Ianalumab

Novartis has been steadily dialing back its U.S. workforce in recent years. Novartis is making further workforce reductions at its U.S. headquarters in New Jersey, planning to eliminate 114 positions as the drugmaker rejigs its sales team for rare-disease medicines.The Swiss pharma telegraphed the layoffs in a recent Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filing (PDF) to the state, with the cuts slated to take effect from late June to November. “[O]ur US Customer Engagement organization has been evaluating opportunities to evolve our field sales team structures to better support the unique needs of patients and customers in the rare and ultra-rare disease spaces—where Novartis has a strong footprint and focus with in-market products and upcoming pivotal launches,” a Novartis spokesperson told Fierce Pharma. “To that end, we are making some organizational changes that result in some roles being eliminated, modified, and created.”  The adjustment marks the latest in a series of layoffs at Novartis, which can be traced all the way back to a major reorganization launched in 2022. Novartis offers several drugs in the rare disease space. These include chronic myeloid leukemia therapy Tasigna and Promacta for treating low blood platelet counts in certain patients, including those with the rare blood disorders chronic immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) and aplastic anemia. The two meds, together with the megablockbuster heart failure treatment Entresto, form the largest single-year patent cliff in Novartis’ history, presenting a notable challenge for the company in 2026.Novartis is also managing a few new rare disease launches in the autoimmune field, including Rhapsido for chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU). It’s additionally rolling out two rare kidney disease therapies, Vanrafia and Fabhalta, in IgA nephropathy. Further, the dual-mechanism, B-cell-depleting antibody ianalumab is nearing the market after a pair of phase 3 wins in Sjögren’s, while a first-line ITP pivotal readout is expected this year. “Novartis continually assesses opportunities to adapt in alignment with our evolving pipeline, patient, and customer needs. As such, we direct our efforts and talent toward areas where we can create the greatest potential impact for patients and customers,” the company spokesperson said.  Novartis has made multiple cuts tied to its New Jersey HQ in the past few years. In September, it laid out a plan to lay off 58 employees in its U.S. medical affairs organization, following another overhaul of its cardiovascular commercial structure that affected 427 employees.The Swiss pharma has been steadily dialing back its U.S. workforce in recent years. Coinciding with the separation of the biosimilars and generics unit Sandoz, Novartis’ U.S. headcount, measured by full-time equivalents, dropped by nearly 12% year over year to 12,846 in 2023. As of the end of last year, the company had 12,556 full-time employees stateside. Globally, Novartis is only one of two large pharma companies that have consistently slimmed down every year between 2021 and 2025, according to a recent Fierce Pharma analysis.  While its U.S. commercial team and general and administrative functions have become smaller, Novartis beefed up its manufacturing headcount by 25% last year to 1,479 people. Following an industry-wide trend to avoid potential pharmaceutical tariffs by the Trump administration, Novartis last year unveiled a $23 billion investment to grow its U.S. footprint in production and R&D.  

Astellas’ ASP5502 is one of the few molecules in the clinic targeting the STING pathway, which plays a key role in promoting inflammation.\n Astellas Pharma has become the latest company to pull back from a potential treatment for Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that still lacks any dedicated medicines.The Japanese drugmaker has terminated a phase 1 study of ASP5502, a small-molecule inhibitor of a protein called “stimulator of interferon genes” or STING. The cancellation “was a business decision and not related to safety or efficacy observed in the study,” an Astellas spokesperson told Fierce Biotech.The study, which enrolled 116 people, will complete its current cohort, the spokesperson added, while the future of ASP5502 “will be disclosed at the appropriate time.”The trial was designed in three parts. Part one was meant to test a single oral dose of the ASP5502 tablet in healthy volunteers, with part two then progressing to daily treatment for two weeks, also with healthy volunteers. Part three would then follow up with daily doses of the molecule for four weeks in patients with Sjögren’s syndrome.Astellas has completed the single-ascending dose and multiple-ascending dose portions of the trial, the spokesperson added. Sjögren’s syndrome is an autoimmune disease in which the patient’s immune system attacks the tear and salivary glands, leading to dry eyes and mouth. Those primary symptoms can also be accompanied by issues affecting the joints, nerves, lungs and other organs. Symptoms are typically managed with anti-inflammatory medications, but the FDA has never approved a drug specifically designed to treat Sjögren’s.Astellas’ trial termination follows other Big Pharmas that have ditched assets in the indication. At the beginning of 2025, Novartis gave up on an anti-CD40 antibody, iscalimab, that had shown some promise at treating Sjögren’s. The Swiss pharma is still pursuing a different antibody, ianalumab, for Sjögren’s and other autoimmune diseases. Ianalumab scored a breakthrough therapy designation from the FDA for Sjögren’s in January.Bristol Myers Squibb, Sanofi and Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals have all similarly stepped away from anti-CD40 antibodies for Sjögren’s in recent years.Astellas’ ASP5502 is one of the few molecules in the clinic targeting the STING pathway, which plays a key role in promoting inflammation. Other STING assets have also proven unsuccessful, with none surviving to phase 3 trials.The Sjögren’s setback comes mere weeks after Astellas nixed a $1.6 billion T-cell engager partnership with CytomX Therapeutics.Editor\'s note: This story was updated at 10:30 a.m. ET on March 31 with more information about the trial.