Aggressive cuts part of Novartis’ focus on higher-potential pipeline

Roughly a year after Novartis revealed a strategic shift toward “high-value” medicines and hired analyst Ronny Gal to set priorities in its portfolio, the pharma has become more aggressive in its cuts, pruning 10% of its pipeline including a host of clinical oncology and hematology programs over the past quarter.

The Swiss pharma has recently stressed the importance of developing medicines with peak market potential in the multibillion range, with the further goal of becoming a top-five drug company in the U.S., where it has lagged competitors despite a stronger presence in Europe...