Fierce Investigates: The Great ACR Poster Burglary

Today’s Big News

Nov 16, 2023

Vertex, CRISPR gain 'historic' nod in UK for exa-cel. But will the gene-editing therapy ever reach the market in Europe?


A year after Roche's Alzheimer's failure, scientists reflect on what could have been


We won't get fooled again: Fierce Biotech Bureau of Investigations seeks Takeda ACR poster burglar


FDA hands down 2 more Class I labels to drug delivery device recalls, now from Baxter, Fresenius


Bristol Myers' $4.1B Turning Point buy yields FDA approval for lung cancer drug Augtyro


FDA skeptical of Merck’s gefapixant, even after cough recount  

 

Featured

Vertex, CRISPR gain 'historic' nod in UK for exa-cel. But will cost watchdogs embrace the gene-editing therapy?

Vertex and CRISPR Therapeutics have scored authorization in the U.K. for their exa-cel gene therapy to treat patients with sickle cell and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia. Despite the excitement for the anxiously awaited drug—which Vertex said will potentially open the treatment up to 2,000 patients in the U.K.—a key question remains: Because of its steep price, will it ever be commercialized in England?
 

Top Stories

A year after Roche's Alzheimer's failure, scientists reflect on what could have been

Almost a year to the day after Roche revealed that its Alzheimer's drug gantenerumab failed a phase 3 trial, the data are appearing in The New England Journal of Medicine, giving scientists a chance to reflect on what was learned.

We won't get fooled again: Fierce Biotech Bureau of Investigations seeks Takeda ACR poster burglar

Fierce Biotech investigates a biotech caper after Takeda's TAK-279 poster mysteriously went missing from the late-breaker poster session at ACR in San Diego this week.

FDA hands down 2 more Class I labels to drug delivery device recalls, now from Baxter, Fresenius

In its second and third such notices this week, the FDA doled out its most serious label to recalls of syringe devices used in medication delivery.

Bristol Myers' $4.1B Turning Point buy yields FDA approval for lung cancer drug Augtyro

Watch out, Pfizer and Roche. Thanks to an acquisition and now an FDA approval, Bristol Myers Squibb is entering a niche lung cancer market.

FDA skeptical of Merck’s gefapixant, even after cough recount

Merck & Co. is running out of time to get the first chronic cough medicine to market. So far, its path has been wrought with delays and the future appears no different as the FDA expresses new doubt about the pharma’s candidate gefapixant.

FDA clears its first mail-in STI test for chlamydia, gonorrhea with LetsGetChecked kit

The over-the-counter Simple 2 test is sold by LetsGetChecked—a former Fierce 15 winner that made a name for itself in remote testing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In analysis of gene therapy deaths, Astellas points to underlying liver issues

Astellas has shared a detailed look at the four deaths in its AT132 gene therapy clinical trial. Writing in The Lancet Neurology, the drugmaker explained that the liver toxicity seen in the trial differs from cases linked to other therapies—and made the case that the drug can provide transformative clinical benefits.

Micron nets nearly $24M from Gates Foundation to pioneer needle-free vaccine tech in low- and middle-income countries

The Gates Foundation blessed Micron with a $23.6 million grant to built out a commercial manufacturing facility for the company’s dissolvable, microarray-based drug and vaccine delivery tech.

Cytovale collects $84M to roll out its rapid ER sepsis diagnostic test

According to the San Francisco-based company, sepsis contributes to more than one third of all in-hospital deaths—more than 350,000 annually in the U.S.

Digital therapeutics maker BehaVR combines with Fern Health to build chronic pain care platform

Less than a year after absorbing fellow virtual reality-based digital therapeutics maker OxfordVR, BehaVR is bulking up its business through yet another merger.
 
Fierce podcasts

Don’t miss an episode

'Podnosis': A deep dive into Q3 earnings, and key takeaways from the Fierce Health Payer Summit

In this week’s episode of "Podnosis," you'll hear from two journalists from the Fierce Healthcare team: Paige Minemyer, senior editor of Fierce Health Payer, and Dave Muoio, a staff writer for Fierce Healthcare. Together, they guide you through their key insights from the inaugural Fierce Health Payer Summit in Austin and dive into the latest earnings updates from the largest health plans and health systems.
 

Resources

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Effective Technology Transfers for Mammalian-Derived Biologics

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A critical area to consider in selecting a CDMO is their ability to successfully complete technology transfers, which involves an intricate set of activities and disciplines that, if done incorrectly, could result in delays and failures that impact the overall success of your end product. Recognizing what it takes to complete this process effectively and efficiently is crucial to selecting the best partner for your project and product needs. This white paper delivers an analysis of critical success factors for effective technology transfer.

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Enhance the cost-effectiveness of your GMP chemical supply chain

Learn how to develop a high-performing supply chain for cGMP chemicals used throughout your bioprocessing workflows.
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Plasmid DNA Design Considerations for Cell and Gene Therapy

Download our whitepaper to learn about plasmid DNA design considerations for cell and gene therapy applications.
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Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare & Medical Affairs

This paper explores AI’s potential impact on healthcare and on Medical Affairs (MA) more specifically. It also outlines what MA teams can do now to proactively leverage AI to improve service to their stakeholders.
eBook

An Introduction to Organ-on-a-Chip Technology

Emulate in vivo biology with next-generation in vitro technology.
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Accelerate drug discovery with high-performance computing powered by the cloud

Accelerate drug discovery with high-performance computing (HPC) powered by the cloud
 

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