| Today’s Big NewsJan 8, 2024 |
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Tuesday, January 23, 2024 | 11am ET / 8am PT Join a cutting-edge conversation on January 23, 2024 with Real Chemistry and Quid as they explore how their partnership has forged a deeper understanding of patient insights. Register now. 
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| By James Waldron Not to be outdone by its Big Pharma peers, Johnson & Johnson has fattened up its antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) pipeline via the acquisition of Ambrx Biopharma for $2 billion. |
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By Nick Paul Taylor Merck & Co. has speared an acquisition target, agreeing to pay $680 million for Harpoon Therapeutics and its pipeline of T-cell engagers. The deal will give Merck control of drug candidates that will expand its cancer pipeline and offer opportunities to offset the upcoming loss of Keytruda exclusivity. |
By Angus Liu Nearly all top cancer drugmakers have struck deals in the sizzling antibody-drug conjugate field—but not Novartis. On Monday, the Swiss pharma’s CEO Vas Narasimhan explained how he's resisted the temptation. |
By Conor Hale Boston Scientific is growing its urology portfolio with a $3.7 billion deal to acquire Axonics, makers of neurostimulation therapies for urinary and fecal incontinence. |
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Wednesday, January 24, 2024 | 2pm ET / 11am PT Join industry experts to hear how digital collection of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) can lay the foundation for advancing health equity, which methods can ensure that PROs are relevant for diverse populations, and what challenges and opportunities still lie ahead. Register now. 
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By Nick Paul Taylor Novartis danced into a big week in the biopharma calendar with a trio of deals. The Swiss drugmaker is paying $250 million to renew its interest in a cytokine, dropping $185 million on two RNAi cardiovascular disease candidates and handing over $37.5 million to partner with an AI-enabled biotech. |
By Annalee Armstrong The overall deal flow in biopharma tapered off in 2023 but the big companies sure know what they want (what they really, really want), according to a new report from J.P. Morgan. |
By Eric Sagonowsky Despite all the recent changes at Johnson & Johnson, the company maintains an aggressive outlook for its pharmaceuticals division. In fact, J&J's sales forecasts for some drugs come in vastly higher than analyst numbers. |
By Andrea Park After scoring an FDA nod last spring allowing updated versions of its continuous glucose monitors to be integrated into automated insulin delivery systems, Abbott has selected the first such system to pair with its FreeStyle Libre technology. |
By Kevin Dunleavy Bristol Myers Squibb CEO Chris Boerner highlighted the company’s pipeline which could deliver more than 16 new products through 2030. He also is optimistic that supply problems with CAR-T drugs Breyanzi and Abecma have been solved. |
By Annalee Armstrong Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ islet cell diabetes med VX-880, which has shown promise in eliminating the need for insulin in a small group of patients, has been placed on a voluntary hold after two deaths deemed unrelated to treatment occurred in the ongoing trial. |
By Kevin Dunleavy In it’s annual Firepower report, EY says the biopharma industry enters 2024 with the capability and motivation to increase M&A activity. The late surge of activity in 2023 also bodes well for a 2024 uptick, the group said. |
By Conor Hale The maker of a wearable garment for tracking heart rate, breathing and physical activity has obtained an FDA clearance for artificial intelligence-powered software that enables continuous monitoring of blood pressure without an inflatable cuff. |
By James Waldron When the small privately held biotech Curevo Vaccine decided to go head-to-head with GSK in the Shingles space it seemed like a bold move—but so far it’s paying off. |
By Nick Paul Taylor Bayer has kept up the pressure on Astellas’ hot flash drug Veozah, reporting a clean sweep of coprimary endpoints in a pair of phase 3 trials of its rival molecule elinzanetant. |
By Conor Hale The CE mark covers the MiniMed 780G pump and the Simplera Sync system, which the medtech giant describes as a disposable, all-in-one blood sugar sensor that takes less than 10 seconds to insert. |
By James Waldron The stream of new year layoffs that have greeted biotech employees shows no sign of abating, with Exelixis announcing that around 175 of its staff will be heading for the exits in the coming months. |
Fierce podcasts Don’t miss an episode |
| This week on "The Top Line," Fierce Biotech staff writer Gabrielle Masson and senior editor Annalee Armstrong look back at the year in biotech, which was defined by massive layoffs across the industry. They also discuss their favorite stories of the year, including an appearance from a popstar whose reputation precedes her. |
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