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Billions of dollars’ worth of cancer drugs are discarded each year. Manufacturers must refund Medicare for some of this waste. A data-driven approach offers a practical path to greater efficiency.
FEATURED STORIES
The first gene therapies approved to treat sickle cell disease in December 2023 are struggling on the market. But there are glimpses of forward momentum as Vertex and Genetix Bio provide updates.
After last year’s ‘stampede’ for FGF21 assets, the focus for the metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis space has shifted toward differentiated approaches, such as THR-β agonists and combination treatments, that seek to mirror the commercial success of Madrigal’s Rezdiffra.
Maintaining America’s momentum demands that policymakers resist policies that undermine research and development incentives.
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FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
FDA
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.
THE LATEST
The late-stage results for acoramidis, BridgeBio’s transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy candidate, indicate significant survival, functional and biomarker improvements over placebo.
Following a countersuit by Amgen and Horizon Therapeutics, the Federal Trade Commission has temporarily suspended its challenge to the multi-billion dollar merger between the two companies.
The Swiss pharma is returning the anti-TGFβ antibody NIS793 to Xoma Corporation, from which it bought the asset in 2015 for $37 million upfront.
While an initial analysis showed improvements in progression-free survival and objective response rate, a second analysis saw no improvement in overall survival.
A second trial shows Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy improves heart health. Meanwhile, many other drugs are beginning to face generic competition, including from newly approved biosimilars.
Following a late-stage victory on Monday, Exelixis on Thursday reported another Phase III win for its tyrosine kinase inhibitor Cabometyx—this time in advanced neuroendocrine tumors.
Wegovy’s highest dose significantly improved physical function and quality of life in obese patients with heart failure, according to results published Friday in The New England Journal of Medicine.
FDA
Amid one of the industry’s steepest patent cliffs, the regulator Thursday approved Sandoz’s Tyruko, the first biosimilar for treating relapsing multiple sclerosis in adults. Sandoz is a division of Novartis.
The world’s largest buyer of biopharma royalties is paying $300 million up front and $200 million in milestone payments for Ferring Pharmaceuticals’ FDA-approved bladder cancer drug Adstiladrin.
FDA
In the next two weeks, the FDA will hand out regulatory verdicts to BMS, Outlook Therapeutics and BioLineRx.