Curated news and analysis on clinical trials, drug approvals, and medical research.
Forge Biologics has partnered with Restore Vision to manufacture RV-001, a gene therapy for retinitis pigmentosa in Phase 1/2 trials in Japan. Forge also announced seven presentations at the ASGCT 29th Annual Meeting, highlighting process innovation and late-phase manufacturing capabilities. The company's CTO further discussed industrial-scale AAV gene therapy on The Genetics Podcast.
President Trump said Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan told him the drugmaker is building 11 U.S. plants due to tariff policies. Novartis confirmed progress on facilities in North Carolina, California, and Florida. Narasimhan also said he has no plans to step down as CEO.
BioNTech reported a Q1 2026 net loss of $622.3 million as revenue declined to $138.0 million and R&D spending rose to $651.6 million. The company expanded its oncology pipeline with five new pivotal trials for pumitamig and announced manufacturing site exits to save $584.9 million annually by 2029.
Novartis posted Q2 2026 earnings above expectations but a 50% drop in Entresto sales from U.S. generics hurt performance. The company highlighted new EU and Japan approvals for Rhapsido and Itvisma, and a manufacturing restructuring including a German plant closure and investment in radioligand production. A $1.8 billion peptide drug pact with Unnatural Products was also announced.
Two fast-track housing projects in Queenstown aim to address acute shortages: a 2,800-home lakeside suburb has been approved, while a gondola and 1,300-unit plan faces local backlash over infrastructure and consultation concerns.
New Mexico lawmakers have launched a bipartisan investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's Zorro Ranch, examining potential sex trafficking and official corruption. The commission has subpoena power and a $2 million budget, and survivors have indicated abuse occurred at the ranch.
Roche's giredestrant plus palbociclib missed its primary endpoint in a phase 3 breast cancer trial. Numerical improvement was seen without statistical significance. Shares fell sharply; a second readout is due in 2027.
UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center installs MRI-LINAC, enabling real-time tumor tracking and adaptive radiation therapy. The system has treated 10 patients and improves precision, reducing damage to healthy tissue.
Crispr Therapeutics AG trades at $47.78 with a $4.78B market cap, while Moderna trades at $61.82 with a $25.06B market cap, about 5.2 times larger. Both face losses, but CRISPR's Casgevy approval and Moderna's pipeline advances shape divergent analyst outlooks.
Four women face drug-related charges after traffic stops in four states, with seizures of meth, cocaine, prescription drugs, and fake IDs. Charges range from possession to drug sales and identity fraud.
New studies link GLP-1 drugs to eating disorders, erectile dysfunction and relationship changes, while Deloitte reports the drugs' market boom has lifted pharma R&D returns but created a concentration risk.
A retrospective study found comparable corticosteroid-free remission with upadacitinib and risankizumab in anti-TNF-exposed Crohn’s patients. Upadacitinib showed higher endoscopic remission at week 52 but more adverse events. Both JAK and IL-23 inhibitors are shaping the growing IBD treatment market.
FDA approved zenocutuzumab-zbco (Bizengri) for NRG1 fusion-positive cholangiocarcinoma on May 8, 2026. The eNRGy trial showed a 36.8% ORR. It also received priority review, breakthrough, and orphan designations.
U.S. hospitals face a 461% increase in NDM-gene CRE infections, while European data show high antibiotic resistance in foodborne bacteria like Salmonella and Campylobacter, with ciprofloxacin no longer effective for Campylobacter.
Phase III trial dropout rates have doubled and protocol deviations rose 184%, underscoring patient recruitment and retention as key derisking levers. The recruitment services market is projected to reach $5.69 billion by 2030.
Nuvation Bio reported updated Phase 2 data for safusidenib in IDH1-mutant glioma with a 52% ORR and 79% 36-month PFS rate. The company is expanding its clinical program with two new studies and expanding the SIGMA trial to a pivotal Phase 3, aiming to address broader patient populations.
The FDA approved Orca-T (Tregzi) for matched donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in adults with hematologic malignancies. Phase 3 Precision-T data showed reduced graft-versus-host disease across leukemia and MDS populations, with experts calling it a 'big advance' requiring further comparison with post-transplant cyclophosphamide.
The FDA has cleared Telomir Pharmaceuticals' IND for Telomir-Zn in advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. The company plans to initiate a first-in-human Phase 1/2 trial in the first half of 2026.
A review highlights that stromal cell metabolism in the tumor microenvironment dominates immune suppression. Cancer-associated fibroblasts and adipocytes release metabolites that impair antitumor immunity while favoring tumor-promoting immune cells. Targeting these metabolic networks could restore immune function and boost immunotherapy efficacy.
Kura Oncology's ziftomenib shows 96% complete response in frontline AML and $5.8M in early commercial sales; updated FIT-001 trial data for kidney cancer to be presented at 2026 summit; analysts see significant upside with an average target of $32.45.
