Today, a brief rundown of news from Lyell Immunopharma and Biogen as well as updates from the European Life Sciences Coalition and Novocure that you may have missed.
Lyell Immunopharma said Thursday it has begun dosing patients in a first-of-its-kind Phase 3 trial testing ronde-cel, an experimental, dual-acting cancer cell therapy, directly against an investigator’s choice of approved CAR-T treatments for large B-cell lymphoma. The trial is expected to enroll 400 people whose lymphoma relapsed or hasn’t responded to initial treatment with Rituxan and chemotherapy. Investigators will measure whether ronde-cel can extend survival or delay disease recurrence or progression longer than those who got the marketed treatments. Lyell acquired ronde-cel when it bought startup ImmPact Bio in 2024, and has since positioned the therapy as its lead research candidate. It’s also running a single-arm pivotal study that could yield a U.S. approval filing in 2027, if the results are positive. — Jonathan Gardner
Several prominent biotech venture firms joined together with the trade group Invest Europe to launch on Thursday the European Life Sciences Coalition, or ELSC, an initiative meant to spur investment in drug startups in Europe. Novo Holdings, Sofinnova Partners, Omega Funds and Forbion are among the members of the new group, which collectively manages more than 24 billion euros in life science-related assets and has helped start over 1,400 companies. The coalition aims to help close the funding gap between European biotech investors and their counterparts elsewhere, as European funds account for just 7% of of the global venture financing going to life sciences companies versus 63% in the U.S. and 14% in China. The launch comes "at a pivotal moment for Europe," which "risks a progressive hollowing-out of its life sciences VC ecosystem," the ELSC wrote. — Ben Fidler
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved an electrical-field emitting device Novocure developed for pancreatic cancer. The device, Optune Pax, has been cleared alongside chemotherapy for pancreatic tumors that can’t be surgically removed. The approval was supported by study results showing that the addition of Optune Pax to chemo helped people survive a median of 16 months, about two months longer than those on chemo alone. Novocure’s device is meant to trigger an immune response while disrupting tumor cell division and spread. It’s also cleared for use in glioblastoma, mesothelioma and non-small cell lung cancer. — Jonathan Gardner
Caroline Dorsa, chair of Biogen’s board of directors, plans to retire and will not stand for reelection at the company’s annual meeting scheduled for June 9. Biogen said Dorsa, who replaced longtime chair Stelios Papadopoulos in 2023, will be succeeded by fellow board member Maria Freire. Biogen’s board — which totaled 10 members at the end of 2025 — has undergone significant changes in recent years. Three members stepped down around the same time of Dorsa’s chair appointment. One of those seats was then filled by Susan Langer, who is the daughter of prominent biotech founder Bob Langer and had held various positions at Biogen. Freire joined the board in 2021, and currently serves on committees for corporate governance as well as compensation and management development. — Jacob Bell
