BioMed Nexus

BioMed Nexus

Novartis Has Now Committed $7B+ to a Single Drug Modality Most People Haven't Heard Of

Molecular glues redirect the cell's own machinery to destroy disease proteins. Novartis just signed its fourth deal in the space. The EU is debating biotech patent incentives. A non-viral gene therapy startup raised $125M. Survodutide disappointed on weight loss but impressed on fat composition.

Lilly's $2.3B Ajax Bet Just Got Its First Clinical Validation

The novel JAK2 inhibitor is "working right out of the gate, with a good safety profile." AstraZeneca landed the first targeted prostate cancer approval for PTEN-deficient patients. Kardigan is IPO'ing at $373M for cardiac drugs. EHA is wrapping up. BIO International is next week.

The CDMO Boom Is Getting Uneven. Here's Who Wins and Who Gets Left Behind.

A Pharma Letter analysis shows the outsourced manufacturing surge is concentrating among fewer players. Merck bought a WuXi facility in Ireland. Pharma trade bodies pressed the G7 on innovation. Twelve biotechs have IPO'd this year at a median of $300M. BIO International is in two weeks.

Foundayo Just Beat Semaglutide in Diabetes Trials. Lilly Is Filing for Approval.

Multiple Phase 3 trials showed Foundayo reduced blood sugar more than Novo's semaglutide in type 2 diabetes. Lilly is taking the pill to the FDA. BioSpace says Lilly's $25B+ M&A captures half of pharma's deal capacity. Sanofi stopped a Phase 3. And Hikma is investing $267M in Ohio.

GSK Makes Its Biggest Deal in a Decade with $10.6B Nuvalent Acquisition

Two lung cancer drugs already under FDA review. A 40% premium. The first major deal under new CEO Luke Miels. GSK just went all in on oncology. Incyte added $1.25B. Celcuity doubled PFS but still dropped 25%. ADA is this weekend.

ADC Therapeutics Crashed 50% After a Phase 3 Death Rate Spooked the Market

The ADC safety signal comes as the modality hits its fastest growth period ever. CytomX expanded its Regeneron deal to $4B. The FDA is under fire for not disclosing three CNPV recipients. And Lilly says the one-size-fits-all GLP-1 era is ending.

Parabilis Sets Terms for the Year's Second-Largest Biotech IPO at Up to $475M

The biotech IPO wave keeps rolling. Roche's chairman called U.S. tariffs "blackmail." Alnylam signed an AI deal to accelerate RNAi discovery. Chinese biotechs are no longer selling cheap. ADA and BIO International are this month.

Biotech M&A Hits $106B and Is on Track for Its Best Year Since Before COVID

CNBC: "Buying stuff like it's going out of fashion." The Supreme Court sided with Hikma on Vascepa patents. Lilly's Medicare deal restores Foundayo and Zepbound coverage. And Gilead cut 87% of Arcellx's workforce post-acquisition.

Lilly Signs Its 12th Deal of the Year. BMS Partners with Anthropic.

Ascidian brings RNA exon editing for kidney disease in a $1.9B collaboration. BMS taps Anthropic for AI drug development. Moderna links up on Ebola vaccines. Lilly and Boehringer pulled $1B+ each from Germany. Jefferies conference opens today.

Pfizer and Lilly Both Signed Billion-Dollar China Deals on the Same Day

Pfizer locked in $10.5B with Innovent for 12 cancer programs. Lilly added $3B+ with Haisco for five programs. That's Lilly's 11th deal this year. Combined with BMS/Hengrui, three mega China licensing deals landed in a single month.

ASCO Closes Today. Here's Everything That Mattered Beyond the Plenary.

Bladder cancer got a 55.8% complete response rate with an ADC combo. Lilly's Kelonia justified its $3.2B price tag. Apogee locked in $1.3B from Blackstone. Hengrui presented 90+ studies. And the obesity conference is next.

The ASCO Plenary Changed Three Treatment Standards in a Single Afternoon

Revolution doubled survival in pancreatic cancer and published in the NEJM. A Chinese bispecific beat PD-1 on overall survival in lung cancer. J&J shifted a 125-year prostate cancer paradigm. The FDA granted expanded access to daraxonrasib. Here's all of it.

ASCO Is Open. The Plenary Is Tomorrow. Here's What Else Happened.

40,000 attendees. 7,000 abstracts. Revolution's plenary is tomorrow morning. Lantheus got a $7B take-private offer from Curium. AbbVie landed a rare blood cancer approval. BridgeBio got Priority Review for a muscular dystrophy drug.

Merck's ADC Just Cut Progression Risk by 65% When Added to Keytruda

ASCO abstracts are out. sac-TMT plus Keytruda versus Keytruda alone in first-line lung cancer: 65% lower risk of progression or death. ASCO opens tomorrow. Revolution's plenary is Saturday. The abstracts signal the most data-rich oncology meeting in years.

Lilly Just Bought Three Vaccine Companies in a Single Day for $3.8B

Curevo (shingles), LimmaTech (bacterial AMR), and Vaccine Company (Epstein-Barr virus). That's deals 8, 9, and 10 this year. Total 2026 M&A now exceeds $25B. ASCO opens tomorrow. Revolution's plenary is Saturday.

