| 2/19/2021 |
AbbVie, Eli Lilly lead Big Pharma's 2020 market cap growth as Merck, Gilead lag |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 19, 2021 12:07pm As of end of 2020, AbbVie enjoyed the largest market cap gain over 2019 among the top 10 pharma companies by market cap, while Merck suffered the biggest loss. (oatawa/Getty Images via Newscred)COVID-19 products aren’t guarantees of market cap growth at biopharma companies these days—and a lack of them doesn’t deprive a drugmaker, either—if a year ... |
| 2/16/2021 |
COVID-19 vaccine player AstraZeneca hands CEO $21.5M in pay for navigating pandemic |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 16, 2021 10:05am AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot took home $21.5 million in 2020 pay, with board recognition of his "inspiring leadership" in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. (AstraZeneca) The decision to take AstraZeneca to the front lines of developing vaccines and drugs against COVID-19 has earned the British pharma global recognition—and CEO Pascal Soriot a big thank-you note. AstraZeneca is handing Soriot ... |
| 2/16/2021 |
Bluebird Bio hits pause on rollout for ill-fated gene therapy Zynteglo as trial flags 2 cancer cases |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 16, 2021 11:18am Bluebird Bio is investigating two blood cancer cases that have emerged from a sickle cell disease clinical trial of its gene therapy LentiGlobin, which is approved in EU as Zynteglo to treat beta-thalassemia. (Bluebird Bio) Bluebird Bio’s blood disease gene therapy Zynteglo simply can’t catch a break, even now that it’s cleared for the market. Tuesday, the Massachusetts biotech ... |
| 2/10/2021 |
FDA panel doesn't buy Merck's biomarker for fast Keytruda nod in TNBC, spelling trouble for other I-O meds |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 10, 2021 11:08am An independent FDA expert panel has voted 10-0 to recommend deferring a decision on Merck's application for Keytruda for the neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment of patients with high-risk, early-stage triple-negative breast cancer. (FDA) Merck & Co. isn’t likely to snag an FDA go-ahead for Keytruda’s use in pre- and post-surgery triple-negative breast cancer anytime soon—and ... |
| 2/8/2021 |
AstraZeneca, Oxford race to update COVID-19 vaccine as study flags weak action against variant |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 8, 2021 8:25am AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford have started developing a booster shot to their AZD1222 COVID-19 vaccine after a study found it didn't work well against a virus strain first found in South Africa. (Kunal Mahto/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images) It didn’t take long before a morale boost for AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine was overshadowed by disappointment over ... |
| 2/8/2021 |
Watch out, Gilead: TG Therapeutics wins FDA nod for potentially safer Zydelig rival |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Feb 8, 2021 11:31am TG Therapeutics has won an accelerated FDA go-ahead for PI3K inhibitor Ukoniq to treat two types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. (TG Therapeutics) The PI3K cancer drug family just got a new member, and it’s a potentially safer option than existing players, including Gilead Sciences’ Zydelig. Friday, TG Therapeutics said it had won an accelerated FDA go-ahead for Ukoniq (umbralisib ... |
| 2/8/2021 |
ICER Evidence Report for Inclisiran Released |
healtheconomics.com |
... that were launched with annual prices above $14,000, faced significant payer pushback for multiple years, and eventually saw price reductions toward ICER’s recommended range .” Read more about the ICER report here.(Source: Angus Liu , Fierce Pharma, 1/29/21) You might also be interested in ... |
| 1/28/2021 |
BeiGene, Novartis' PD-1 tislelizumab beats chemotherapy in esophageal cancer |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 28, 2021 10:31am BeiGene CEO John Oyler has pointed to Asian-prevalent cancer types, including gastrointestinal cancers such as esophageal cancer, as areas where tislelizumab has an opportunity to compete with PD-1/L1 market leaders. (BeiGene) BeiGene has more positive results to report for its PD-1 cancer drug tislelizumab, which Novartis just in-licensed in a deal worth up to $2.2 billion.In a ... |
| 1/26/2021 |
Novartis 'not leaving any stone unturned' for Kesimpta, Leqvio as Entresto, Cosentyx drive growth |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 26, 2021 11:13am Novartis expects 2021 sales to grow low- to mid-single digit on the condition that the pandemic eases up in the second half of the year.At Novartis these days, immunology therapy Cosentyx and heart drug Entresto are without a doubt the major growth drivers. But as the company continues its search for new star meds, it’s betting on recently launched multiple ... |
| 1/21/2021 |
Veru touts novel breast cancer treatment strategy as drug nears phase 3 |
FierceBiotech |
by Angus Liu Jan 21, 2021 7:31am A research team led by scientists at the University of Adelaide has reported new findings that support activating androgen receptors as a strategy for treating ER-positive breast cancer. (Photo via Shutterstock by Syda Productions)Hormone therapies, or endocrine therapies, are widely used to treat breast cancer that is estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, but resistance is a common problem. That has sparked interest ... |
| 1/19/2021 |
