Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co. Ltd. (DSP) on December 25, 2013 announced the establishment of the Oncology Clinical Development Unit, effective from January 1, 2014. The unit is part of the firm's new drug development division, and will incorporate clinical research, clinical operation, and medical affairs activities for the oncology area in Japan under one roof although it will be working closely with DSP's United States-based subsidiary Boston Biomedical Inc. Oncology has been designated as a key focus area for DSP, along with psychiatry and neurology, under the firm's latest medium-term business strategy plan.

The USD 2.63-billion acquisition of Boston Biomedical in 2012 is a key driver of this new focus, and the new oncology unit will be focused on co-ordinating drug discovery activities in Japan with the US subsidiary. As well as a proven drug discovery platform, the acquisition of Boston Biomedical provided DSP with two high-potential small-molecule first-in-class drug candidates, BBI-608 and BBI-503, described by the firm as the first anticancer drugs in the world with efficacy against cancer stem cells and expected to reach the market during 2015. Preparations for these two drugs have seen DSP set up a US oncology unit to focus on marketing oncology products.