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Heather McKenzie

Heather McKenzie

Senior Editor

Heather McKenzie is a professional journalist with more than five years experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. Since joining BioSpace, she has written more than 200 features and breaking news articles with a particular focus in neuroscience and gene therapy. She has also traveled internationally to cover global biotech hubs such as Israel. In previous roles, she has covered current affairs, sports, education and politics. She previously spent eight years as a senior content producer for executive-level business conferences in the pharma/biotech, legal, energy and business strategy sectors. In her free time, Heather enjoys creative writing, spending time with family and playing with her energetic Russian Blue cat Roofus. She hails from Toronto and has also lived in Chicago and Chesapeake, Virginia. You can reach her at heather.mckenzie@biospace.com.

Pictured: A physician studies a brain scan/iStock,
Policy
On the Cusp of Full Approval, Leqembi’s Rollout Could Face Challenges
After an FDA advisory committee unanimously recommended Leqembi’s full approval, questions linger around amyloid-related imaging abnormalities and a potentially cumbersome patient registry.
June 16, 2023
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Astellas sign with logo/yu_photo/Adobe S
Business
Astellas Bets Potential $1.9B on Cullgen’s Protein Degrader Tech
The Japanese biopharma is diving deeper into targeted protein degradation, paying $35 million upfront for access to Cullgen’s uSMITE platform.
June 15, 2023
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2 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: A cancer outbreak/iStock, wildpixel
ASCO in Review: Oncologists See Practice-Changing, Affirming Data
With the 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in the history books, BioSpace takes a look back at the presented data that oncologists think will be most practice-changing.
June 8, 2023
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: A doctor looks at a CT scan/iStock, goro
Drug Development
ASCO: French Pharma’s Drug Slows Tumors in Brain Cancer Patients
Servier Pharmaceuticals’ Vorasidenib, acquired from Agios in a $1.8 billion deal, slowed the growth of a certain type of low-grade glioma by 61% in a Phase III trial.
June 5, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: shRNA sense and antisense sequences
Drug Development
The Promise and Perils of Antisense Therapies in CNS Diseases
The recent approval of Biogen’s Qalsody in SOD1–ALS highlighted the potential of ASOs in CNS diseases, while recent failures make it clear there is still work to be done.
June 2, 2023
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge/iStoc
Deals
Eikon Acquires Broad Development Pipeline, Raises $106M in Series C Funding
Roger Perlmutter’s company announced the addition Thursday of myriad early- to mid-stage assets in the cancer and neurodegenerative disease spaces.
June 1, 2023
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2 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: AbbVie sign on a building/courtesy of Ad
Drug Development
AbbVie’s Rinvoq Maintains Durability in Phase II Lupus Study
The company’s blockbuster JAK inhibitor, alone or as a combination therapy, showed durable improvements in systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity at 48 weeks.
May 31, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Amylyx co-CEOs Josh Cohen and Justin Klee
Policy
European Regulator Leaning Toward Rejecting Amylyx’s ALS Drug
Known as Relyvrio in the U.S., Amylyx’s AMX0035 may face a longer road to approval in Europe as the company reported that CHMP could reject its marketing authorization application.
May 30, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Regeneron headquarters in Tarrytown, N.Y.
Drug Development
ASCO: Regeneron Touts New Data in Bid to Become Next Big LAG-3 Player
The New York–based biotech will present data from a Phase I trial of 98 patients showing that fianlimab combined with Libtayo led to an overall response rate of 61% in advanced melanoma.
May 26, 2023
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2 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Illustration of a motor neuron being deg
Drug Development
Wave’s Antisense ALS Therapy Is Company’s Latest Miss
Wave will discontinue development of WVE-004 in C9-associated ALS and frontotemporal dementia after the therapy failed to show any clinical benefit in a mid-stage trial.
May 24, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: 3D rendering of amyloid-beta oligomers
Amyloid-Beta Structure Revelation Sheds Light on Leqembi’s Function
Researchers elucidate the component structure of Alzheimer’s-associated plaques, shedding light on anti-amyloid antibodies’ mechanism of action.
May 24, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Front of FDA headquarters/Grandbrothers/
Business
Billy Dunn’s Prothena Board Position Reignites Ethical Debate
Ex-FDA Neuroscience Director Billy Dunn was appointed to Prothena’s board of directors last week. Industry representatives and regulatory experts weigh in on the potential ethical implications.
May 23, 2023
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: Illustration of a human body with the liver highlighted
Drug Development
Hepion Claims Phase II NASH Victory Following Intercept’s Adcomm Defeat
The 61-patient study met the primary endpoint of improved physiologic liver function and secondary endpoints, which included established non-alcoholic steatohepatitis biomarkers, Hepion reported Monday.
May 22, 2023
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3 min read
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Heather McKenzie
Pictured: an abstract of a woman's face/agsandrew,
Drug Development
Biopharma Targets the Untapped Potential of the Human Healthspan
More than $5 billion poured into the longevity space in 2022, and experts say the science is now primed to make a real difference in extending human healthspan.
May 18, 2023
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6 min read
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Heather McKenzie
FDA Headquarters_Grandbrothers/Adobe Stock
Drug Development
Intercept’s NASH Treatment Fails to Win Support of FDA Advisory Committee
In a 12-2 vote with two abstentions, the advisers said the benefits did not outweigh the risks.
May 17, 2023
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5 min read
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Heather McKenzie
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