What is Ojemda and what does it treat?

Ojemda is a once-weekly pill that received FDA approval in 2024 for treating pediatric low-grade glioma, the most common form of childhood brain cancer.[5] It was the first approved targeted treatment for children with relapsed brain tumors in this category, addressing a significant medical need that had gone unmet for decades.

How much is Servier paying for Day One Biopharmaceuticals?

Servier is acquiring Day One Biopharmaceuticals for $21.50 per share in cash, representing a total equity value of approximately $2.5 billion.[2][3] This price represents a 68% premium over Day One's closing share price on March 5, 2026.

Why did Servier acquire Day One Biopharmaceuticals?

Servier acquired Day One to expand its rare oncology portfolio and establish itself as a leader in pediatric low-grade glioma treatment.[3] The deal also provides Servier with Day One's clinical-stage drug candidates targeting both adult and pediatric cancers, supporting Servier's goal to grow its oncology segment to 4 billion euros by 2030.

When will the Servier and Day One acquisition close?

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.[3][4] The deal was announced on March 6, 2026, and remains subject to U.S. antitrust clearance and the tender of a majority of Day One's outstanding shares.

How much revenue does Day One Biopharmaceuticals generate?

Day One recorded $155 million in net product revenue in its last fiscal year.[2] Despite this strong revenue from Ojemda, the company had a net loss from operations of approximately $128 million, reflecting typical biotech spending on research and development.

Servier spends $2.5 billion on Day One Biopharmaceuticals to lock in a rare pediatric cancer treatment

Overview

For decades, children with relapsed brain tumors had no approved targeted treatment. That changed in April 2024 when the FDA cleared Ojemda, a once-weekly pill for pediatric low-grade glioma, the most common childhood brain cancer. Day One Biopharmaceuticals, the company behind it, has agreed to be acquired by France's Servier for $2.5 billion in cash—a 68% premium over its previous closing share price.

The deal is Servier's third major oncology acquisition in eight years as the company builds a U.S. cancer portfolio. Servier bought Shire's oncology division for $2.4 billion in 2018, then Agios Pharmaceuticals' cancer business for up to $2 billion in 2021. Day One adds $155 million in annual revenue and two clinical-stage drug candidates in development for childhood and adult cancers to Servier's portfolio.

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Key Indicators

$2.5B

Deal value

Total equity value of the all-cash acquisition at $21.50 per share

68%

Share premium

Premium over Day One's closing price of $12.78 on March 5, 2026

$155M

Ojemda 2025 revenue

Full-year 2025 net product revenue, up from $57 million in 2024

67%

Tumor response rate

Overall response rate in the pivotal FIREFLY-1 trial for relapsed pediatric brain tumors

$6.9B

Servier oncology spending since 2018

Combined value of three major oncology acquisitions: Shire ($2.4B), Agios ($2B), and Day One ($2.5B)

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People Involved

Olivier Laureau

Leading Servier's 2030 oncology expansion strategy

Jeremy Bender

Leading Day One through Servier acquisition

Samuel Blackman

Retired from Day One in late 2024; joined Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation board

Organizations Involved

Servier Group

Pharmaceutical Company

Acquirer; expanding rare oncology portfolio

France's largest independent pharmaceutical company, governed by a non-profit foundation, with a strategic focus on oncology and neurology.

Day One Biopharmaceuticals

Biotechnology Company

Being acquired by Servier; expected to close Q2 2026

A commercial-stage oncology company founded to develop treatments for children and adults with cancers that lacked adequate therapies.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Federal agency

Granted accelerated approval for Ojemda; confirmatory Phase 3 trial ongoing

The federal agency responsible for evaluating and approving pharmaceutical drugs for use in the United States.

