Gilead to lay off staff at cell therapy unit Kite
Dive Brief: Gilead Sciences is laying off about 7% of employees at cell therapy unit Kite Pharma in a restructuring it said is meant to better align the division’s organization with areas of future growth. About 90 new positions will…
Cigna, Humana in talks to merge: WSJ
Dive Brief: Cigna and Humana are in talks to merge, according to the Wall Street Journal. The two health insurers are discussing a stock-and-cash deal that could be finalized by the end of this year, WSJ reported on Wednesday, citing sources…
FDA investigating cancer risk linked to CAR-T cell therapy
The Food and Drug Adminsitration is investigating whether CAR-T cell therapies like Novartis’ Kymriah or Gilead’s Yescarta are linked to the risk of new blood cancers after receiving reports of so-called T cell malignancies in people who have received the…
Bristol Myers pours $100M into RNA drugs for cardiovascular diseases
Bristol Myers Squibb has agreed to spend at least $100 million to expand a partnership aimed at creating RNA-based medicines for cardiovascular diseases. The deal, announced Tuesday, shows Bristol Myers is willing to bet more on drugmaking technology developed by…
GSK cancer drug Blenrep gets surprise trial win
Dive Brief: GSK on Monday said its drug Blenrep outperformed Johnson & Johnson’s Darzalex in a clinical trial of people with the blood cancer multiple myeloma, potentially cracking open the door to Blenrep’s relaunch one year after the company pulled…
Novo to expand French plant in GLP-1 production push
Dive Brief: Novo Nordisk on Thursday said it will invest more than 16 billion Danish kroner, or about $2.3 billion, to expand a drug production site in Chartres, France, as it works to keep up with demand for medicines like…
AstraZeneca creates digital health unit, with big-name partnerships already in place
Dive Brief: AstraZeneca’s new health-tech business, Evinova, launched Monday, with several big-name partnerships already in place and a goal to “better meet the needs of healthcare professionals, regulators and patients.” Evinova’s main focus will be helping to optimize clinical trials…
Bristol Myers faces FDA delay on cancer cell therapy decision
Dive Brief: The Food and Drug Administration plans to hold an advisory panel review of Bristol Myers Squibb and 2seventy bio’s application for an expanded approval of their multiple myeloma cancer therapy Abecma, the partner companies said Monday. As a…
Bayer ends large blood thinner trial for ‘inferior efficacy’
Bayer is stopping a large clinical trial testing its experimental blood thinner asundexian in people with irregular heartbeats because it didn’t work as well as Bristol Myers Squibb’s Eliquis, the company said Monday. Shares in the German drugmaker fell by…
Medtronic CEO downplays impact of obesity drugs on procedures, devices
By the numbers FY2024 Q2 revenue: $7.98 billion 5.3% year-over-year growth Medical Surgical revenue: $2.14 billion 7% year-over-year growth Diabetes revenue: $610 million 9.7% year-over-year growth Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha on Tuesday became the latest medtech executive…