Pharma BD Deal Intelligence
Novo Nordisk acquired Forma Therapeutics in 2022 (closed 9 Dec 2022) for approximately USD 1.1bn all-cash (USD 20/share) to gain etavopivat (FT-4202), an oral once-daily pyruvate kinase-R (PKR) activator for sickle cell disease (SCD), expanding Novo Nordisk's rare blood disorders pipeline. The thesis was validated in April 2026: on 20 April 2026 Novo Nordisk reported that the pivotal phase 3 HIBISCUS trial (52 weeks, etavopivat 400 mg once-daily vs placebo, n=385, ages 12+) met both co-primary endpoints — a 27% reduction in vaso-occlusive crisis events (median time to first VOC 38.4 vs 20.9 weeks) and a haemoglobin response of >1 g/dL at 24 weeks in 48.7% of treated patients vs 7.2% on placebo. Etavopivat is the first PKR activator to succeed in a phase 3 SCD trial, and Novo Nordisk plans its first regulatory submission in the second half of 2026.