| | | |   | Good day. It's Meghana, here with an interesting update on the experimental Alzheimer's drug, lecanemab: A possible death linked to the drug might hamper its market potential. We also look at how fludarabine, a conditioning agent for bone marrow transplant, is being sold at a premium, now that it's back in stock. | | | Death of patient in lecanemab trial raises concern Although Eisai and Biogen’s experimental Alzheimer’s drug, lecanemab, was shown recently to slow cognitive decline, it may have contributed to the death of a patient, STAT's Jason Mast reports. The death, which was in May, was caused in part by bleeding in the brain. An investigator believes it was linked to lecanemab, documents obtained by STAT show. Eisai instead highlighted other possible factors, including a number of recent incidents — falls, a heart attack, a respiratory infection, and mini-stroke-like events. Still, the death illustrates how lecanemab carries a significant risk of swelling and bleeding in the brain, particularly among patients on blood thinners. The patient who died took Eliquis for atrial fibrillation. More than 8 million Americans take these drugs for similar reasons. “It is a tough issue, because so many older adults are on anticoagulants, and if that means they can’t take these medications, that’s going to be a big deal,” one of the trial investigators told STAT. Read more. | Can Covid denialism get you elected? How is the music business like biotech investing? And what’s at stake for science in the midterms? We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. Our colleague Sarah Owermohle joins us to discuss how pandemic shutdowns, Covid-19 vaccines, and the prospect of arresting Anthony Fauci have become campaign rallying cries in midterm elections. We also discuss the latest news in the life sciences, including the potential effects of federal drug-price negotiation and the virtues of befriending Pharrell Williams. Listen here. | As biopharma moves past the pandemic, overcoming industry challenges remains a top priority Covid-19 has pushed biopharma to embrace innovations that are creating the next wave of lifesaving diagnostics, vaccines, and therapies. Based on a recent survey of industry leaders, Cytiva’s Global Biopharma Resilience Index helps shed light on both the exciting future that lies ahead for medicine as well as the ongoing challenges that have to be addressed along the way, such as sourcing talent, collaborating with regulatory bodies, and ensuring a robust supply chain. Here’s what biopharma executives and healthcare policy makers told us about what to expect next. | A rosy Gilead outlook, despite poor Covid drug sales Although sales of the widely used Covid-19 medication remdesivir dropped 52% in the third quarter, Gilead Sciences saw its stock rise in after-hour trading. That’s because sales still managed to outpace analyst expectations, MarketWatch writes — with sales of Gilead's HIV products growing in particular. The company is also seeing an increased demand for its cell therapies, and its antibody-based cancer drug Trodelvy. Gilead raised its sales and profit outlook for the whole year — expecting product sales between $25.9 billion and $26.2 billion, up from a projection of $24.5 billion and $25 billion. The company’s experimental HIV prophylactic and treatment, lenacapavir, is also raising investor interest in the company. “At current levels, we see Gilead’s HIV business alone supporting the stock’s entire market capp,” one J.P. Morgan analyst said. “And with an oncology franchise that we forecast to reach [about] $5 billion in sales by 2030 as well as potential upside to lenacapavir estimates over time, we see shares as clearly undervalued at current levels.” | The skyrocketing cost of a much-needed cancer drug An old but essential cancer drug is back on the market after a series of shortages — but one manufacturer is now selling it for 10 to 20 times the amount sold by other companies. Areva Pharmaceuticals is now selling vials of the chemotherapy fludarabine at a wholesale price of $2,738. By contrast, Fresenius Kabi charges $272 and Teva Pharmaceuticals charges $109 for the same quantity of the drug. Hospitals around the country have struggled to obtain a consistent supply of the life-saving drug, which is used to prepare leukemia patients for bone marrow transplant. It’s also vital in prepping patients for CAR-T therapy — which has made shortages particularly difficult. “This is a small, niche drug. It’s not something you’ll see [advertised] on a nightly news commercial,” one MD Anderson oncologist told STAT's Ed Silverman. “But it’s a critical, life-saving drug, one that our patients desperately need.” Read more. | More reads - McKinsey reaches deal with U.S. local governments over opioids, Reuters
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- Roche's Vabysmo matches Regeneron's Eylea in macular edema, BioSpace
| Thanks for reading! Until tomorrow,  | | | |
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