CombinatoRx - 2004 Fierce 15 revisited

CombinatoRx
Based: Boston
Founded: 2000

Why it was Fierce in 2004: CombinatoRx had recruited top scientists from Harvard and MIT to pursue the development of combination medicines to treat disease on multiple fronts, thus saving time and money in the R&D process. The company had new drugs in the pipeline for cancer and rheumatoid arthritis and research underway for infection diseases and more.

Where are they now? The going got tough for CombinatoRx in 2008 when the company announced that its lead therapy Synavive (CRx-102) failed to hit its primary endpoint in a mid-stage trial for osteoarthritis. After a restructuring that included cutting 65 percent of its staff, the company got back on its feet with an oncology deal with Novartis, positive mid-stage results for its diabetes drug and a $257 million cancer drug deal with Clinical Data. In July of this year CombinatoRx merged with Neuromed, which is waiting for an FDA ruling on the pain drug Exalgo.