News

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a new small molecule drug for patients with small cell lung cancer who are set to receive chemotherapy but may be at risk of damage to their bone marrow. Cosela (trilaciclib) is to be administered before chemotherapy in order to preserve bone marrow and immune system function.

The World Health Organization has granted an emergency use authorization to the Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca Plc and Oxford University making it eligible for distribution in up to 145 low and middle-income countries. Distribution will take place through Covax (Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access), a global vaccine project being led by the Gavi public-private partnership, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the WHO.

Bluebird bio Inc announced on 16 February the temporary suspension of two gene therapy trials following reports of two cases of cancer. The trials were being conducted in support of a prospective gene therapy for sickle cell disease. The company is investigating the cause of the cancers in order to determine if there is any relationship with the lentiviral vector used in the studies.

A spin-out from the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands has raised seed funding to discover and develop new T cell therapies for solid tumours including triple negative breast cancer. The company, Pan Cancer T BV, will be investigating T cell therapies which have been equipped with new receptors enabling them to target specific cancer antigens. The group of therapies is known as T cell receptor (TCR) T cells.

AstraZeneca Plc is expecting total revenue, at constant exchange rates, to increase by a low-teen percentage this year, on the back of continued demand for its drugs for cancer, respiratory and metabolic diseases. However the forecast doesn’t incorporate any revenue or profit projections from the roll-out of its Covid-19 vaccine, developed jointly with Oxford University, nor its proposed acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc, a US specialty pharma company.

Novo Nordisk A/S reported a 4% rise in net sales to DKK 126.9 billion (€17.06 billion) in 2020 as demand for its glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs for diabetes accelerated while sales of traditional insulins declined. Operating profit was DKK 54 billion, up by 3%, giving an operating margin of 42.6%, one of the highest in the industry.

A company with technology for microRNA compounds has raised €18.5 million in a Series B financing round to advance a product for patients with advanced solid tumours. The company, InteRNA Technologies, is based in the Netherlands. Leading the funding round was AurorA Science, a biotech investment group based in Milan, Italy. As part of the funding, Gabriele Campi of AurorA will join the Dutch company’s board of directors.

London-based Abingworth LLP has raised $465 million from its limited partners for a new life sciences fund which will target companies with innovative therapies in the UK, Europe, and across the Atlantic in the US. The fund, ABV 8, exceeded its target size of $375 million and attracted several new investors including, British Patient Capital, a commercial subsidiary of British Business Bank Plc.

Sanofi SA reported a 0.2% decline in sales to €36.04 billion in 2020 as gains for specialty care medicines and vaccines were largely offset by a drop in sales for general medicines and consumer healthcare products. However operating profit more than trebled to €14 billion from €3 billion. This reflected gains from the sale of shares in Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc, Sanofi’s long-time development partner. In addition, an impairment charge taken in 2019 for a haemophilia product wasn’t repeated last year.

H. Lundbeck A/S ended 2020 with revenue of  DKK 17.7 billion (€2.4 billion), up by 4% from a year earlier on the back of double-digit sales increases for four of its medicines for brain diseases. The 2020 revenue figure also includes DKK 93 million from sales of Vyepti, a new product for the prevention of chronic migraine. Vyepti was launched in the US in April.