Bayer hunts for new CEO

This Week

Sep 16, 2022
 

Fierce Biotech’s honorees for the 2022 Fierce 15 have scientific roots that run deep—from seeking cures for incurable diseases to tapping the latest AI tech to discover better drugs faster. This year’s class also focuses more than ever before on diversity in management and geography across the biotech world. Read the full special report here.

When Bristol Myers Squibb bought Celgene in 2019 for $74 billion, it opted to keep the dermatology and immunology drug deucravacitinib, and it doesn’t regret the move in the slightest. Now dubbed Sotyktu, it’s won FDA approval for plaque psoriasis, and the Big Pharma believes the drug could be a new standard of care.

The FDA has found new clusters of specific types of cancer linked to the scar tissue that forms around breast implants, as part of the agency’s yearslong review of the risks that can come with the procedure.

 

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Fierce Biotech's 2022 Fierce 15

Welcome to this year's Fierce Biotech's Fierce 15. Join us in celebrating 2022's best of the best biotech startups. This year, we focused more than ever before on diversity in management and geography across the biotech world, highlighting a broader range of teams, leaders and science.
 
 
 
 

Top Stories

 

BMS’ preferred drug in its $74B Celgene buy is set to pay dividends, winning its first FDA nod

Back when Bristol Myers Squibb acquired Celgene in 2019 for $74 billion, it opted to keep the dermatology and immunology drug deucravacitinib, as opposed to the already-approved Otezla. And now, BMS doesn’t regret this move in the slightest. Deucravacitinib has won FDA approval for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.
 
 
 

FDA uncovers additional types of cancer possibly linked to breast implants

The FDA has found new clusters of specific types of cancer linked to the scar tissue that forms around breast implants, as part of its ongoing, yearslong review of the risks that can come with the procedure.
 
 
 

Bayer's hunt for a new CEO is on, suggesting Werner Baumann could be headed for an early exit: report

Following years of investor push-and-pull over Bayer's CEO, a hunt for Werner Baumann’s successor has quietly kicked off,  Bloomberg News reported Tuesday, citing people close to the matter. The new CEO search may portend an early departure for Baumann, whose contract with Bayer isn’t set to expire until April 2024.
 
 
 

ESMO: GSK keeps the faith in anti-TIGIT plans; it's 'not always about being first'

Four months after the latest trial failure for Roche’s tiragolumab, GSK is still pushing ahead with its own anti-TIGIT inhibitor, bullish that plenty of opportunities remain for the next-gen therapy.
 
 
 

UPDATED ESMO: Amgen's Lumakras confirmatory lung cancer data leave door open for KRAS competitors

In a closely watched competition among KRAS inhibitors, Amgen leads the pack with a randomized trial win in lung cancer. Now, the California drugmaker is giving a first look at the detailed data that could set the bar for all others to come, including Mirati Therapeutics, Roche and Novartis.
 
 
 

Rubius makes hard pivot after reviewing clinical data, dumping lead assets and laying off 75% of staffers

Rubius Therapeutics has torn up its strategy. After reviewing human data on its lead candidates, the cell therapy biotech concluded investment in its two clinical prospects “is no longer justified,” leading it to stop studies and lay off 75% of its workforce. Shares in Rubius fell 25% to $0.80.
 
 
 

Medtronic taps Disney star Jennifer Stone for new diabetes tech campaign

Medtronic is turning to a celebrity endorsement in the form of Jennifer Stone, the actress from the Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place” series, to promote its reusable smart insulin injectable, InPen.
 
 
 

Pfizer among investors flooding Nimbus with $125M for TYK2 programs, phase 3 launch

Investors such as Pfizer have flooded Nimbus Therapeutics with $125 million in private financing, money that will go toward three clinical inflammatory and autoimmune disorder programs, including a phase 3 psoriasis launch.
 
 
 

Takeda splashes €300M to expand plasma-derived therapy production site amid pandemic recovery

Riding on fast growth after a temporary pandemic-related slowdown, Takeda’s plasma-derived therapies department is investing heavily to boost its manufacturing capabilities.
 