AstraZeneca's First-in-Class Blood Pressure Drug Could Hit $5B in Peak Sales

Baxfendy is the first new hypertension mechanism in two decades. Mineralys' rival has a December PDUFA. ASCO opens Thursday with Revolution's plenary on Saturday. Plus the device tariff report is overdue.

ASCO Starts Thursday. Here's What the Industry Is Watching.

Revolution Medicines presents full Phase 3 pancreatic cancer data in a plenary session on Saturday. A new ADC was approved for triple-negative breast cancer. Gilead got the first-ever HDV treatment approved. And the EU locked in its supply chain law.

Lilly's Next Obesity Drug Just Matched Bariatric Surgery in a Phase 3 Trial

Retatrutide delivered 28.3% weight loss (70.3 lbs) at 80 weeks. Extension patients lost 30.3% at 104 weeks. Truist projects $12B to $19B in peak sales. Lilly also made its seventh acquisition of the year. ASCO is 9 days out.

The FDA Just Lost Its Drug Chief, Biologics Chief, and Chief of Staff in 72 Hours

Five CDER heads in one year. Fewer than half of senior FDA leaders from six months ago remain. Capital Alpha called it "the most damaging period in FDA history." Relay outpaced Novartis in rare disease. AbbVie locked Rinvoq generics out until 2037.

Merck's ADC Hits Phase 3 in Endometrial Cancer as the Post-Keytruda Build Accelerates

Sacituzumab tirumotecan improved both PFS and OS. Truist projects Revolution Medicines could be approved by September. Regeneron pivots after its LAG-3 miss. The FDA accepted a Factor XIa stroke prevention NDA. And a Trump ethics disclosure involves Lilly stock.

WHO Declares Ebola Emergency. No Vaccine Exists for This Strain.

The Bundibugyo variant has no approved vaccines or therapeutics. 246 suspected cases and 80 deaths in the DRC. It has spread to Uganda. The FDA just lost its interim drug chief too. And Regeneron's oncology pipeline took another hit.

SCOTUS Preserves Mifepristone Access. Enhertu Moves Into Early Breast Cancer.

The Supreme Court maintained mail and telehealth access for mifepristone. The FDA approved Enhertu for early breast cancer with a Natera companion diagnostic. Anthropic partnered with the Gates Foundation. And China just gave itself new power over Western pharma.

The Iran War Is Now Hitting Pharma Supply Chains Directly

Evonik raised prices 15% on pharma inputs. Strait of Hormuz shipping is down 90%. India's API exports are being rerouted at 350% higher air cargo costs. Biotech leaders want Pazdur as the next FDA chief. Gene therapy just got a safety scare.

Makary Is Out. The FDA Has No Permanent Commissioner.

He resigned Tuesday over e-cigarettes. Diamantas is acting. Three Senate-confirmed health positions are now empty. The search is underway. Here's what it means for every filing in the pipeline.

BMS Bets $15.2B on 13 Programs from China's Hengrui

The largest China licensing deal in biopharma. Plus: Google's Isomorphic Labs raised $2.1B for AI drug discovery, UCB deployed $2.2B on autoimmune, and a biotech sold its factory to a CDMO.

BioMed Nexus

Novartis Has Now Committed $7B+ to a Single Drug Modality Most People Haven't Heard Of

Lilly's $2.3B Ajax Bet Just Got Its First Clinical Validation

The CDMO Boom Is Getting Uneven. Here's Who Wins and Who Gets Left Behind.

Foundayo Just Beat Semaglutide in Diabetes Trials. Lilly Is Filing for Approval.

GSK Makes Its Biggest Deal in a Decade with $10.6B Nuvalent Acquisition

ADC Therapeutics Crashed 50% After a Phase 3 Death Rate Spooked the Market

Parabilis Sets Terms for the Year's Second-Largest Biotech IPO at Up to $475M

Biotech M&A Hits $106B and Is on Track for Its Best Year Since Before COVID

Lilly Signs Its 12th Deal of the Year. BMS Partners with Anthropic.

Pfizer and Lilly Both Signed Billion-Dollar China Deals on the Same Day

ASCO Closes Today. Here's Everything That Mattered Beyond the Plenary.

The ASCO Plenary Changed Three Treatment Standards in a Single Afternoon

ASCO Is Open. The Plenary Is Tomorrow. Here's What Else Happened.

Merck's ADC Just Cut Progression Risk by 65% When Added to Keytruda

Lilly Just Bought Three Vaccine Companies in a Single Day for $3.8B

AstraZeneca's First-in-Class Blood Pressure Drug Could Hit $5B in Peak Sales

ASCO Starts Thursday. Here's What the Industry Is Watching.

Lilly's Next Obesity Drug Just Matched Bariatric Surgery in a Phase 3 Trial

The FDA Just Lost Its Drug Chief, Biologics Chief, and Chief of Staff in 72 Hours

Merck's ADC Hits Phase 3 in Endometrial Cancer as the Post-Keytruda Build Accelerates

WHO Declares Ebola Emergency. No Vaccine Exists for This Strain.

SCOTUS Preserves Mifepristone Access. Enhertu Moves Into Early Breast Cancer.

The Iran War Is Now Hitting Pharma Supply Chains Directly

Makary Is Out. The FDA Has No Permanent Commissioner.

BMS Bets $15.2B on 13 Programs from China's Hengrui

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