This week in the pharmaceutical industry, there have been several important developments that may impact patients, healthcare providers, and drug companies. Here\u2019s a breakdown of the key news in simple terms. <\/p>\n
**1. New Cancer<\/a> Treatment Shows Promise in Clinical Trials** **2. How Companies Are Navigating Rising Costs in China\u2019s Biotech Market** **3. Takeda Ordered to Pay $885 Million in Antitrust Case** **4. New Approvals Expand Use of Breast Cancer Drug Enhertu** **5. Alzheimer<\/a>\u2019s Drug Leqembi Shows Strong Sales Growth** **6. Rare Disease Drug Tavneos Resumes Patient Use in Japan with Updated Label** **Other Notable Updates:** This week in the pharmaceutical industry, there have been several important developments that may impact patients, healthcare providers, and drug […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pharmaceutical-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3211"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3211\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3218,"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3211\/revisions\/3218"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allesleypharmacy.co.uk\/pharmacy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nA new cancer drug combination called sac-TMT, developed by Merck & Co. and Kelun-Biotech, has shown strong results in three major clinical trials. In one trial involving patients with a type of lung cancer, adding sac-TMT to an existing treatment called Keytruda reduced the risk of cancer progression or death by 65% compared to Keytruda alone. Another trial in patients with endometrial cancer found that sac-TMT improved progression-free survival and overall survival when compared to chemotherapy. A third trial in patients with triple-negative breast cancer also showed promising results, with sac-TMT improving progression-free survival. These findings suggest that sac-TMT could be a more effective option for these types of cancers. <\/p>\n
\nAs the cost of licensing biotech products in China rises, companies are turning to new strategies to stay competitive. Experts suggest that having local teams on the ground, conducting thorough due diligence, and using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze data can help companies make smarter deals. This approach is becoming increasingly important as China\u2019s biotech industry grows rapidly. <\/p>\n
\nA federal jury in Boston has ruled that Takeda Pharmaceuticals conspired with a competitor to delay the release of a generic version of its constipation drug, Amitiza. As a result, Takeda has been ordered to pay $885 million in damages, which could increase to over $2.6 billion once finalized under antitrust laws. This case highlights the legal risks drug companies face when engaging in anti-competitive practices. <\/p>\n
\nThe FDA<\/a> has approved the use of Enhertu, a drug developed by Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca, for earlier stages of breast cancer. This means Enhertu can now be used both before surgery (neoadjuvant) and after surgery (adjuvant) to treat HER2-positive breast cancer. However, patients who already received Enhertu before surgery cannot continue using it afterward. <\/p>\n
\nEisai\u2019s Alzheimer\u2019s drug, Leqembi, has generated $555 million in sales in Japan for the fiscal year 2025. The company expects sales to grow to $905 million in the next fiscal year, driven by increased use of blood-based tests and more convenient treatment options. Leqembi is designed to target the underlying cause of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. <\/p>\n
\nAmgen\u2019s partner Kissei Pharmaceutical temporarily stopped new patient starts of Tavneos, a drug used to treat a rare disease, after reports of serious liver injuries in Japan. The drug\u2019s label has now been updated to include stricter safety guidelines, and doctors can resume prescribing it. This follows similar concerns about liver safety in the U.S. and Europe. <\/p>\n
\n– Novartis has ended a contract with a Chinese manufacturing company and may seek up to $64 million in legal claims.
\n– Gilead has signed a $140 million deal with a Korean manufacturer to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).
\n– A company called Vincentage has reported that its oral weight-loss drug led to a 12.4% reduction in body weight in a clinical trial, positioning it to compete with similar drugs from Lilly.
\n– Two investment firms, GHO Capital and CBC Group, plan to merge to create a $21 billion healthcare investment company.
\n– Roche has signed a licensing agreement to allow the production of generic versions of its flu drug, Xofluza, in 129 countries.
\n– A court has ruled that generic versions of a kidney<\/a> drug can enter the market despite patent challenges by Otsuka.
\n– A court in Singapore has maintained an injunction against KBP while a fraud case involving Novo Nordisk plays out in arbitration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"