J&J, Sanofi, GSK and Astra Zeneca

– Johnson & Johnson said it would pay up to $1 billion for Aragon Pharmaceuticals and its experimental drugs for prostate cancer. The goal is to bolster J&J’s role in the field after it acquired another experimental prostate-cancer treatment four years ago that has become a leading brand. J&J in $1 billion Deal to Bolster Prostate-Cancer Focus from Reuters outlines J&J’s recent activities in the prostate-cancer space

– In Sanofi Oncology Pipeline Update 2013  pharmaphorum catches up with Dr. Tal Zaks from Sanofi Oncology to see where the global pharma company’s oncology pipeline is heading, the unique partnerships that have helped Sanofi, and how these advancements will ultimately improve the lives of cancer patients in years to come

– In an unique big pharma collaboration aimed to increase their R&D efficiency, PMLive features Roche and AstraZeneca To Share Early Trial Data,  with Roche and AstraZeneca contributing data on early-stage drug design to third-partner MedChemica, a UK-based firm which specializes in data mining to speed up the drug development process

– GlaxoSmithKline is investing $23.5 million in a new venture fund to invest in drugs for rare diseases, underscoring the growing role of big drugmakers in backing start-up companies. Reuters’ GSK Links With French Venture Firm to Target Rare Diseases reports GSK and many of its rivals are becoming more active in funding early-stage companies, reflecting both a desire to tap into smart ideas from outside their own laboratories and a scarcity of finance from many traditional venture capital firms

– In oncology partnership news, Sanofi and AstraZeneca Form Cancer Research Alliances With Non-Profits from PMLive covers Sanofi’s plan to work with the French research centre the Curie Institute to identify targets for the development of treatments for ovarian cancer, and AstraZeneca’s plan to form an oncology partnership with Cancer Research UK