The acquisition of Mariana will complement Novartis’s lutetium-based radioligand therapies with candidates using actinium. Lilly, Bristol and AstraZeneca all have made recent high-priced buys in the space.

Bristol Myers Squibb and Lilly have recently done billion-dollar radiopharmaceuticals deals, and now the UK group wants a piece of the market. But can it make its Fusion fusion work?

The company has sought to develop antibodies purpose-built for delivering radiotherapy rather than repurposing existing antibodies for that purpose, as some other players have done.

The US firm has announced positive survival data from a Phase III trial of it radioligand therapy, Iomab-B, in acute myeloid leukemia patients prior to bone transplant, improving its cost-effectiveness case and commercial strategy.