The top 10 largest biopharma M&A deals in 2020 |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 19, 2021 3:00am AstraZeneca’s $39 billion deal for Alexion and Gilead’s $21 billion acquisition of Immunomedics rank among the top 10 biotech and pharma M&A deals in 2020. (designer 491/iStockPhoto) Biopharma M&A activities suffered a slowdown in 2020. One could argue that 2019’s megadeals consumed some of last year’s quota, and COVID-19 definitely didn’t help. But AstraZeneca ... |
| 1/15/2021 |
Bayer pharma chief admits to unfillable revenue gap despite potential blockbuster launches |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 15, 2021 10:47am Bayer's pharma business won't be able to fill the revenue gap left by Xarelto and Eylea as they lose patent protection across the globe in the next few years despite potential blockbuster launches, Bayer pharma president Stefan Oelrich said. (Bayer) The top concern for Bayer’s pharma business is the looming patent cliff for its two best-sellers—blood thinner Xalreto and eye ... |
| 1/14/2021 |
Bristol Myers hematology chief Ahmed's out the door amid CAR-T missteps |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu , Beth Snyder Bulik , Eric Sagonowsky Jan 14, 2021 10:59am BMS head of hematology Nadim Ahmed is leaving the company after the drugmaker suffered several regulatory setbacks with its Celgene-acquired CAR-T therapies. (Bristol Myers Squibb)At least one top executive is out the door at Bristol Myers Squibb after several regulatory missteps in the company's cell therapy department.Longtime Celgene exec and current Bristol Myers' head ... |
| 1/14/2021 |
JPM: Viatris CEO trumpets 'disciplined' deal-making for postmerger roadmap |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 14, 2021 11:47am Viatris, formed in the recent merger of Mylan and Pfizer's Upjohn, is focusing right now on cutting costs and stabilizing the business, only striking deals that involve small upfront payments, CEO Michael Goettler said.(Getty Images) Now that Mylan and Pfizer’s Upjohn established medicine business have officially combined to become Viatris, CEO Michael Goettler has laid out a growth road map for ... |
| 1/4/2021 |
Feds consider half-doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to stretch supplies, as U.K. spaces out Pfizer, AstraZeneca shots |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Jan 4, 2021 12:13pm The U.S. government is considering halving the dose of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine, Operation Warp Speed chief Moncef Slaoui said while rejecting the U.K. government's approach of spacing out vaccines' two doses longer. (nevodka/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images) Initial supplies of COVID-19 vaccines are obviously limited, even as drugmakers ramp up production, so governments are looking for ways to ... |
| 12/11/2020 |
FiercePharmaAsia—Takeda's CMV, leukemia data; COVID-19 vaccines from Sinovac, Clover and Sinopharm |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Dec 11, 2020 9:25am Takeda and COVID-19 vaccines from Chinese firms Sinovac, Clover Biopharma and Sinopharm made our news this week. (Google) Takeda's cytomegalovirus candidate, TAK-602, hit its phase 3 goal in transplant patients. The Japanese pharma's Iclusig posted new chronic myeloid leukemia data, touting five-year survival in 60% of patients. China-made COVID-19 vaccines had a busy week: Sinovac plans to double ... |
| 12/11/2020 |
FDA reviewers argue for Novartis ahead of Entresto advisory panel confab |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Dec 11, 2020 12:29pm In a document prepared for an advisory committee meeting, FDA reviewers took Novartis' side on Entresto's new heart failure application based on a failed clinical trial. (Novartis) Novartis’ Entresto chalked up a high-profile flop in a heart failure study last year, but the Swiss pharma shot for an FDA approval anyway. Now, reviewers at the agency appear to be rooting for ... |
| 12/10/2020 |
Roche yields to cancer biosim competition by offering 'relevant' discounts: report |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Dec 10, 2020 11:57am As biosimilars eat away market share, Roche is offering discounts to its top-selling cancer drugs Herceptin, Rituxan and Avastin. (Roche) Biosimilars have obviously hurt Roche, so much so that the Swiss pharma is now trying to compete on prices by offering up discounts to doctors. That’s the message Bernstein analyst Ronny Gal gleaned from perusing average sales prices published by the ... |
| 12/4/2020 |
COVID-19 vaccines based on novel platforms show early promise in mice |
FierceBiotech |
by Angus Liu Dec 3, 2020 12:12pm City of Hope scientists have developed an MVA-vectored COVID-19 vaccine with two coronavirus antigens, which induced strong antibody and T-cell responses in mice. (Getty/RossHelen) Pfizer and BioNTech’s mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 has already become the first COVID-19 shot approved for widespread use in the Western world, with other late-stage candidates not so far behind. But researchers in ... |
| 11/24/2020 |
Roche's Xofluza wins FDA nod to prevent flu but hits a snag with bid to reach younger patients |
FiercePharma |
by Angus Liu Nov 24, 2020 9:38am The FDA has approved Xofluza to prevent influenza in people ages 12 years and older following contact with an infected person. (Roche) Roche’s Xofluza has been approved in the U.S. to treat the flu for two years now, but sales have been languishing as it battles cheap generics of its predecessor Tamiflu. Now, a new FDA green light could add some extra ... |