Sanofi eyeing pipeline deals ahead of Dupixent patent loss

Sanofi's chief executive has said that adding to the group's pipeline through M&A and licensing deals will be "critical" as it prepares for generic competition to top-selling drug Dupixent in the early 2030s.

Belén Garijo, who took over the reins of the French pharma group in April, said this morning that Sanofi's "whole organisation is focused on managing Sanofi's post-Dupixent trajectory over the next decade," as the company also works to improve the productivity of its R&D operations.

Immunology and inflammation (I&I) blockbuster Dupixent (dupilumab) continued its strong growth in the third quarter, rising nearly 35% to €5.7 billion and helping Sanofi's total net sales to grow 14% to €14.44 billion. The company has raised its full-year guidance on the back of the strong performance and is now predicting sales growth in the low-teens percentage range.

Sanofi will focus its business development activities on I&I, rare disease, and vaccines, and will also be looking for acquisitions that will give it late-stage or already-marketed products that can deliver a near-term boost to sales growth – suggesting some sizeable deals could be on the horizon. The company is reportedly earmarking €20 to €25 billion for the expansion drive.

Meanwhile, Garijo has already taken steps to prepare for Sanofi's post-Dupixent era, launching a clear-out of the company's pipeline to focus on the strongest prospects, firming up a long-running alliance with Regeneron, and handing over rights to some of its mature medicines to Cheplapharm.

She took over after Sanofi suffered a worryingly long list of pipeline setbacks, including an FDA rejection for multiple sclerosis therapy tolebrutinib, disappointing data for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) candidate itepekimab, and setbacks for Escherichia coli vaccine ExPEC9V, venglustat in Fabry disease, losmapimod in a form of muscular dystrophy, and riliprubart in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP).

In the third quarter, Sanofi chalked up some pipeline successes, including US approval of Ayvakit (avapritinib) for indolent systemic mastocytosis and a green light for meningococcal vaccine MenQuadfi in Europe. It also filed for broader approval of type 1 diabetes (T1D) therapy Teizeild (teplizumab) in the EU, and reported positive phase 3 results for IL13xTSL-targeting drug lunsekimig in asthma and chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP), although data in atopic dermatitis disappointed.

"We are confident about our ability to pursue our strong commercial and financial performance in the short and medium term," said Garijo.