News
Alternatives to opioids are desperately needed to better treat moderate to severe acute pain, but to date, we’ve seen few novel analgesics hit the market.
FEATURED STORIES
LB Pharma needed $350 million to advance a promising schizophrenia candidate at a time when the biotech markets were locked up tight. Fortunately, it wasn’t CEO Heather Turner’s first rodeo.
Rare disease drug developers struggle to survive in a biopharma investment market that prioritizes large patient populations. Initiatives like the Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator are attempting to solve what CEO Craig Martin says is not a science problem, but a math problem.
Eli Lilly’s win in a head-to-head trial drove Novo Nordisk’s market cap to pre-Wegovy levels not long after the victor became the first pharma company to top a $1 trillion valuation. It seems one company can do no right, while the other can do no wrong.
FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
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
Amid a re-energized Alzheimer’s disease space, Quest Diagnostics offers what the company contends is the first direct-to-consumer blood-based biomarker test to assess disease risk.
The FDA has approved Jemperli as an add-on to chemotherapy for patients with primary advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer that is mismatch repair deficient or microsatellite instability-high.
The Federal Trade Commission seeks to codify its heavier-handed approach, already displayed by its actions regarding Amgen’s acquisition of Horizon, among other deals.
Ulotaront failed to meet primary endpoints in two studies. The companies said high COVID-19 placebo effect “may have masked molecule’s therapeutic effect” and plan to discuss next steps with the FDA.
Amid U.S. shortages in crucial drugs, House Republicans have filed their own draft bill that seeks to increase the accountability of the FDA and provide more flexibility for generics manufacturers.
Biogen’s $7.3 billion Reata acquisition and layoffs dominated this week’s news, while BMS and Roche reported second-quarter earnings and BioSpace looked at 12 late-stage neuro companies.
Following a sweeping cost-cutting plan announced earlier this week, including an 11% workforce reduction, Biogen is acquiring Reata Pharmaceuticals to bolster its neurological and rare disease pipeline.
The British drugmaker’s rare disease subsidiary Alexion will take on a number of Pfizer’s preclinical gene therapy programs and technologies to advance its genomic medicines pipeline.
Despite beating analyst expectations, Takeda sustains a mid-stage defeat in a rare genetic disorder, leaving the fate of an investigational enzyme replacement therapy uncertain.
Two late-stage trial wins for Merck’s V116 investigational pneumococcal vaccine could make it a serious challenger to Pfizer’s Prevnar 20 in the space.