Timeline

April 2018 March 2026

7 events Latest: March 6th, 2026 · 3 months ago

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March 2026
Servier announces $2.5 billion acquisition of Day One Biopharmaceuticals
Latest Acquisition

Servier agreed to pay $21.50 per share in cash, a 68% premium, to acquire Day One and its pediatric brain tumor franchise, including Ojemda and two clinical-stage drug candidates. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026.
March 6th, 2026
November 2025
Day One acquires Mersana Therapeutics for approximately $285 million
Acquisition

Day One expanded its pipeline by purchasing Mersana and its antibody drug conjugate for adenoid cystic carcinoma, a rare cancer of the salivary glands.
November 13th, 2025
July 2024
Day One licenses ex-US rights for Ojemda to Ipsen
Partnership

French pharmaceutical company Ipsen paid $111 million upfront for the rights to commercialize tovorafenib outside the United States, with up to $350 million in additional milestones.
July 25th, 2024
April 2024
FDA grants accelerated approval to Ojemda for pediatric brain tumors
Regulatory

Ojemda became the first FDA-approved systemic therapy for relapsed or refractory pediatric low-grade glioma with certain gene alterations, based on a 67% tumor response rate in the FIREFLY-1 trial.
April 23rd, 2024
April 2021
Servier completes $2 billion acquisition of Agios oncology portfolio
Acquisition

Servier gained Tibsovo and a pipeline of blood cancer drugs, further expanding its United States commercial presence in rare oncology.
April 1st, 2021
November 2018
Day One Biopharmaceuticals founded
Corporate

Physician-scientist Samuel Blackman and venture capitalist Julie Grant co-founded Day One to develop cancer treatments for children, raising seed capital to pursue shelved drug candidates from larger companies.
November 1st, 2018
April 2018
Servier announces $2.4 billion acquisition of Shire's oncology unit
Acquisition

Servier entered the United States oncology market by purchasing Shire's cancer portfolio, including treatments for acute lymphoblastic leukemia and pancreatic cancer.
April 16th, 2018

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

April-August 2018

Servier acquires Shire's oncology business (2018)

Servier paid $2.4 billion to buy Shire's cancer drug portfolio, including Oncaspar for acute lymphoblastic leukemia and ex-US rights to Onivyde for pancreatic cancer. The deal gave Servier, which had no direct United States commercial operations in oncology, an immediate foothold with a Boston-based team of 80 employees.

Then

Servier established Servier Pharmaceuticals LLC in the United States and began selling cancer treatments directly to American hospitals for the first time.

Now

The acquisition set the template for Servier's strategy of buying its way into United States oncology rather than building from scratch, a pattern it repeated with Agios in 2021 and Day One in 2026.

Why this matters now

The Day One deal is the third iteration of the same playbook Servier established with the Shire purchase: acquire a proven oncology asset with United States commercial traction to layer onto its growing American operation.

December 2020 - July 2021

AstraZeneca acquires Alexion Pharmaceuticals (2020-2021)

AstraZeneca paid $39 billion to acquire Alexion, the maker of rare disease blockbusters Soliris and Ultomiris. The deal represented a 45% premium over Alexion's share price and gave AstraZeneca an immediate $6 billion annual revenue boost.

Then

AstraZeneca immediately became a major player in rare diseases, adding two drugs with combined annual revenues exceeding $6 billion.

Now

The acquisition validated the strategy of large pharmaceutical companies paying steep premiums to enter the rare disease space, where smaller patient populations are offset by high drug prices and limited competition.

Why this matters now

Servier's Day One purchase follows the same logic at a smaller scale: paying a significant premium to acquire a dominant position in a rare disease niche where few competitors operate and patients have limited alternatives.

May-July 2016

Jazz Pharmaceuticals acquires Celator Pharmaceuticals (2016)

Jazz Pharmaceuticals paid $1.5 billion to acquire Celator and its lead drug Vyxeos, a reformulated chemotherapy combination for acute myeloid leukemia that had received breakthrough therapy and orphan drug designations from the FDA. The drug had not yet been approved at the time of the acquisition.

Then

Vyxeos won FDA approval in August 2017 and became a standard of care for certain forms of acute myeloid leukemia.

Now

The deal demonstrated that acquiring companies with FDA-designated rare cancer drugs before peak commercialization could yield outsized returns, as orphan drug exclusivity and limited competition protect revenue.

Why this matters now

Like Celator, Day One had an FDA-approved product with orphan drug status and breakthrough designation in a narrow cancer indication. Both deals reflect the premium acquirers will pay for drugs that serve small but underserved patient populations with strong regulatory protections.