| |   | Hiya, Meghana here. Today, we discuss the financial strain felt by gene therapy player Bluebird Bio, how the White House has set itself back on Covid-19 funding transparency, and more. | | | Bluebird Bio is running dangerously low on cash Gene therapy developer Bluebird Bio is in trouble: Its cash is running low, STAT’s Adam Feuerstein writes, and there’s concern the business won’t stay afloat after this year. The company’s market value has tanked 96% from a high of $11 billion to around $350 million today, even though two of its gene therapies are under FDA review. However, with no approved products on the market, the company’s revenue was just $3.7 million last year — leading to a net loss of $563 million, the company said in its annual report, filed Friday. The company is downsizing its office space, moving from pricey Kendall Square to the more budget-friendly Somerville. And should it win FDA approval for its gene therapy, Bluebird will also try to sell two of its priority review vouchers, which could raise $200 million. Read more. | Federal funding for Covid-19 mitigation questioned We still don’t know how the White House has been spending the $4 trillion authorized by Congress for Covid-19 relief. And this lack of transparency could hinder its abilities to get more money to fight pandemics and buy medications, STAT’s Rachel Cohrs writes. Three dozen Republican senators are already refusing further Covid-19 relief funding until the federal government outlines exactly how the money has been spent. This could be trouble for the Biden administration: Officials already noted that Covid-19 response funds have nearly run out, and that they need $22.5 billion more for future treatments, vaccines, and tests. Read more. | How continuous glucose monitors are transforming diabetes care Continuous glucose monitoring, or CGM, is transforming diabetes care. Where a diagnosis once meant a lifetime of finger pricking and injections, these devices now help achieve less invasive monitoring and treatment for the millions of Americans living with diabetes. With prescriptions of CGMs increasing, the question remains – can these devices become the standard of care? Our latest report looks to answer this question, analyzing our best intelligence on the burgeoning industry of CGM, and examining where the industry is likely to head next. | Adverse cancer therapy effects more likely in women It’s long been observed that women are more likely to experience severe side effects to chemotherapy. That trend, it turns out, continues with newer cancer drugs: Women are 49% more likely to have serious adverse events linked to immunotherapies, a new study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology shows. This stems partly from the fact that sex differences aren’t necessarily kept in mind when cancer drugs are developed. “The majority of single-cell studies that are happening right now in 2022 are male single-cell studies,” one researcher at Dana-Farber told STAT. The sex differences run deep: Most cell lines and animal models for the preclinical study of cancer drugs have XY chromosomes as opposed to XX. And more than 70% of Phase 1 trial participants are men. Read more. | CSO of Turning Point resigns, stock dips Siegfried Reich, chief scientific officer of Turning Point Therapeutics, has resigned — with shares for the cancer drug developer dropping nearly 10% on the news. Reich, who has been with Turning Point since March 2020, notified the company of his decision Feb. 28, and the news was posted in an SEC filing Friday. Reich’s departure comes abruptly compared to the resignation of the company’s founding CSO, Jean Cui. She at least got a transition period, and a press release. San Diego-based Turning Point was founded in 2013, and has a number of small molecule oral drugs in clinical trials for lung cancer and other advanced solid tumor diseases. Before his two-year stint at Turning Point, Reich helped develop 25 different drug candidates for various companies, including two approved drugs — HIV medication Viracept and chemotherapy agent axitinib. | More reads - An international treaty is needed to prevent countries from banning exports of medical products, experts urge. (STAT)
- Companies bet you’re ready to test at home for more than Covid-19. (Wall Street Journal)
| Thanks for reading! Until tomorrow,  | | | |
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