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IPO
After debuting on the public markets with $256.3 million and raking in an additional $472 million, Veradermics has emerged as one of biotech’s biggest post-IPO standouts. CEO Reid Waldman credits the weight loss craze for establishing consumer-driven channels.
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Last month, the FDA launched TrialBlazer, intended to streamline the IND path and bring early clinical trials and medical innovation home to the U.S. It’s a start, but new agency leadership must see it through.
FDA
Significant leadership instability at the FDA—compounded by continued workforce attrition—led to a slight slowdown in overall regulatory productivity in the first half of this year, but the agency has been catching up of late.
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.
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If cell and gene therapy makers are going to achieve their mission to improve patients’ lives, the industry must come together to share information across stakeholders, from regulators to manufacturers to payers.
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The pivotal study of zilganersen in Alexander disease missed a secondary endpoint, but analysts expect the FDA to approve the asset given the unmet need and overall data.
Eli Lilly and Rigel Pharmaceuticals partnered in February 2021 to advance a pair of RIPK1 blockers, but the pharma in October last year pulled the plug on one of these programs for central nervous system indications.
The deals keep rolling in, with Lilly penning a $7 billion pact for gene delivery biotech Kelonia Therapeutics and UCB taking over cell therapy-focused Neurona Therapeutics; President Trump signed a new executive order supporting the development of psychedelic therapies, sparking fanfare and concern alike; and the FDA’s recent Replimune decision has triggered broader debate about the agency’s flexibility.
Two of the biggest insurance providers have expressed reluctance to participate in the government’s BALANCE program that would have made GLP-1 drugs more affordable to patients.
In the U.S., Moderna withdrew its approval application for the combination vaccine in May last year and the timeline for resubmission remains uncertain.
The newly approved HIV drug Idvynso will also help Merck diversify as loss of exclusivity looms over its top-selling product, the mega-blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda.
IPO
With an IPO raise of $625 million, Kailera Therapeutics now holds the new record for the largest public market debut.
As technology becomes more integrated and personalized, experts say the biggest opportunity in diabetes management is reducing everyday burdens.
After receiving the FDA’s greenlight for Hunter syndrome drug Avlayah, Denali Therapeutics CEO Ryan Watts saw the culmination of 20 years of hard work unraveling the mysteries of the blood-brain barrier.
While prominent physicians can provide companies with valuable guidance during development, their perspective is limited when it comes to projecting how well or how readily a new product will be adopted. Here’s how to perform rigorous commercial diligence.