Life Science Connect Blog

  1. 2015 Blockbusters: What Drugs Will Show Pharma The Money? 2/13/2015

    Last February, there were four drugs pegged by The Motley Fool as potential blockbusters for 2014. Now, The Motley Fool has released two new lists: its contenders for 2015 blockbusters, and a list of those blockbusters that are on their way out as quickly as the video store packed up and left town. Which drugs are expected to be the winners this year?

  2. FDA's "Compassionate Use" Gets Simpler: What Will This Mean For Drug Manufacturers? 2/6/2015

    Since the beginning of the year, there have been a number of stories crossing my desk focusing on patients’ “Right to Try” experimental drugs.  But I’m also curious what this will mean for drug manufacturers who will no doubt be faced with more of these requests in the future.

  3. What “Unboiling” An Egg Can Mean For Cancer Drug Development 1/28/2015

    In a strange and exciting twist, researchers from the University of California, Irvine (UCI) and Flinders University announced this week they have discovered a new way to “unboil” a hen’s egg — a task that could have huge ramifications for the biotech industry as it races to get cancer meds to patients faster.

  4. What Could Senator Warren's “Swear Jar” Bill Mean For Pharma's Image? 1/28/2015

    President Obama’s recent State of the Union speech addressing precision medicine wasn’t the only government initiative to hit headlines recently. Massachusetts’ senator, Elizabeth Warren, recently proposed what she has dubbed the "swear jar" bill, aka the Medical Innovation Act, which would require big, law-breaking drug makers to send 1 percent of each blockbuster’s annual profits to the NIH for research.

  5. The Drug Price War Hits Vaccines: Will Pfizer, GSK Give In To MSF Plea? 1/22/2015

    A new pricing war is afoot — but this time, it doesn’t involve AbbVie or Gilead Science’s HCV treatments. This week, Pfizer and GSK were both met with push-back from Doctors Without Borders (MSF) to reduce the prices of their pneumococcal vaccines to $5 per child (includes all three doses).

  6. So, You Want To Be Top Earning Healthcare CEO? Shoot For Biopharma 1/21/2015

    In 2012, Pfizer’s CEO Ian Read held the title of being the highest-paid CEO of a large pharmaceutical company, bringing roughly $26 million to the bank. His salary was $21 million more than the lowest paid large pharmaceutical CEO, NovoNordisk’s Lars Rebien Soerensen, who earned $5 million, Bloomberg reported in the spring of 2013. However, some more numbers released in June of 2014 are showing that, in 2013, Pfizer’s Read stepped aside and earned less than what several of his CEO peers in the biopharma space are making, even though Pfizer raked in $52 billion in revenue for the year.

  7. The 2015 NSCLC Immunotherapy Race Is Already Narrowing 1/20/2015

    It’s been a productive beginning of the year in the realm of immunotherapy. Recent headlines have boasted news about some major players making waves in immunotherapy — especially in the NSCLC treatment area —  which will not only benefit a large number of patients, but will also give productive players a slice of what’s expected to be a very lucrative market.  

  8. Pharma News Roundup: Amgen, Isis, Janssen, Pfizer, Novartis, And More 1/14/2015

    In recent news, stem cell research is taking the forefront as new collaborations speed up the development of CRISPR immunotherapies; Cempra is moving forward in its development of a next-generation antibiotic; and a new antisense drug could be a game-changer for autoimmune disorders of the GI tract.

  9. “Pharmaficial” Intelligence: Could Science Fiction Become A Pharma Reality? 1/14/2015

    All the buzz about wearable technology and the convergence of Google and pharma this past year has made me think about where technology is carrying our industry.

  10. FDA Launches Pharma Quality Office To Improve Drug Manufacturing, Agency Teamwork 1/14/2015

    We should expect to see even more attention lavished on pharmaceutical quality in 2015. This week, the FDA announced the launch of its long planned-for Office of Pharmaceutical Quality (OPQ).