Global French mid-cap Ipsen has signed an agreement to acquire US-based oncology specialist Epizyme, with its lymphoma drug, Tazverik, for USD 247 million to bolster its growing oncology presence. Ipsen recently announced that the deal with Epizyme’s will focus on Tazverik (tazemetostat), a first-in-class EZH2a inhibitor approved in the U.S. in…

Switzerland After a Moderna-Lonza production site and a Merck manufacturing facility were set up in western Switzerland, the country continues to attract big pharma capital with a CHF 200 million investment from Takeda. “Switzerland is a globally recognized hotspot for biopharma companies. As such, it naturally attracts investments. Our role is…

Europe In Europe, patient access to Orphan Medicinal Products (OMP) for the treatment of rare diseases remains inequitable. With the common goal of ensuring broader and faster access to OMPs across Europe, EURORDIS and EFPIA have joined forces to propose a series of solutions. According to a 2020 study, fragmentation of…

Global David H. Crean, Managing General Partner for Equitos Venture Partners and Cardiff Advisory, highlights news from the recent BIO Convention held face-to-face in San Diego, CA for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. After more than two years, the 2022 BIO International Convention (BIO2022) was back…

Brazil The latest from Brazilian Pharma, including the approval of home grown cannabis for medical use, Cellera Farma’s partnership with Ferring, a considerable increase in demand for oncology drugs, and a dire diabetes prediction.   Brazil court approves home grown cannabis for medical use (ABC News) A top court in Brazil…

United Kingdom US biotech Moderna – producer of a messenger RNA (mRNA) COVID-19 vaccine that has found its way into 75 million arms in the US alone and generated USD 12 billion in profit for the firm last year – has announced a new GBP one billion investment into a UK manufacturing…

USA As of July 1st, long-term Merck alumni, Chirfi Guindo, will be returning to the company to lead Human Health Marketing as chief marketing officer for Merck Human Health and will join the Merck Executive Team after almost 5 years at Biogen. Before the parenthesis at Biogen, where he served as…

Italy In recent years, since the adoption of a law assuring its citizens’ right to access palliative care, Italy has given increased attention to pain management. According to Aldo Sterpone, Italy General Manager at Grünenthal, a company especially focused on the area of pain, there is still a lot of work…

USA After US life expectancy fell for a second consecutive year, FDA Commissioner, Dr Robert M. Califf, speaking at the recent 2022 Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO22) International Convention, discussed what he believes to be the leading cause of death in the United States. Commissioner Califf stated during a fireside chat at…

USA At its recent convention, the first live one in 3 years, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) announced the Executive Committee directors for the 2022-2023 term, elected during the event that brought together global thought leaders for 4 days of interactive sessions. This is a critical time for our industry. Our…

Americas Collaboration, convergence, and other best practices have been at the center of discussions related to the regulatory environment in Latin America and the Caribbean, including DIA’s Latin America Regulatory Conference (LARC) 2022, where voices from global regulators, regional and international organizations, industry, and academia discussed the strategies supporting current practices and…

Singapore The latest healthcare and pharma news from Singapore, including the partnership between Boehringer Ingelheim and A*STAR for targeted cancer therapies, Amgen’s sponsorship of biotech incubator, NSG BioLabs, and Tessa Therapeutics’ USD 126 million funding round.   Boehringer Ingelheim / A*STAR partner on targeted cancer therapies (BioSpectrum Asia) Boehringer Ingelheim and…