 
 

Gene interaction analysis predicts existing drugs that could be repurposed for autism

By using a series of analyses to predict how gene protein products interact, researchers from Norway’s University of Oslo have homed in on existing drugs that they believe warrant testing in people with ASD. The results, published Monday in Frontiers of Pharmacology, indicate four possible meds: anti-diarrheal loperamide, dopamine D2 receptor agonist bromocriptine, the female hormone progesterone and the progestin birth control pill drospirenone.
 
 
 
 
Fierce podcasts

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'The Top Line': What Merck trial flops at ESMO may portend, lessons from COVID for monkeypox test EUAs and more

This week on "The Top Line," we chat about this year’s European Society for Medical Oncology meeting where Merck presented a series of trial flops for Keytruda. We also discuss the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and how they are being applied to the monkeypox test EUA.
 
 

Resources

 
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Make the most out of hybrid conferences

Improve your congress competitive intelligence and cut down costs by 50%
 
 
 
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The Hands-Free, Low-Volume, Microfluidic Elisa Alternative

Advanced research requires advanced tools. The next-generation ELISA takes a fraction of the time to run eight analytes simultaneously while saving your sample volume.

 
 
 
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Optimize Digital Engagement Across the Patient Journey

Improve patient engagement, adherence, and outcomes
 
 
 
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Unifying the Digital & Physical Building Hospital Resilience

Learn how IT and facility security professionals are collaborating on key initiatives to mitigate digital and physical security risks and build resilience healthcare system-wide.
 
 
 
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Achieving faster formulation for First In Human supplies

Supporting your product development programme through experience, expertise, and efficiency.

 
 
 
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Commonalities in How HCPs Engage Across Owned and Paid Channels

Understand HCP specialists’ channel habits, preferences, and common themes regardless of speciality. Our syndicated HCP engagement offering, Engage, informs which channels are offering value across the board and where differences lie, so you can target your audience with the optimal channel mix. 

 
 
 
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Improve Life Sciences Research with AI Workflow Automation

Can an optimized research process--including AI-powered workflow and process automation tools--help get breakthrough drugs to market faster?
 
 
 
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Formulation Strategies When Transitioning From Vial to PFS

Learn how formulation development for a PFS affects manufacturing to drive the industry toward optimizing delivery of injectable products and, ultimately, improving patient care.

 
 
 
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The Faster Path From Pre-Filled Syringe to Auto-Injector

Ypsomed and Catalent Biologics experts discuss strategies for integrated PFS manufacturing and auto-injector assembly to accelerate timelines and more in this webinar.
 
 
 
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An Assay Platform to Evaluate Cytokine Release & T Cell Activation

How can we predict the ability of a preclinical drug to inadvertently cause or intentionally inhibit cytokine secretion and T cell activation

 
 
 
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Scaling life sciences companies: Discover resources to support growth and innovation

Read through this library of resources to find out how you can strengthen innovation and efficiency, improve safety and quality, and prioritize resources to support your long-term goals.

 
 
 
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Expanding Healthcare Services with Digital Agreement Technology

Read our whitepaper and dive into the way healthcare providers can digitally transform day-to-day work by streamlining costs and increasing agility by removing manual paper burdens.

 
 
 
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Leading lab instruments provider saves $2M a year

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eBook

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Softgel Formulation Enables Oral Delivery of Testosterone

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Learn more about how the transition from early to late phase of a small molecule program plays a pivotal role in a program’s ultimate success.

 
 
 
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Medical Affairs Metamorphosis, Part III: How Medical Affairs is Becoming a Key Hub for Evidence Generation

This paper explores how Medical Affairs is increasingly playing a key leadership role in evidence planning and generation (part 3 in a series).

 
 
 
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Plan for scalable process liquid and buffer preparation

Explore how Thermo Scientific’s Process Liquid Preparation Services can help you plan for scalable buffer preparation.

 
 
 
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Intranasal Drug Product Development: Formulation to Manufacturing

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Orally Inhaled & Nasal Drug Delivery: A Pipeline of Opportunities

Orally Inhaled & Nasal Drug Delivery: A Pipeline of Opportunities

 
 
 
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Catalent Pulmonary & Nasal Delivery Capabilities Sheet

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Reduce control arm sizes by up to 22% for HD & ALS RCTs

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