Merck TIGIT drug misses goal in lung cancer trial, adding to doubts over approach

The combination drug didn’t help patients any more than chemotherapy, but Merck will continue the trial to test it together with chemo.

Sanofi joins other diabetes drugmakers in cutting insulin prices

The pharma is the last of the three major insulin suppliers to reduce U.S. list prices, responding to persistent criticism and policy changes that will affect Medicaid rebate payments.

CMS lays out plans for negotiating drug prices

The guidance fills in details for one of the central pharmaceutical provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, signaling how the agency will use its new authority.

Esperion in dispute with Daiichi over drug milestone payment

The companies disagree over what qualifies for a payment of up to $300 million that’s associated with inclusion of heart data on the cholesterol drug’s label.

US names first drugs to face price hike penalty

Gilead’s cancer cell therapies Yescarta and Tecartus were among the slate of 27 drugs singled out by CMS for rebates under a provision of the IRA.

Healthcare companies may turn to big banks after SVB’s fall

SVB’s unraveling created a hole in life sciences financing that could be filled by bigger banks, but might hamper access to quick, short-term cash for startups.

With focus on fibrosis, startup Mediar draws big pharma backing

Novartis joined venture investor Sofinnova in leading an $85 million investment in the startup that also involved Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Bristol Myers Squibb.

Jounce gets rival takeover bid from company controlled by shareholder

Tang Capital’s Concentra Biosciences is offering Jounce investors a competing bid to the biotech’s planned reverse merger with Redx Pharma.

In Pfizer-Seagen review, FTC has chance to set new pharma precedent

The regulator’s review of the planned $43 billion deal could reveal how it plans to apply a new philosophy toward drugmaker mergers.

VA to cover Leqembi for veterans with early Alzheimer’s

The agency’s decision on Eisai and Biogen’s new drug contrasts with a stringent Medicare policy that limits coverage to patients in clinical trials.

Novo Nordisk follows Lilly in sharply cutting insulin prices

Responding to policy changes and pressure over high drug costs, the pharma is reducing the sticker price of four branded diabetes medicines by up to 75%.

Switch Therapeutics launches with $52M to capitalize on RNA medicine ‘era’

The company’s name comes from its goal of developing drugs that only “switch” on in target cells, potentially enabling more precise therapies.

Amylyx’s ALS drug sales impress Wall Street

In its first full quarter on the market, Amylyx’s Relyvrio generated nearly $22 million in revenue, or about five times what some analysts forecast last month.

‘What a mess’: How biotech startups grappled with SVB’s collapse

The bank’s failure caused some companies to question whether they could pay employees, while forcing many others to take steps to calm nervous investors.

Pfizer to buy Seagen in $43B cancer drug deal

The acquisition would give Pfizer control of a top-selling lymphoma drug and a pipeline of medicines that have made the Seattle-based company one of the sector’s most valuable biotechs.

Updated March 13, 2023

Sanofi acquires diabetes drug via Provention buyout

The deal builds on a licensing agreement between Sanofi and Provention to market the first-of-its-kind treatment, called Tzield and approved to slow the disease’s progression.

Regulators backstop SVB deposits, offer emergency lending

SVB’s demise on Friday marked the nation’s largest bank failure since Washington Mutual collapsed in 2008, and sent shock waves through both the life sciences and tech sectors.

Pfizer’s Biohaven deal pays dividends with new drug approval

The medicine, a nasal spray for migraines to be sold as Zavzpret, was a key part of Pfizer’s roughly $12 billion buyout of Biohaven last year. 

Regulators take over Silicon Valley Bank

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation closed the embattled bank and appointed the FDIC as receiver, regulators said Friday.

Biden takes fresh aim at drug prices with new budget plan

The proposal, viewed as a “non-starter” by one analyst, seeks to double the number of drugs Medicare can negotiate prices for and open up those talks more quickly.

FDA advisers back earlier use of Roche lymphoma drug

The positive vote comes despite doubts from FDA scientists and increases the chance that Polivy could soon be approved as a first-line treatment alongside a drug regimen called R-CHOP.    

Lilly reaches end of the road with long-studied Alzheimer’s drug

Prior trial failures hadn’t halted testing of solanezumab, once Lilly’s top Alzheimer’s drug candidate. But its final study defeat may help scientists better understand how to target the brain disease.

AstraZeneca builds on study successes in early lung cancer

The pharma’s drug Tagrisso extended survival in a trial that stirred debate at ASCO three years ago, while its immunotherapy Imfinzi reduced the risk of relapse in a different study.

Canadian royalty investor buys into first-of-its-kind Type 1 diabetes drug

DRI Healthcare, which owns royalties on top-selling drugs like Eylea and Stelara, is paying $100 million for a piece of the Provention Bio drug Tzield that the FDA approved last year.

Sandoz, betting on biosimilar sales, to build new production plant

The Novartis division will invest at least $400 million in a new manufacturing facility in Slovenia amid expectations that demand for copycat biologics will surge in the coming years.