Johnson and Johnson CEO: Cancer Research Is Paying Off

Johnson and Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has 10 new products in the pharmaceutical pipeline that could potentially earn the company $10 billion in revenue, according to CEO Alec Gorsky.

He told FOX Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo the company has launched 14 new products since 2009 and has been able to keep up momentum.

“A combination of great science, great execution on the part of our researchers and developers and in addition to that we’ve continued to have great innovations of our medical device segment, our consumer segment is coming back strong … We’re really proud of the progress we’ve  been making,” he said.

Although there is still “a lot more work to do,” Gorsky says the estimated $140 billion in worldwide investments from pharmaceutical companies in cancer research is paying off.

“What we are beginning to understand is that cancer has many different factors, it’s not a homogeneous disease, it can express itself in many different ways from patient-to-patient. And when we look at the underlying fundamentals of the genome RNA-DNA approaches, we are coming up with new mechanisms of actions and new approaches, combination therapies, immune therapies that are really making a difference,” he said.

Within the next few years, Gorsky expects to see the biggest breakthroughs in cancer in areas such as prostate and multiple myeloma.

According to Gorsky, the company is in the process of filing a new drug called Daratumumab that takes a new approach to treating multiple myeloma.

“What we’ve been able to show is that even after patients have failed on two or three different therapies, we’re seeing response rates approach about 30 percent,” he said.

As far as the cash on the balance sheet, Gorsky says the company takes a “disciplined” approach on R&D investments while staying competitive.

“When we see new technologies that can really make a difference for patients, when we see something that is going to fit in with the rest of our portfolio, be complimentary to it, be a new platform for growth in the future, we try to make those investments,” he said.