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Hello all. Right now we’re speaking about enhancing the worldwide attain of gene therapies, and about why providing entry to ancestral populations could possibly be so highly effective. We see in a KFF survey {that a} majority of Individuals need weight problems medicine to be coated by Medicare, provide up a cool new podcast, and extra.
The necessity-to-know this morning
- Sanofi reached a licensing deal to promote Novavax’s Covid shot going ahead in addition to to attempt to mix the vaccine with Sanofi’s personal flu shot. The pact features a $500 million upfront fee, with as much as $700 million in future funds if regulatory and launch milestones are achieved.
- Maze Therapeutics and the Japanese drugmaker Shionogi introduced a worldwide licensing deal for Maze’s experimental therapy for Pompe illness. The transaction, which features a $150 million fee from Shionogi to Maze, was accomplished months after a Sanofi partnership for a similar Maze drug was terminated because of opposition from U.S. antitrust regulators.
Enhancing international entry to gene therapies
Gene therapies may be potent, however they’re actually solely out there to a slim slice of the worldwide populace. Some scientists are taking a look at methods to broaden entry around the globe to those expensive therapies; earlier this week, a Science Translational Medicine editorial outlined the challenges to creating all of it occur.
STAT’s Jason Mast chatted with co-author Jennifer Adair, who’s creating scalable, low-cost gene therapies at Fred Hutchinson Most cancers Heart and helped discovered the World Gene Remedy Initiative.
Adair emphasised that contemplating genetic variety, and concentrating on ancestral populations in locations like Africa, is vital to creating potent — and accessible — gene therapies.
“Gene remedy not solely can do higher and may do higher — our complete discipline is predicated on the genetics of people and leveraging that for human well being,” she mentioned. “And if you wish to make a drug that works, that’s primarily based on genetics, it should be contemplating probably the most ancestral inhabitants. So we now have an obligation to do higher and do it higher in a short time.”
Learn extra.
The general public desires Medicare to cowl weight problems medicine
From Elaine Chen: Medicare is at the moment barred from protecting medicine for weight losses functions, however a majority of the general public thinks that ought to change, in accordance with a new poll by well being coverage analysis group KFF.
Roughly 61% of adults say they assume Medicare ought to cowl these medicines, together with 66% of Democrats and 55% of Republicans, in accordance with the ballot, which was carried out in late April and surveyed 1,479 adults.
Novo Nordisk’s weight problems drug Wegovy was just lately permitted to stop cardiovascular issues, so Medicare can cowl the drug for that utilization, however nonetheless not for weight reduction functions. Legislators have proposed a invoice that will permit Medicare to cowl therapies for weight reduction, however it’s stalling in Congress, partly as a result of excessive anticipated price to the federal government.
The ballot additionally discovered that GLP-1s for diabetes and weight problems are broadly used. About 12% of adults, or one in eight, say they’ve taken a GLP-1 drug at one time limit, together with 6% who say they’re at the moment taking one. Extra particularly 43% of adults who’ve been advised by a health care provider that they’ve diabetes report having taken these medicine, whereas the proportion for adults who’ve been advised they’re obese or overweight is smaller, at 22%.
Every part it’s essential to learn about H5N1 chicken flu
What occurs when a standard virus jumps from birds to cows? And will we be involved?
This week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT senior infectious ailments reporter Helen Branswell walks us by ongoing H5N1 outbreak within the U.S. and points with monitoring the unfold. It’s additionally Pulitzer week at “The Readout LOUD”! In a little bit of shameless self-promotion, we’ll speak to our colleagues Bob Herman and Casey Ross about being named Pulitzer finalists in investigative reporting for his or her reporting on United Healthcare’s use of algorithms in protection choices. We’ll hear what’s occurred since their explosive work was printed final 12 months.
Pay attention right here.
Why Actual Sciences’ inventory paradoxically dropped
Shares in Actual Sciences plunged this week, regardless of the corporate having overwhelmed market expectations within the first quarter. That’s as a result of there’s concern that progress could sluggish on the $10 billion firm, STAT’s Jonathan Wosen writes. Actual’s flagship product is Cologuard, a colon most cancers screening take a look at that achieved FDA clearance in 2014. Subsequent 12 months, the corporate expects to launch an up to date model of this take a look at, which exhibits a better sensitivity and specificity.
Whereas colonoscopies stay the extra dependable device to display for colon most cancers, Cologuard is taken into account a helpful runner-up. However liquid biopsy gamers like Guardant Well being are creeping into the equation, and should change the panorama for most cancers screening. Actual Sciences acquired its personal liquid biopsy firm, Thrive, in 2020 for about $2 billion.
Learn extra.
Extra reads
- Cytokinetics set to pitch its coronary heart drug to physicians — and Huge Pharma suitors, STAT
- Merck’s endometrial most cancers remedy fails in trial, Reuters
- Moderna’s first vaccine was an enormous hit. Its second is a let down, Bloomberg
- Novo Nordisk, Flagship’s Metaphone launch weight problems collaboration, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News
