FDA
Congressional letters sent to the CEOs of Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Merck, BMS and AbbVie this week voicing concerns about the pharmas’ clinical trials in China highlight an ongoing discrepancy in how government and industry think about the rise of the Asian country’s biotech industry.
FEATURED STORIES
A recent FDA reversal sparked new hope for patients with Huntington’s disease. Flying under the radar, Skyhawk Therapeutics revealed 12-month functional data from a midstage trial of its own candidate showing improvements on a key disease measurement scale.
The FDA plans to hold an advisory committee meeting to discuss Capricor Therapeutics’ application for deramiocel, which the agency rejected last July. The news surprised CEO Linda Marbán, who told BioSpace the FDA has not communicated any issues of concern with the company’s resubmitted application.
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Boehringer Ingelheim will launch three Phase III studies for its obesity drug candidate; third time is a charm for Ipsen as it gets FDA approval; and Pfizer takes multiple myeloma battle to J&J.
After two prior setbacks, the regulator has finally approved Ipsen’s palovarotene to treat fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. It’s the first treatment for the ultra-rare bone disease.
Following a nearly decade-long effort, Delcath Systems finally won the FDA’s greenlight for its Hepzato Kit for the liver-directed treatment of adult patients with metastatic uveal melanoma.
On the heels of J&J’s Talvey, Pfizer’s bispecific antibody Elrexfio has secured an accelerated approval as another off-the-shelf treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.
J&J’s Janssen Pharmaceutical got the FDA’s greenlight Friday for its PARP inhibitor Akeega, which is now authorized to treat BRCA-mutated metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.
Despite being heavily pretreated, patients on J&J’s Talvey saw a 73.6% overall response rate in a Phase II study, winning accelerated approval from the regulator.
The FDA approved Sage and Biogen’s zuranolone Friday as the first oral medication for postpartum depression but declined to approve the application in major depressive disorder.
Friday, Iveric Bio scored a regulatory win for its geographic atrophy eye injection Izervay, just three months after the New Jersey biotech was bought by Astellas Pharma for $5.9 billion.
Partners Biogen and Sage Therapeutics had sought approval for the therapy in both postpartum depression and major depressive disorder, but the FDA rejected the application for the latter.
The regulator Wednesday approved expanding Lonsurf’s label for previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer, authorizing a combination regimen with Roche’s bevacizumab.