NVS vs VSTM

Novartis AG

Novartis AG researches, develops, manufactures, and markets healthcare products worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Innovative Medicines and Sandoz. The Innovative Medicines segment offers prescription medicines for patients and healthcare providers. It also provides ophthalmology, neuroscience, immunology, hepatology and dermatology, respiratory, established, and cardiovascular, renal and metabolism medicine products. The Sandoz segment provides active ingredients and finished dosage forms of small molecule pharmaceuticals to third parties across a range of therapeutic areas, as well as finished dosage form anti-infectives. It also provides active pharmaceutical ingredients and intermediates primarily antibiotics; protein- or other biotechnology-based products, including biosimilars; and biotechnology manufacturing services. Novartis AG has a license and collaboration agreement with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals to develop, manufacture, and commercialize inclisiran; an agreement with CureVac to manufacture COVID-19 vaccine candidate CVnCoV; a collaboration with Artios Pharma Limited to create next generation DDR cancer therapies; and a clinical collaboration with Kura Oncology, Inc. to evaluate the combination of Tipifarnib and Alpelisib in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland.

Verastem Inc.

Verastem, Inc., a development-stage biopharmaceutical company, focusing on developing and commercializing medicines to enhance the life of cancer patients. Its product in development include VS-6766, a dual rapidly accelerated fibrosarcoma (RAF)/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MEK) inhibitor that blocks MEK kinase activity and the ability of RAF to phosphorylate MEK. The company also engages in developing RAMP 201, an adaptive two-part multicenter open label trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of VS-6766 and in combination with defactinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) in patients with recurrent low grade serous ovarian cancer; and RAMP 202, which is in Phase 2 trial to evaluate the safety of VS-6766 in combination with defactinib in patients with KRAS mutant non-small cell lung cancer following treatment with a platinum-based regimen and immune checkpoint inhibitor. Verastem, Inc. has license agreements with Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for the development, commercialization, and manufacture of products containing VS-6766; and Pfizer Inc. to research, develop, manufacture, and commercialize products containing Pfizer's inhibitors of FAK for therapeutic, diagnostic and prophylactic uses in humans. The company was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts.