Life science news 15 June 2026: GSK’s $10.6 billion Nuvalent acquisition headlines a blockbuster M&A week, the MHRA approves the UK’s first oral weight-loss semaglutide tablet, and the FDA clears a new adjuvant combination for kidney cancer in a landmark week for pharma, biotech and healthcare.
GSK agreed to acquire Nuvalent, a Boston-based precision oncology company, for $10.6 billion in GSK’s largest acquisition in over a decade. The acquisition, announced on 9 June, adds two late-stage lung cancer drugs, the ROS1 inhibitor zidesamtinib and the ALK inhibitor neladalkib, both currently under FDA review, with approval decisions expected in September and November 2026 respectively. GSK will pay $124 per share in cash, a 40% premium to Nuvalent’s closing price on the day before announcement. The deal is the British drugmaker’s third acquisition of 2026, bringing its total M&A spend this year to nearly $14 billion.
The MHRA approved the first oral GLP-1 receptor agonist tablet for weight loss in the UK on 11 June, granting Novo Nordisk a new indication for semaglutide (Wegovy) in tablet form. The approval allows the drug to be prescribed to adults with obesity (BMI 30 or above) or those who are overweight (BMI 27 to 30) with at least one weight-related comorbidity, alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. The oral formulation offers an alternative to the existing injectable version and could improve access for patients who are needle-averse or prefer a non-injectable option.
The FDA approved belzutifan (Welireg) in combination with pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the adjuvant treatment of adults with clear cell renal cell carcinoma at intermediate-high or high risk of recurrence following nephrectomy on 12 June. The approval was based on data from the Phase 3 LITESPARK-022 trial in 1,841 patients, which showed a statistically significant improvement in disease-free survival, with a hazard ratio of 0.72 in favour of the combination versus placebo plus pembrolizumab. Both drugs are manufactured by Merck. The regimen also includes an option to use a subcutaneous pembrolizumab formulation (Keytruda Qlex).
In further life science news 15 June 2026, the week saw significant activity across oncology M&A, UK regulatory decisions, and the global GLP-1 race, reflecting ongoing momentum across pharma and biotech as the sector heads into the second half of 2026.
Johnson & Johnson agreed to acquire Firefly Bio, a preclinical biotechnology company, for $1 billion in cash on 8 June, adding Firefly’s proprietary Firelink degrader-antibody conjugate (DAC) platform to its oncology pipeline. The Firelink platform is designed to target KRAS-driven solid tumours, a notoriously difficult area of oncology with significant unmet need. The deal is part of J&J’s broader strategy to expand its cancer portfolio through next-generation antibody engineering and is expected to close later in 2026 subject to regulatory clearance.
Sanofi halted its Phase 3 MOBILIZE trial of riliprubart in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) on 10 June after an independent data monitoring committee concluded the complement inhibitor was unlikely to provide sufficient efficacy in patients refractory to standard-of-care therapy. No safety signals were identified. The company said it would assess the future of a second ongoing Phase 3 study, VITALIZE, in IVIg-treated patients with CIDP. The failure is the latest in a series of pipeline setbacks for Sanofi and is seen as a broader blow to the complement inhibitor class in CIDP.
Incyte announced a definitive agreement to acquire Vega Therapeutics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Star Therapeutics, for $1.25 billion upfront on 8 June, with up to $750 million in additional milestone payments bringing total potential consideration to $2 billion. The deal centres on VGA039, a Phase 3 monoclonal antibody targeting Protein S for the treatment of von Willebrand disease, the most common inherited bleeding disorder, affecting approximately 135,000 people in the US. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026.
The MHRA authorised nipocalimab (Imaavy) on 9 June for the treatment of adults and adolescents aged 12 and over with generalised myasthenia gravis, a rare autoimmune neuromuscular disease characterised by muscle weakness and fatigue. Nipocalimab is an FcRn blocker that reduces circulating IgG autoantibodies, the autoantibodies that drive the condition. The approval was granted to Janssen-Cilag Limited under the International Recognition Procedure. The FDA had previously approved the medicine for generalised myasthenia gravis in April 2025.
AstraZeneca advanced its oral GLP-1 receptor agonist elecoglipron into Phase 3 development following positive results from two Phase 2b studies presented at the 2026 American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions and published in The Lancet. In the VISTA obesity trial, patients on elecoglipron 75 mg achieved an average body-weight reduction of 10.5% at 26 weeks compared with 0.6% for placebo, with up to 88.8% of treated patients achieving at least 5% weight loss versus 15.6% on placebo. The Phase 3 programme includes the EMBOLD trials in obesity and the ELUMINATE studies in type 2 diabetes, with cardiovascular and renal outcomes studies also planned.
Cardiovascular drug developer Kardigan set terms for a Nasdaq IPO on 11 June, disclosing plans to raise up to $373.3 million by offering 23.3 million shares at $14 to $16 each and targeting a valuation of up to $1.4 billion. Founded by the former leadership team behind MyoKardia before its $13.1 billion acquisition by Bristol Myers Squibb in 2020, Kardigan is advancing three late-stage precision cardiology programmes: danicamtiv for genetic dilated cardiomyopathy, ataciguat for calcific aortic valve stenosis, and tonlamarsen for acute severe hypertension. The listing adds to a busy run of biotech IPOs in 2026, with healthcare listings already surpassing last year’s total.
That’s your life science news digest for 15 June 2026, back next Monday with the latest from pharma, biotech and healthcare at www.lifesciencedaily.news.
