| | | |   | Meghana here. We discuss how to reduce research funding bureaucracy, learn about the underpinnings of blood cancer, and look ahead with Guardant Health. | | | Guardant Health discusses its path forward A lot is on the horizon this year for Guardant Health, the liquid biopsy company’s co-CEOs tell STAT in a wide-ranging interview. Guardant will have a readout in a few months of a 10,000-patient study, screening them with Guardant SHIELD — a blood cancer test meant to detect colorectal cancer among the general population. The test is ideally meant to serve as a substitute for a colonoscopy. Guardant plans to use the data in a forthcoming submission to the FDA. Speaking with STAT's Jonathan Wosen, the CEOs discuss sensitivity, specificity, and other deets as they apply to liquid biopsy for multi-cancer screening. They did not, however, address the fact that they are being sued by Illumina for absconding with trade secrets while working at the genomics giant. Read more. | Studying the origins of multiple myeloma There hasn’t been a reliable way to screen for blood cancers like multiple myeloma. However, researchers have learned that a precursor condition called MGUS — or monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance — can lead to myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. They are studying MGUS, which leads to a buildup, over many years, of identical antibodies that are mass-produced by immune cells. MGUS is asymptomatic, and only a small fraction of people with the condition end up developing blood cancers. But for the people who do develop malignancies, early insight about MGUS can make a big difference. While treating the condition in most patients would be excessive, for some people, it could delay cancer progression or avoid it entirely. “We might try and identify novel targets that are present in MGUS or smoldering myeloma cells that aren’t on normal cells,” one researcher said. “If we can do that, it opens the door to cancer vaccines, antibodies, and CAR-T therapy for those early cells.” Read more. | The power of perseverance in neuroscience For decades, conditions of the nervous system have been some of the most complex to understand and treat. Through scientific rigor and unwavering perseverance, one biotech company is asking the tough questions of themselves, the industry and society to push the boundaries of scientific understanding and discovery. Learn more about Genentech and Roche’s commitment to scientific advancement in neuroscience. | A nonprofit to optimize government research dollars Getting government funding for science is a clunky, bureaucratic process. A new nonprofit called the Good Science Project will analyze research funding agencies’ performance, spotlighting barriers to effectively disseminating the billions of dollars earmarked for scientific study. The group’s funding comes almost entirely from tech billionaire Patrick Collison. “Clearly, you have to have some level of bureaucracy to ensure that we’re spending the money correctly, that it’s not being wasted or embezzled,” the group's executive director, Stuart Buck, told STAT. “But it doesn’t have to be 44% of scientists’ time.” Read more. | Covid-19 drove up the 2021 health spend U.S. spending on drugs was at a record high in 2021, thanks to the influx of Covid-19 vaccines and therapies. The overall spend was $407 billion, up by 12% from 2020, according to a new report from IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science, which conducted the analysis. Notably, patients paid a cumulative $79 billion in out-of-pocket costs — $4 billion more than the year before, and the highest since 2018 after two years of declining costs. “We’re not in a very different situation from where we were five years ago except for the intensified, competitive market dynamics,” IQVIA’s Murray Aitken said. “But there are no major changes from a major legislative or policy perspective.” Read more. | Can buyouts be bad news? Why can't Novavax meet a deadline? And what does "breakthrough" actually mean? We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. First, we delve into why the latest big biotech acquisition has ominous implications for the downtrodden sector. Then, STAT's Mario Aguilar joins us to explain how a well-intentioned FDA program is benefiting companies over patients. We also discuss the latest pandemic news, including the ongoing debate over boosters and yet another delay for Novavax. Listen here. | More reads - A puzzling phenomenon: Patients report a rebound of Covid-19 symptoms after taking the antiviral Paxlovid. (Boston Globe)
- Genentech-led team uncovers how cancer cells resist T cell attack in potential boon to immunotherapy. (FierceBiotech)
| Thanks for reading! Until next week,  | | | |
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