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Following the FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s investigational mRNA flu vaccine last week, Commissioner Marty Makary faced questions from the U.S. president about the agency’s handling of vaccines. It’s a clear signal that the tension long brewing at the drug regulator has now gone all the way to the top.
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Many scientists-turned-CEOs paradoxically abandon scientific principles when it comes to commercializing their innovations. But applying the scientific method to business decisions can help life science entrepreneurs avoid common pitfalls, attract investment and ultimately bring transformative technologies to market.
FDA vouchers are normally a coveted prize for biopharma companies, but a surprise rejection for Disc Medicine’s rare disease drug has biopharma reconsidering.
PitchBook’s 2025 biopharma VC analysis clocked $33.8 billion in capital dispatched in 2025, mainly to companies with later-stage programs ready to roll into the clinic.
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The FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s mRNA-based flu vaccine is part of a larger communications crisis unfolding at the agency over the past nine months that has also ensnarled Sarepta, Capricor, uniQure and many more.
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The blockbuster PD-1 inhibitor’s label expanded further on Monday when the FDA greenlit Keytruda as a perioperative treatment for certain patients with earlier stages of non-small cell lung cancer.
The biopharma discontinued its late-stage study after an interim review found that its investigational treatment for immunoglobin A nephropathy did not achieve statistically significant improvement over placebo.
The company’s experimental lgG4 antibody met the primary endpoint in a late-stage study of the rare skin disease. AnaptysBio will submit an application to the FDA by the third quarter of 2024.
The regulator approved the combination of Pfizer’s Braftovi and Mektovi for the treatment of metastatic non-small cell lung cancer in adult patients with a BRAF V600E mutation.
The Danish pharma announced Monday that it is buying a Phase III hypertension candidate from Singapore-based KBP Biosciences. It is Novo Nordisk’s third high-value purchase in as many months.
Patients in a late-stage trial treated with Eli Lilly’s GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist saw a 21.1% mean body weight reduction over 72 weeks following an intensive lifestyle intervention program.
A revised Paxlovid supply agreement with the U.S. government has pushed Pfizer to launch a “cost realignment” program including layoffs, though it is still unclear how many employees will be affected.
The first two weeks of October saw BMS’s $4.8 billion buyout of Mirati, Lilly’s $1.4 billion purchase of Point, Kyowa Kirin’s $387 million acquisition of Orchard and AbbVie’s $110 million Mitokinin deal.
The regulator’s approval of oral, once-daily etrasimod, to be marketed as Velsipity, was based on favorable Phase III safety and efficacy data showing significant clinical remission of ulcerative colitis.
Last year, the FDA declined to approve a drug that appears to reverse a rare and debilitating enzyme deficiency. Some experts say it’s emblematic of a need for more flexibility around therapeutics targeting rare diseases.