Pharma R&D
At Laboratoires Pierre Fabre, therapeutic innovation has always been a non-negotiable priority. Our research teams have made numerous discoveries, in urology, for example, as well as neurology and – of course – dermatology. For four decades, we have been channeling resources into oncology, making it our number one R&D focus today. Our researchers give top priority to targeted therapies to revolutionize cancer management.
Oncology pipeline
Our world-class innovation work in oncology is 100% focused on discovering and developing targeted therapies – small molecules or biotherapies – designed to inhibit problematic proteins produced by tumor-associated genetic mutations. In april 2026, our pipeline included four therapeutic agents at the clinical phase (tested on patients) and six discovery programs (preclinical phase). To continue enriching our pipeline, we have brought in new recruits to boost our teams based at the Toulouse Oncopole, invested in new equipment, and entered into strategic partnerships with several innovative biotech companies.
Our partnership-based approach
Researching new cancer treatments is a long, uncertain process. By joining forces with external partners to enrich and develop our pipeline, we benefit from complementary skills that complete our own, and share the risks. Typically, our teams oversee cancer biology, therapeutic proof-of-concept validation, and clinical translation, and we bring in external expertise to identify and optimize the molecule or biotherapy. The partnership we concluded in 2025 with RedRidge, a Swiss biotech company specialized in the production of biparatopic antibodies, perfectly illustrates that approach.
Our international scientific committee
Our international scientific committee is made up of five internationally renowned experts. Our researchers regularly consult them to obtain their opinion on the relevance of current or potential research and development projects. Our investment choices and development strategies for new molecules are based on the most stringent scientific criteria, backed by inspiring, in-depth discussions with the committee members.
Big data and artificial intelligence
Because they are trained in data science, our researchers know how to leverage very large volumes of molecular and genomic data from public and private databases. Their analyses guide our decisions about which therapeutic targets to select, and help us identify biomarkers that will enable us to match up the “right treatments” with the “right patients.” Going a step further, we have developed our own artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm for characterizing the diversity of the tumor environment more precisely, as well as the clonal evolution of tumor cell populations, which can reveal resistance mechanisms to be targeted with future treatments.
Our dermatology research
Alongside oncology, dermatology is the second focus of our medical R&D investments. Given our solid expertise in cancer treatment, it seemed perfectly logical to prioritize onco-dermatology when making dermatology research choices. Our programs address the full spectrum of cancerous and pre-cancerous skin lesions, focusing specifically on melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and actinic keratosis. While our R&D in the field of dermatology draws on our oncology expertise, it in turn inspires our dermo-cosmetics researchers. The desire to promote that virtuous continuum drove our decision to bring together our medical and dermo-cosmetic R&D teams in the same location at the Toulouse Oncopole site.
