Takeda has now completion of its $5.2 billion acquisition of ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, in a deal that significantly boosts the Japanese drugmaker's global cancer portfolio.

The move has secured Takeda access to Ariad's Iclusig (ponatinib), which is cleared for the treatment of certain patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, and is forecast to generate sales for up to $180 million for 2016.

It also brings investigational targeted therapy brigatinib to its books, which the firm believes has the potential to become best-in-class ALK inhibitor for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and achieve peak annual sales of over $1 billion.

Takeda said it continues to expect the transaction to be accretive to underlying core earnings by FY2018, and that strong revenue growth and synergy savings will offset increased sales and marketing costs for the anticipated launch of brigatinib.

"The addition of ARIAD's innovative targeted therapies and research and development capabilities strengthens and diversifies our oncology business, positioning Takeda for sustainable long-term growth in this priority therapeutic area," said Christophe Weber, the group's president and chief executive.

"There is a strong cultural fit between our two companies, with a shared mission to advance innovative therapies to improve the lives of patients with cancer," added Christophe Bianchi, president of Takeda Oncology.