GSK to nearly double cancer drug trials in 2027 as deals boost pipeline - report

GSK (LON:GSK) expects to nearly double its clinical-stage oncology portfolio next year as a series of deals expands its drug pipeline, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing an interview with Hesham Abdullah, the company’s head of oncology research and development.

The British drugmaker currently has five approved cancer medicines, with a sixth potentially gaining approval within weeks, the report said. Its clinical-stage portfolio comprises about 15 assets, a figure Abdullah expects to nearly double in 2027.

Oncology has become a key priority under new Chief Executive Luke Miels, building on progress made under his predecessor, Emma Walmsley. 

GSK’s deals this year include its $10.6 billion acquisition of U.S. lung-cancer drug developer Nuvalent, its largest standalone acquisition, and a licensing agreement worth up to $750 million for an experimental multiple myeloma drug from China’s Chimagen Biosciences. 

An earlier licensing deal with China’s Hengrui Pharma was valued at up to $12.5 billion, the report said.

GSK’s expanded pipeline covers blood, lung, gynecologic, gastrointestinal and prostate cancers, and includes antibody-drug conjugates, immunotherapies and a newer generation of small-molecule medicines.

The company is accelerating development by advancing some candidates directly from early-stage to late-stage trials and conducting multiple pivotal studies of the same drug simultaneously.

Abdullah said GSK could have 19 to 20 late-stage oncology studies under way next year.

Analysts at RBC Capital Markets expect the oncology business to make a material contribution to sales only toward the end of the decade, the report said, as GSK’s HIV franchise approaches the start of generic competition.