BioCentury This Week

Positive vibes about biotech emanating from the Jefferies Healthcare Conference were overshadowed by the uncertainty that is ahead because of the result of the U.S. elections. On the latest BioCentury This Week, BioCentury’s editors discuss how the unconventional cabinet nominations of the incoming Trump administration have cast a pall over what had been growing enthusiasm for the prospects of the biotech sector. Washington Editor Steve Usdin also discusses what the nomination of Marty Makary as the next FDA Commissioner could mean for the sector, and recaps the latest update on the Biosecure Act. The BioCentury editors also discuss which pharmas are in or out in making a challenge to Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk in the obesity market.View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/65431900:00 - Introduction00:32 - Jefferies Conference Takeaways06:25 - Trump Nominations17:41 - Biosecure Act Update21:01 - Pharma in ObesityTo submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at [email protected] us by sending a text

Giving RFK Jr. control of HHS would be disastrous, argues Washington Editor Steve Usdin on the latest BioCentury This Week podcast. Expanding on his Editor’s Commentary, Usdin explains why Kennedy would be an unmitigated disaster for FDA, NIH and CMS, for biopharmas and for patients. He calls on biopharma leaders to speak out and affirm basic truths, even if it puts them in harm’s way.BioCentury’s editors also discuss why new data for GSK's Blenrep — an oncology therapy withdrawn two years ago — help make the case for introducing new therapies earlier in the course of treatment, and the recent bolus of West-East deals, including two around anti-PD-(L)1 x VEGF bispecifics: BioNTech's acquisition of Biotheus, and Merck's licensing of global rights to a LaNova asset.View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/65423300:00 - Introduction01:12 - RFK Jr. & HHS13:15 - Blenrep's Comback19:25 - China DealsTo submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at [email protected] us by sending a text

Trump 2.0 presents opportunities and challenges for leaders of the biopharma industry, which needs effective public policy to thrive. On the latest BioCentury This Week, BioCentury Washington Editor Steve Usdin explains what those opportunities are and lays out the potential impact on the public policy environment, which could have repercussions on FDA and beyond.BioCentury’s editors then analyze how companies, academics and advocates are pushing back on claims that they should have disclosed the results of APOE4 genotype testing to Alzheimer’s trial participants and investigations by Chinese authorities into AstraZeneca China President Leon Wang and fellow AZ employees past and current, assessing what’s known about the allegations and whether the situation could affect other MNCs operating in the country.View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/65415700:00 - Introduction01:01 - Prepping for Trump09:41 - Alzheimer's Ethics17:44 - AstraZeneca's Challenges in China21:51 - Myths and MisperceptionsTo submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at [email protected] us by sending a text

It’s too soon to conclude anti-amyloid therapies are safe for use by Alzheimer’s patients in the real world, even as early reports are encouraging, argues BioCentury Executive Editor Selina Koch on the latest BioCentury This Week podcast. Koch and colleagues discuss takeaways from this year’s Clinical Trials on Alzheimer’s Disease annual meeting, including conclusions from adverse event data for Leqembi lecanemab and what the true test of appropriate use and safety for the drug might look like.BioCentury’s editors also assess Phase II data presented at CTAD by UCB that provide some of the first clues about what species of tau to target and in which patients. And they discuss what results of Tuesday’s presidential contest in the U.S. will mean for FDA, as well as the state of play for China biotech as the industry continues to grind out its first bear market.View full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/65407500:00 - Introduction01:23 - CTAD: Anti-amyloids14:22 - CTAD: UCB's tau data19:47 - FDA & the Election28:16 - China Summit DebriefTo submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at [email protected] us by sending a text