Healthcare dealmaking and clinical progress saw strong momentum alongside a major research setback today. KKR invested in Malaysia's Avisena Healthcare, Menarini secured rights to Gan and Lee's GLP-1 candidate, and Medtronic optioned Pi-Cardia, while AbbVie and AstraZeneca reported positive oncology trial and approval results. However, Novartis reported a Phase 3 failure for its experimental cardiovascular drug pelacarsen, and the FDA issued emergency guidance to prevent shortages of neonatal nutrition products.
01Company specific
KKR to Invest in Malaysia's Avisena Healthcare for Expansion
Private equity buys into hospital platforms where capacity additions directly unlock local market share, using minority stakes to fund bed expansion without taking full operational control.
Global investment firm KKR has agreed to acquire a minority stake in Malaysian hospital operator Avisena Healthcare to fund regional expansion. The transaction will finance the multi-specialty expansion of Avisena's flagship facilities in Shah Alam and the construction of new greenfield hospitals across the Klang Valley. Founded in 1996, Avisena operates two hospitals with more than 250 licensed beds, and its ongoing development projects are expected to lift total capacity to nearly 600 beds by 2029. While official financial terms were not disclosed by the companies, earlier reports indicated the deal could involve a 20 to 25 percent stake valued between 300 million ringgit and 400 million ringgit. The investment extends KKR's healthcare strategy, which has deployed more than $20 billion globally since 2004 across regional platforms including Vietnam's Medical Saigon Group and Metro Pacific Hospital Holdings in the Philippines. Rising middle-class incomes and aging populations are driving demand for private medical services across Southeast Asia, drawing increased interest into regional healthcare infrastructure. The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions.
AbbVie Announces Phase 3 Win for Multiple Myeloma Drug Etentamig
Translating etentamig's progression-free survival benefit into global regulatory approvals would give AbbVie a targeted oncology therapy capable of offsetting patent cliff revenue losses in immunology.
AbbVie reported that its multiple myeloma drug etentamig cut the risk of disease progression or death by 60% compared to standard therapies in a . The randomized study, named Cervino, evaluated 393 patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who had received at least two prior lines of therapy. Patients treated with monthly intravenous etentamig achieved a 74% objective response rate, compared with 45.7% for the control arm receiving standard available therapies. The 12-month overall survival rate reached 87.9% for the drug group against 72% for standard care, though the prespecified boundary for overall survival had not been crossed at the data cutoff. Etentamig also demonstrated a manageable safety profile with a 28.3% incidence of mostly low-grade cytokine release syndrome. Following the positive interim analysis from the independent data monitoring committee, AbbVie plans to present the full findings at the International Myeloma Society Annual Meeting and discuss regulatory next steps with global authorities.
Cervino Trial Response and Survival Rates (%)
Etentamig significantly outperformed standard therapies across response and survival metrics.
Novartis Experimental Cardiovascular Drug Fails Pivotal Study
Pelacarsen's failure decouples Lp(a) reduction from actual risk reduction, invalidating the key biomarker hypothesis underpinning rival cardiovascular pipelines at Amgen and Eli Lilly.
Novartis announced Friday that its experimental cardiovascular drug pelacarsen failed to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attacks, or strokes compared to a placebo in the HORIZON trial, according to statnews.com. The drug was designed to target and lower levels of Lp(a), a lipid and protein combination that raises the likelihood of severe heart problems when present in elevated concentrations. This setback is a major blow to the Swiss drugmaker and to broader pharmaceutical efforts to treat that specific heart disease risk factor. Competitors like Amgen and Eli Lilly are also developing therapies to lower Lp(a) levels.
Menarini Inks $771M Deal with Gan & Lee for European GLP-1 Rights
Menarini risks commercialization capital on an every-two-weeks dosing regimen to challenge incumbent once-weekly GLP-1 therapies in Europe by offering superior patient compliance.
Menarini Group agreed to pay Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals €62 million up front for the European commercialization rights to the candidate bofanglutide. The agreement includes milestone payments of up to €664 million, alongside double-digit royalties on future sales. Menarini assumes responsibility for regulatory submissions and commercialization across 39 countries, covering the 27 European Union member states, the U.K., Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and the Balkans. Bofanglutide requires subcutaneous administration once every two weeks, presenting a less frequent dosing schedule than existing once-weekly treatments in the class. Gan & Lee will initiate a global to support regulatory filings in Europe and other highly regulated markets.
FDA Takes Steps to Maintain Newborn Access to Starter Nutrition Products
Permitting state-licensed pharmacies to compound specialized intravenous nutrition shifts supply risks directly onto institutional hospital buyers while traditional drug compounding facilities exit the market.
The Food and Drug Administration issued an immediate enforcement on September 04, 2026, to prevent a supply shortage of neonatal starter parenteral nutrition products. Two outsourcing facilities are permanently shutting down, threatening intravenous nutrition supplies for premature and critically ill newborns. Children's hospitals raised the initial alarm after facing imminent delivery gaps. The new policy allows state-licensed pharmacies, federal facilities, and outsourcing facilities to compound specified starter parenteral drugs. Hospitals will maintain access to the critical nutrition products while longer-term manufacturing solutions are identified. Acting Commissioner Kyle Diamantas and Acting Center Director Michael Davis directed the regulatory response. The agency continues to monitor current and expected supply needs.
FDA Grants Accelerated Approval to New Breast Cancer Treatment
Gaining approval alongside a specific companion diagnostic cements AstraZeneca's monopoly over a lucrative post-progression niche, effectively forcing competitors to clear higher efficacy bars for ESR1-mutated tumors.
The Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to AstraZeneca for Etcamah in combination with a CDK4/6 inhibitor for adults with advanced breast cancer. The targeted therapy treats hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative, locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer upon detection of an ESR1 mutation. Fewer than 5 percent of patients have this tumor mutation at initial diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer, but nearly 40 percent develop it after disease progression on an aromatase inhibitor. Estimated median progression-free survival reached 16 months for patients taking Etcamah with a CDK4/6 inhibitor, compared to 9.2 months for those continuing an aromatase inhibitor with a CDK4/6 inhibitor. The agency also authorized the Guardant360 CDx assay as a companion diagnostic device to identify eligible patients.
Medtronic Announces Strategic Investment Up to $80 Million in Pi-Cardia
Medtronic securing exclusive rights to Pi-Cardia's leaflet-splitting tool protects its transcatheter aortic valve franchise by addressing anatomical complications that otherwise restrict procedure volume.
Medtronic is investing up to $80 million in Pi-Cardia to secure exclusive global distribution rights for its ShortCut leaflet modification device starting in 2027. The agreement also includes an for Medtronic to acquire Pi-Cardia for an estimated upfront price of up to $210 million upon reaching predefined milestones. ShortCut is the first -cleared device designed to split heart valve leaflets during complex transcatheter aortic valve replacement procedures to prevent coronary obstruction. Medtronic will use its existing structural heart network to expand product access across the United States, Europe, and Japan. The transaction remains subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions.
Strong pharma deal flow and oncology advances contrast sharply with cardiovascular pipeline failures and critical supply risks. Investors must watch whether emerging GLP-1 assets and medical device acquisitions can offset high-profile Phase 3 trial busts.
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