Environmental Activism

In the realm of cancer drug development, Johnson & Johnson is not the first or even second name that comes to mind, even though the company has about $3.5 billion in oncology sales each year from four marketed drugs. J&J is hoping to improve its ranking from a spot in the top 10, and has retooled its pipeline strategy and oncology R&D group with the aim to break into the top five by 2014.

At the heart of this plan is a scientific strategy put in place by William Hait, J&J's global therapeutic area head for oncology R&D. Acting on observations made during his career in academia and clinical practice, Hait turned the oncology R&D organization on its head to reorganize around one area of cancer biology: the tumor microenvironment...