Strategy

Emerging Company Profile: Volastra is testing two KIF18A inhibitors in early clinical trials in ovarian cancer, backed by investors like Polaris Partners and ARCH Ventures.

The company, now the most advanced clinically in the psychedelic space after the rejection of Lykos's MDMA-based post-traumatic stress disorder drug, is cutting its workforce by a third and narrowing its research focus after shifting the timeline for its late-stage depression candidate.

Uptake in immunology, gastrointestinal and dermatology indications have enabled Skyrizi to post 51% year-over-year growth, and overtake sales for biosimilar-challenged stalwart Humira.

As it posts third-quarter numbers that again reveal the decline of revenues from its multiple sclerosis portfolio, the US biotech major is entering into the hot area of targeted protein degradation to boost its immunology and neurology pipeline.

CEO Albert Bourla said Starboard Value’s push for change at Pfizer is coming 15 months late as the company is already executing a five-point plan to cut costs and pivot on strategy.

The Swiss giant has raised its forecast for the full financial year, as Cosentyx, Entresto and its oncology portfolio continue to shine, helped by the firm's sleeker selling organization.

Some of the industry’s biggest challenges – and potential solutions to those problems – were hot topics at the BioFuture conference in New York.

Aliada’s ALIA-1758 addresses the same target as Lilly’s Kisunla, but is paired with a blood-brain barrier transport technology that may offer high affinity and potential for lower dosing.

Lyell believes ImmPACT’s dual CD19/20-targeted CAR-T could offer better response rates than Yescarta or Breyanzi and will focus on IMPT-314 while terminating much of its own pipeline.

Despite a successful Phase III study of ALXN-1840 for the inherited disorder that prevents the liver from filtering copper out of the body, the UK major's rare disease division Alexion pulled the plug on the program last summer. However, Illinois-based biotech Monopar is confident in its potential.

The dermatology specialist updated investors on the launch of its first biologic drug, the IL-31 inhibitor Nemluvio, during its third quarter update.

The new company, Rhine Pharma, hopes to avoid the isotope production issues that have dogged other radiopharmaceutical developers.

Senior executives from GSK, Bayer, Johnson & Johnson and Novartis discuss their experiences and some of the practical aspects of deploying AI in clinical trials. The potential of the technology to fundamentally alter how firms ensure the quality of data was also among the key talking points.

Amgen will launch a biosimilar version of Regeneron’s top-selling drug Eylea “at risk” following a US Court of Appeals decision denying an injunction.

Ocuphire will shift toward gene therapy for inherited retinal degeneration via a merger that will take Opus Genetics public. The firm will also be responsible for one of Ocuphire’s pipeline projects.

CEO of Sumitomo Pharma America unit, Adele M. Gulfo, draws from experiences working across companies including Pfizer, to advise on go-to-market strategies for a portfolio across primary care to rare disease.

An exec said the company is confident it can ensure testing for the biomarker becomes routine for the drug, which is the first FDA-approved medicine to target CLDN18.2.

Sanofi’s EVP (general medicines), Olivier Charmeil, talks about pharma’s evolving go-to-market strategies that enmesh a more personalized, data-driven approach, why the medical, legal, and regulatory (MLR) review process needs to be faster and also impressive learnings from Amazon, Netflix and Ikea around building customer experience.

In a video interview, Nandini Piramal, chairperson of Piramal Pharma, speaks with Scrip about a focus on on-patent products, an integrated ADC offering, a measured approach to the proposed BIOSECURE Act and the company’s strategy to double revenue to about $2bn

The latest reorganization comes after a mid-stage pipeline asset failed in Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.