BREAKING: Just hours before America's biggest cancer conference kicks off, a small biotech called Summit Therapeutics, Inc. made waves with new late-stage results. Summit's cancer drug beat Merck's flagship immunotherapy Keytruda in a Phase 3 lung cancer study conducted in China. That led to a multibillion-dollar stock move, with Summit gaining over $5 billion in market value on Thursday, while Merck's shares dropped just over 1%. It will also re-open contentious questions about the willingness of FDA regulators and US oncologists to rely on China-based clinical results. The success also boosts the chances of a rare repeat success in biotech for CEO Bob Duggan, who previously ran Pharmacyclics, an AbbVie Company, before selling it in 2015 for $21 billion and becoming a billionaire. My latest for Endpoints News:
Something seems off. 1. China only. 2. No actual numbers released, just a bold statement. 3. Leadership gives off snake oil vibes. 4. The website seems more interested in the stock price then pipeline.
More information about Duggan and that whole Pharmacyclics saga here.... https://www.sickeconomics.com/2024/04/15/for-blood-and-money-biotech-book-review/
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I would not rely on those results
Do it for Damien go Bob go!
Tanya Aneichyk
4mo
"For blood and money" is about to get a sequel, Nathan Vardi ?
Enzo P.
4mo
🌊
Nice results!
Founder, Solt DB | Exploring the business of biotech
4moThe FDA has made it pretty clear it will not allow single-country clinical trial results when patient populations don't reflect the US population. There's also no overall survival (OS) data yet, which is what the FDA would care about. Also keep in mind there are subcutaneous PD-1 / PD-L1 versions of Keytruda, Opdivo, Tecentriq, et al coming soon. The convenience advantage will likely help outcompete marginal improvements in survival from emerging assets. Pretty ballsy move to even attempt a head-to-head study against Keytruda though.