Our R&D strategy

As a global biopharmaceutical company, with a focus on innovation and specialty care, we have the ambition to build a robust, valuable and sustainable portfolio of innovative medicines to meet our patient’s needs. Our R&D strategy is guided by our end goal to ensure that we bring innovative medicines to market as quickly as possible to address unmet patient needs in the areas of Oncology, Neuroscience and Rare Diseases.

 

The future success of our R&D model is built on two principles:

  • Creation of a Development Powerhouse: by integrating our core R&D functions of Pharmaceutical Development and Global Medical Affairs to build a professional organization which will lead the scientific and medical strategy for Ipsen.
  • Implementation of an External Innovation Sourcing Model: this will enable us to access more opportunities and position ourselves as the partner of choice. This strategy is enabled by empowered, high-performing global project teams that include pharmaceutical development, non-clinical, clinical, digital and regulatory strategies to accelerate Ipsen’s development plans.

 

DARE, CARE, SHARE

“Dare”, because our vision is based on scientific curiosity and risk-taking as we continue to innovate and push the frontiers of knowledge. To discover new targets, create innovative therapeutic treatments, and explore emerging fields, we have created unique partnerships at the very early stages of research tackling the major scientific challenges of the future. To develop new therapeutic solutions with significant clinical and patient benefits we need to explore new scientific ground and take calculated risks at each step along the way.
“Share”, because creativity feeds on multiple collaborations with both academic research and innovative companies. This tradition of collaborative efforts and partnerships is in our R&D DNA. The Group deploys a “win-win” approach with partners and internal teams to respond as quickly as possible to scientific and medical challenges.
“Care”, because the patient always comes first and is central to our primary aims to provide patients with therapeutic solutions and define molecules with the desired efficacy and safety. Translational medicine is integrated into all R&D phases to lead the emergence of therapeutic concepts and guide the clinical research during the drug development process. The aim of this precision medicine approach is to accurately identify the patient group most likely to benefit from the proposed treatment and to optimize the use of new molecules.  

THE IMPORTANCE OF PARTNERSHIP

Open innovation is a key tenet of our business model. We have always worked in a very connected way with the outside world through academic and biotech collaborations and in 2017 we made the strategic decision to expand our external innovation capabilities while continuing to focus on select in-house research. This means we can make sure we access the best information and opportunities provided through external networks and maximize the potential for in-licensing novel and life-changing treatments. The partnerships that we develop with leading academic institutes, biotechs and medical centers allow us to test the relevance of our research concepts. This combination of in-house expertise and that of external partners gives us huge opportunities and wealth of knowledge. Our ambition is to be the partner of choice and we are constantly demonstrating our ability to successfully integrate new assets, set up effective governance and add value to the way we work with partners. Our new R&D and business development strategy will allow us to take full advantage of the accelerated speed of scientific innovation to develop more targeted treatments to deliver value to all of our patients in all of our markets.  

PATIENTS ARE AT THE FOREFRONT OF EVERYTHING WE DO

We want to provide safe and effective therapeutic solutions for our patients, many of whom suffer from very disabling conditions. Our patient-driven ethos depends upon the early engagement of patients in our research & development processes. We want to hear the voice of the patient in helping us to design and deliver clinical trials so we regularly hold patient advisory boards to gain appropriate input.  

THE FUTURE

With over €1 billion to invest in building our pipeline, we have aspirations to acquire new medicines that are aligned with our focus and that bring synergies to our existing capabilities. We intend to deliver high double-digit growth by implementing our R&D transformation with a focus on innovative and differentiated therapeutics, and bolstering our external sourcing model, at the same time as expanding our portfolio.

  • Home
  • R&D at a glance
  • Our R&D strategy
  • Pipeline
  • Clinical trials
  • Our R&D Specialisms
  • Our R&D Power Bases

    • R&D at a glance

    Ipsen’s commitment to research & development is our bold promise to patients to launch at least one new drug or meaningful new indication every year. We will secure our future by building a pipeline of innovative medicines, establishing our leadership position in key therapeutic areas, ensuring sustainable lifecycle management and, most importantly, creating a company of inspiring people throughout our R&D organization.

    Pipeline

    Ipsen’s R&D has a valuable pipeline encompassing both lifecycle management of our well-established products and the development of innovative new molecules, including small molecules, neurotoxins and theranostics.

    Clinical Trials

    Our biotech mindset, combined with the scale and advantages of a global pharmaceutical company, has established us as a development powerhouse in our core areas of focus. A global network of healthcare professionals help us test new treatments and ensure their efficacy and safety by conducting studies called clinical trials.We have therapeutically-aligned teams, global expertise in regulatory affairs, patient safety and medical affairs, as well as a proven ability to bring new, life changing therapies successfully through clinical development.

    Our R&D Specialisms

    Ipsen has a leading-edge technological platform in toxins, in which we stand out for our acknowledged expertise. This specialist knowledge also opens the door to the possibility of strong external partnerships in the field. With their unique properties, toxin molecules offer potential in the treatment of neuromuscular disorders, as well as for pain and aesthetic medicine.

    Our R&D Power Bases

    We decided to locate our main R&D centres in world-class scientific hubs to take advantage of the networking opportunities and to progress our external innovation philosophy within established scientific ecosystems. Our three main sites are connected as an ‘innovation grid’, sharing real-time information, allowing us to adapt and focus capabilities to maximize our search and evaluation strategies on a global scale.