Abbott Closes $21B Deal for Exact Sciences

Abbott announced it has completed the acquisition of Exact Sciences, establishing the company as a leader in the fast-growing cancer screening and diagnostics segments.

Upon the acquisition’s completion, Exact Sciences became a wholly owned subsidiary of Abbott. March 20 was the last day of trading of the company’s shares on the Nasdaq market.

The deal positions Abbott to advance diagnostics that are more preventative, predictive, and personalized. It adds a new growth vertical to the company’s high-single-digit growth expectations.

Abbott now has a suite of products and a pipeline focused on early cancer detection and supporting personalized treatments. This includes the the Cologuard test, a noninvasive colorectal cancer screening option; Oncotype DX, which informs personalized treatment decisions for patients with early-stage breast cancer; Oncodetect, a tumor-informed molecular residual disease (MRD) test to help identify cancer recurrence and guide follow-up care; and Cancerguard, a multi-cancer early detection blood test.

The company also adds a pipeline of next-gen cancer screening and diagnostics designed to spot cancer even earlier, optimize treatment decisions, and allow regular monitoring.

“Abbott’s global scale, track record of operational and commercial excellence and work with healthcare systems around the world will expand access to important tools for early cancer detection and personalized treatments,” said Robert B. Ford, chairman and CEO of Abbott. “With the legacy and deep expertise of the Exact Sciences team, we’re ready to transform cancer care.”