After decades of failures laid waste to R&D outfits looking to solve the KRAS G12C puzzle, Amgen is as close as anyone ever has been to an approval with sotorasib. For Amgen R&D head David Reese, the drug’s looming review date is a point of reflection for his own career and a big milestone for Amgen’s blooming — if controversial — next-gen oncology pipeline.

Amgen filed its FDA application for sotorasib in December to treat metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with the KRAS mutation — once thought to be “undruggable” — months after the agency offered its breakthrough designation based on pivotal Phase I data showing previously unheard of response rates.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

Looking to make a comeback after a big Phase III flop, Sage Therapeutics revealed data they believe could change the entire depression treatment landscape, given the vast array of failures in the field. But some results are spooking investors, sending Sage $SAGE shares down early Tuesday.

First, the primary: Sage and Biogen reported Phase III data for once-daily zuranolone Tuesday morning, saying the experimental drug hit its primary endpoint by spurring a statistically significant change from baseline in the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression total score. After 15 days, patients in the drug arm saw an average change of -14.1 points, compared to -12.3 on placebo.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

That $800 million buyout of Nightstar has turned into a bust for Biogen as the lead therapy in the deal failed a pivotal study, signaling a severe setback for the biotech’s ambitions in gene therapies.

The big biotech put out the word after the market closed on Monday that the gene therapy they picked up in the deal for a degenerative blindness called choroideremia failed the Phase III study, just a month after their #2 drug in the deal also flopped in a mid-stage study.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

It felt natural for Alain Maiore and Sebastian Amigorena to bring in Michel Sadelain as a co-founder of Mnemo Therapeutics. A CAR-T pioneer, Sadelain had been involved as an advisor since the early days — enthusiastic about Amigorena’s work in a genetic knockout that could enhance T cell memory and a new class of potential targets he’s discovered — and could introduce some well-known technologies to the toolbox. So they got the initial cash from Sofinnova Partners to plant roots in Paris and New York in early 2019; within a few months, they began to see more clearly just what the antigen discovery platform might unlock.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

That revolving door between the FDA and industry is spinning even faster than usual.

Former FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn is joining Flagship Pioneering, the venture outfit that founded Moderna — which raced its way to an FDA EUA for a Covid-19 vaccine that is making billions of dollars– as the new CMO of its Preemptive Medicine and Health Security initiative.

Flagship confirmed the hire — first reported in The Washington Post — in a statement out late Monday.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

Moderna is turning to one of its Covid-19 vaccine competitors to fill its open CMO slot, but this time, it’s not the vaccine experience they’re after.

Paul Burton, who’s spent 16 years at J&J, most recently as chief global medical affairs officer of Janssen, will take over as Moderna CMO on July 6.

With an eye toward a future beyond the pandemic, the mRNA biotech went with Burton, who earned his MD and PhD degrees in London, as he offers experience on a range of therapeutic areas, as well as work as a cardiothoracic surgeon and leading tech projects with Apple.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN

After repeatedly poking Vertex $VRTX execs with pointed criticism of their R&D strategy, top SVB Leerink analyst Geoffrey Porges is now turning up the heat to a full-scale roasting.

In a note out early Monday morning, Porges spotlights the impact of Vertex’s recent follow-up failure on AATD — their treatment hit the endpoint but missed on commercial prospects — rewriting his recommended scenario for CEO Reshma Kewalramani as she grapples with the setback.

Keep reading Endpoints with a free subscription

Unlock this story instantly and join 109,500+ biopharma pros reading Endpoints daily — and it's free.

SIGN UP LOG IN