to lower side effects, enable more consistent dosing and make it easier to use in combination with hormonal therapy and other treatments at an earlier stage in the patient care pathway.

Eli Lilly’s Foundayo (orforglipron), the only oral GLP-1 weight loss treatment that can be taken at any time of the day with no food or water restrictions, has been approved by the US FDA for adults with obesity, or who are overweight with weight-related medical problems.

The US FDA approval was supported by results from the ATTAIN clinical trial programme, with participants in the ATTAIN-1 trials losing an average of 27.3lb (12.4%) with the highest does of Foundayo, compared to 2.2lb (0.9%) with placebo.

Regardless of trial completion, participants taking the pill lost an average of 25lb, compared to 5.3lb with placebo.

Markers such as cardiovascular risk, including waist circumference, non-HDL cholesterol, triglycerides and systolic blood pressure also saw reductions during treatment with Foundayo in the ATTAIN programme.

Alongside its use for chronic weight management, Lilly is also studying Foundayo as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnoea, osteoarthritis knee pain, hypertension, peripheral artery disease and stress urinary incontinence.

Foundayo has been submitted for approval in over 40 countries as a weight management tool and/or a type 2 diabetes treatment.

Sandoz has partnered with Samsung Bioepis to broaden patient access to high-quality biosimilar medicines worldwide.

The agreement allows the companies to work together on up to five biosimilar assets. The first will be a vedolizumab biosimilar, which is in early-stage development. Entyvio (vedolizumab), the reference medicine, is used to treat adults with Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis or pouchitis.

The projected global biosimilar loss-of-exclusivity market opportunity is currently set to grow to an estimated $320bn by 2036, and this partnership will potentially expand Sandoz’s pipeline by up to 32 assets.

Richard Saynor, CEO of Sandoz, said: “This is another important step toward capitalising on the unprecedented biosimilar market opportunity over the next decade while also strengthening our partnership with Samsung Bioepis.”

Sandoz will have exclusive rights to commercialise globally, except in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and the Republic of Korea. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

Previously, the two companies partnered on Pyzchiva (ustekinumab) and signed an agreement for the commercialisation of Epysqli, for the Middle East and Africa regions, in September 2023 and December 2025 respectively.