![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.pharmavoice.com\/static\/img\/play.svg?500116090725\")
\n Listen to the article
\n 6 min<\/p>\n
\n Listen to the article
\n 6 min<\/p>\n
This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback<\/a>.<\/p>\n Johnson & Johnson has been on a tear over the last few years, shedding major business units and rebranding as a slimmer, pharma-focused machine.<\/p>\n Once a highly diversified healthcare giant, J&J leaders have taken the company in a different direction, starting in 2023 by selling off its consumer unit, now called Kenvue. The cash picked up in the deal would help support innovation in pharma and medtech, leaders said at the time<\/a>.<\/p>\n But they weren\u2019t done slashing yet.<\/p>\n J&J on Tuesday announced<\/a> it\u2019s sending another business arm out into the open ocean, this time the orthopedics unit, which will operate under the name DePuy Synthes following a separation period of as many as two years. The business, which brought in sales of about $9.2 billion last year, includes hip and knee replacements, as well as devices for trauma and spine health.<\/p>\n That leaves J&J still with a sizable coffer that\u2019s more dedicated to pharmaceutical R&D \u2014 which would in turn become an even greater percentage of the company\u2019s revenue base \u2014 alongside its medtech pillars in cardiovascular, surgery and vision.<\/p>\n What will a leaner J&J mean for its three priority pharmaceutical areas of oncology, immunology and neuroscience?\u00a0<\/p>\n CEO Joaquin Duato said on Tuesday\u2019s earnings call<\/a> that the changes put the company \u201cin a new era of accelerated growth,\u201d adding: \u201cIt\u2019s been a hallmark of Johnson & Johnson to be a good steward of our capital and to make decisions in our portfolio to prioritize where we think breakthrough innovation can come through. That\u2019s exactly what we are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Oncology momentum<\/p>\n Cancer treatments remain J&J\u2019s biggest sales driver worldwide, raking in $18.5 billion<\/a> in the first three quarters of the year. Leading the charge is the multiple myeloma powerhouse Darzalex, which boasts more than 50% share of a large market, Duato said on the call.<\/p>\n And with more than 20% growth operationally in the quarter, Darzalex is picking up some of the slack left by faltering sales of AbbVie-partnered Imbruvica, still a blockbuster in its own right but quickly losing ground to blood cancer competition like BeOne\u2019s Brukinsa and AstraZeneca\u2019s Calquence. In the third quarter, Imbruvica\u2019s reported sales fell more than 18% in the U.S.<\/p>\n But one of J&J\u2019s newest rising stars is the CAR-T cell therapy Carvykti, also for multiple myeloma. While cell therapies have generally been hindered by difficult manufacturing and long wait times for patients, Carvykti has consistently eked out a position in the market and this year is showing major growth in sales.<\/p>\n First approved in 2022, Duato said Carvykti has now been used in more than 8,500 patients around the world, and called it \u201cthe most successful CAR-T launch ever.\u201d Sales growth of nearly 90% compared to the first three quarters of last year keeps intact an ambitious $5 billion peak annual sales estimate.<\/p>\n Another product with that $5 billion peak sales distinction is Inlexzo, Duato pointed out, which gained approval<\/a> last month for bladder cancer. Emerging from the 2019 acquisition of Taris Biomedical, the drug-device combo showcases J&J\u2019s ongoing commitment to pharmaceutical and medtech innovation and plays to the company\u2019s overall strengths .<\/p>\n Uphill battle in immunology<\/p>\n