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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.
The total of 52 mergers and acquisitions for the first half of 2026 reflects what analysts, industry watchers and executives are saying over and over: M&A is back.
At the BIO International Convention in San Diego, attendees marked the 50th anniversary of original biotech Genentech, reflecting on the immense challenges facing companies as China becomes a powerhouse innovator.
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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.
THE LATEST
FDA
Merck’s HIF-2α inhibitor Welireg has been approved by the FDA to treat advanced renal cell carcinoma after treatment with PD-1 or PD-L1 and VEGF-TKI-based therapies.
Despite pricing concerns for bluebird bio’s FDA-approved sickle cell disease gene therapy, the biotech has inked a deal with an unnamed commercial payer “representing approximately 100 million covered lives” in the U.S.
A week after securing FDA approval, a European Medicines Agency committee has endorsed Vertex and CRISPR Therapeutics’ Casgevy for sickle cell disease and transfusion‑dependent beta thalassemia.
Amid falling COVID-19 revenues, Pfizer continues to invest in antibody-drug conjugates in a deal with Nona Biosciences worth $1 billion as its $43 billion Seagen buy closed on Thursday.
The regulator placed the clinical hold on the Chinese biotech’s trio of CAR-T cell therapy candidates after an inspection of its Durham, North Carolina manufacturing facility.
FDA
Despite the lack of a randomized clinical trial to support eflornithine’s efficacy, the regulator approved US WorldMeds’ oral maintenance treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma in adults and children.
At the urging of the Biden administration, Sanofi and AstraZeneca are pledging 230,000 additional doses of their respiratory syncytial virus infant immunization Beyfortus in January 2024.
The combination of Keytruda and an mRNA vaccine reduced the risk of death or relapse in patients with the most deadly form of skin cancer after three years in a Phase IIb study.
The Biden administration on Thursday said 48 drugs covered under Medicare’s Part B may be subject to inflation rebates in the first quarter of 2024 under the Inflation Reduction Act.
What needs to happen for funding in biopharma to bounce back? BioSpace’s Lori Ellis discusses the macroeconomic environment and biopharma funding outlook with venture capital guests Ansbert Gadicke, Martin Gershon and Mike Goguen.