Baxter Forms Boston R&D Center For New Spin-Off, Baxalta

Baxter International intends to form a new R&D center near Boston, MA for Baxalta, the company formed when Baxter splits the company into two entities in 2015. The move, announced in a press release, will locate the development unit in Cambridge, a biotech hub, to support Baxalta’s focus on biopharmaceuticals. Scientists at the facility will focus on immunology and hematology using gene therapy and biosimilar technology.

Ludwig Hantson, Ph.D., president of Baxter BioScience, said, "Critical elements to our success as an independent biopharmaceuticals company will be our ability to accelerate innovation, optimize R&D productivity, and deliver on our promise to patients. Joining this unmatched biotech community is an important step.”

Baxter’s Cambridge R&D Facility

Baxter’s new location in Cambridge is 200,000-square feet of leased space. The company expects to begin operations this year and continue transferring personnel and technology to the site over the next two years. Baxter selected the site after conducting a global search for suitable facilities. R&D personnel are expected to number over 400 and comprise teams of oncology and biosimilar experts relocated from Europe and California. John Orloff, M.D., VP at Baxter BioScience, said that the move connects the company “to a rich pool of talent in new and emerging biotech areas.”

Baxter’s Biopharmaceuticals

Baxter works on rare conditions, chronic diseases, and diseases or conditions with limited treatment options. Through its own efforts and products, or through its subsidiaries and partners, the group has a portfolio of treatments or is developing treatments for immune disorders, cancer, infectious diseases, and kidney diseases. The company states that its new R&D facility will focus on immunology and hematology.

Treatments for primary immunodeficiency (PI) include antibody replacement therapy, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, Gamma-Interferon/PEG-ADA/ G-CSF, and gene therapy. Secondary immunodeficiencies are treated with immunoglobulin (IgG) therapies. In hematology, Baxter has several treatments for hemophilia, including Advate, which was approved in April 2014.

Earlier this year, the company announced its plans to break into two different companies in 2015 — a move that raised a few concerned eyebrows. According to The Wall Street Journal reports that Baxter’s split into two companies may not work out as well as planned because of the new spin-off’s reliance on hemophilia treatments. While Baxter’s hemophilia products earned $3.4 billion in 2013 (accounting for 58 percent of its biopharmaceutical business), the space is becoming increasingly competitive, especially as Biogen Idec’s long-acting Eloctate is poised to hit the market.