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Tristan Manalac

Tristan Manalac

Contributing Writer | News

Tristan is an independent science writer based in Metro Manila, with more than eight years of experience writing about medicine, biotech and science. Being formally trained in molecular biology, he once dreamed of collecting degrees and starting his own lab. But these days, he finds his greatest joy in a bottle of beer and a beautiful sentence. He can be reached at tristan.manalac@biospace.com, tristan@tristanmanalac.com or on LinkedIn.

Pictured: Amgen's office in Tampa, Florida
Business
Amgen Lays Off 350 Employees Following $27.8B Horizon Acquisition
In its most recent round of layoffs this year, the California-based biopharma company is letting go of 350 former Horizon Therapeutics staff whose roles overlap with existing positions at Amgen.
October 25, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Cancer cell in the bloodstream/iStock, D
FDA
Servier’s Tibsovo Gets FDA Approval as First Targeted Therapy for MDS
The oncology company added a fifth indication for its isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 inhibitor, securing the greenlight for treating patients with IDH1-mutated relapsed or refractory myelodysplastic syndromes.
October 25, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Facade of Novo Nordisk's office in Fremont, California
Policy
Belgium Eyes Short-Term Ban on Novo’s Ozempic for Weight Loss Amid Shortage
The country is considering restricting the use of Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic to just type 2 diabetes and prohibiting its prescription for weight loss as the company struggles with continued supply constraints.
October 24, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Facade of the FDA's office in Maryland
FDA
Celltrion Wins FDA Approval for First Subcutaneous Version of IBD Drug Infliximab
The regulator has approved the first-ever subcutaneous version of infliximab, an IgG1 monoclonal antibody, commonly sold by Johnson & Johnson under the brand name Remicade.
October 24, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: 3D illustration of antibody-drug conjugates carrying toxic payloads
Drug Development
AstraZeneca, Daiichi Address Safety Concerns for DXd ADC at ESMO
The companies presented data from two pivotal studies of Dato-DXd, focusing on safety concerns and survival data for the investigational antibody-drug conjugate candidate in lung and breast cancer.
October 24, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Novartis' logo outside its building in S
Drug Development
Novartis Builds Case for Earlier Prostate Cancer Treatment with Phase III Data
Pluvicto improved radiographic progression-free survival in PSMA-positive patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who had not been treated with taxane-based chemotherapy.
October 24, 2023
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3 min read
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Roche Diagnostics building in California
Deals
Roche Pays $7.1B to Roivant for Rights to Telavant’s IBD Candidate
The Swiss drugmaker gains rights to RVT-3101 in the U.S. and Japan. Telavant was formed in late 2022 by Roivant and Pfizer, which had a 25% stake in the venture and retains rights to the antibody in other countries.
October 23, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Doctor looking at abdominal ultrasound i
Drug Development
Merck, BMS Score Separate Late-Stage Victories in Bladder Cancer at ESMO
The competitors posted promising survival data for their respective blockbuster PD-1 inhibitors—Keytruda and Opdivo—emphasizing the potential of these therapies in bladder cancer patients.
October 23, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: FDA signage at its office in Washington, DC
FDA
FDA Approves BioMarin’s Voxzogo for Young Children with Dwarfism
The label for the achondroplasia drug, which promotes endochondral bone growth, now covers children under five years of age with the rare genetic disease causing the most common form of dwarfism.
October 23, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Pfizer's signage at its world headquarters in New York
Deals
EU Antitrust Regulators Clear Pfizer’s $43B Acquisition of Seagen
Despite increasing antitrust scrutiny across the biopharma industry, the European Commission on Thursday said it found no competitive issues with Pfizer’s buyout of the antibody-drug conjugate company.
October 20, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Merck building and sign in Silicon Valley
Business
Merck Pays $4B Upfront for Daiichi Sankyo’s DXd-Based ADCs
Seeking to deepen its immuno-oncology business, Merck has closed a deal potentially worth $22 billion across three of Daiichi Sankyo’s DXd antibody-drug conjugates for various solid tumor indications.
October 20, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Businessmen shaking hands after closing a deal
Deals
Flagship’s Laronde, Senda Form Company Focused on New Class of Medicines
Sail Biomedicines combines Laronde’s circular eRNA platform with Senda’s nanoparticle delivery technology in the pursuit of a new class of programmable medicines across therapeutic areas.
October 20, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Roche tower in Basel, Switzerland
Business
Roche Cuts Pipeline as COVID, Currency Headwinds Impact Q3 Results
The contracting COVID-19 market has led to lower third-quarter sales for the Swiss drugmaker, which made the decision to eliminate four clinical programs following underwhelming readouts.
October 19, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Woman scratching skin lesions on her elb
FDA
UCB Wins FDA Approval for Plaque Psoriasis Therapy After Regulatory Setbacks
Following a delay and an initial rejection, UCB’s IL-17A/IL-17F blocker bimekizumab was approved for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, which will now be marketed with the brand name Bimzelx.
October 19, 2023
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Tristan Manalac
Pictured: Roche Diagnostics building in California
Drug Development
Roche Claims ‘Unprecedented’ Phase III NSCLC Victory for Oral ALK Inhibitor Alecensa
Early stage ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with Roche’s Alecensa saw an “unprecedented” 76% drop in the risk of recurrence or death, the company announced Wednesday.
October 19, 2023
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2 min read
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Tristan Manalac
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