Biotech Strategy Blog

Commentary on Science, Innovation & New Products

Problems with Alpharadin ASCO SRE data?

By on June 15, 2012

ASCO 2012 Alpharadin Sartor Poster Time to First SRE 300x163 Problems with Alpharadin ASCO SRE data?

At the 2012 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting, data was presented by Dr Oliver Sartor (ASCO 2012 Abstract 4551) that showed radium-223 (Alpharadin) significantly delayed time to first skeletal-related event (SRE) in patients with castratation-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and bone metastases.

The SRE data for radium-223 from the ALSYMPCA phase III trial was first presented at ASCO GU earlier this year.

ASCO 2012 radium-223 data discrepancies

Algeta in a communication I received today, however, have advised that the data contained in the ASCO 2012 abstracts has “discrepancies.”  In the absence of more precise information, the discrepancies may or may not be significant.

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ASCO 2012 What is the Optimal Sequencing of Advanced Prostate Cancer Drugs?

By on June 7, 2012

At the 2012 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago, Oliver Sartor, Professor of Cancer Research and Medical Director of the Tulane Cancer Center in New Orleans told attendees in the educational session on castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) that he was tired of being asked the question of what is the optimal sequence for new advanced prostate cancer drugs?

Oliver Sartor ASCO 2012 ASCO 2012 What is the Optimal Sequencing of Advanced Prostate Cancer Drugs?There is “No data,” Sartor told the ASCO 2012 audience. As a result he recommended the use of less toxic therapies first and that patients be involved in the decision making. Not quite the guidance the audience perhaps hoped for.

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ASCO 2012: Zytiga fails to show overall survival pre-chemo

By on June 4, 2012

ASCO 2012 COU AA 302 Presentation Title Slide 300x225 ASCO 2012: Zytiga fails to show overall survival pre chemoMen with advanced prostate cancer want to know “if I take this drug, will I live longer?” Unfortunately, for abiraterone acetate (Zytiga®) in the pre-chemotherapy setting i.e for asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic men, doctors will only be able to say, “maybe” and tell the patient there is a strong trend towards an overall survival (OS) advantage.

You can read my Xconomy article published yesterday, on why I think it was a mistake for the abiraterone acetate COU-AA-302 trial (302 trial) in chemotherapy-naïve (pre-chemo) men to be stopped early.  The results were presented on Saturday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting in Chicago.

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ASCO 2012: Having a meeting plan is key to success at #ASCO12

By on June 1, 2012

Chicago Wrigley Building 300x225 ASCO 2012: Having a meeting plan is key to success at #ASCO12This morning I am heading off to the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago from June 1 to 5, 2012.

Finalizing my conference schedule yesterday afternoon led me to reflect that at major meetings with multiple parallel sessions, one of the keys to success is having a plan before you arrive. 

ASCO 2012 Annual Meeting App Icon ASCO 2012: Having a meeting plan is key to success at #ASCO12This year, ASCO have the best Congress eplanner that I have yet to see, and what’s more you can not only create and print an online schedule or export it as an Excel spreadsheet, but sync it with your iPad or iPhone/Android conference app.

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ASCO 2012 Unofficial Tweetup

By on May 30, 2012

IMGP4940 300x225 ASCO 2012 Unofficial TweetupIt’s almost time to pack the comfortable shoes for the #blisterwalk (thank you @MaverickNY for that pithy description) across the bridge at ASCO 2012 in Chicago.

No matter what your ASCO program choices, attendees are destined like a modern day Sisyphus to walk the bridge repeatedly as your schedule takes you from one end of McCormick Place to the other.

I am looking forward to the new data expected at the meeting. For diehards who are at ASCO till the last day, next Tuesday will see Dr Chris Parker present updated data on the ALSYMPCA trial for radium-223 (Alpharadin) in advanced prostate cancer. We can expect to see an increase in overall survival (OS) from the 2.8 months presented in Stockholm last year. HT @BiotechStockRsr.

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Repetitive brain injury from high impact sports generates similar pathophysiology to traumatic brain injury in soldiers blown up by IEDs

By on May 21, 2012

Several retired American Football stars have ended up with chronic traumatic encephalophy (CTE), previously known as dementia pugilistica. It’s similar to Alzheimer’s disease in that the brain ends up with neurofibrillary tangles.

stm cover may16 Repetitive brain injury from high impact sports generates similar pathophysiology to traumatic brain injury in soldiers blown up by IEDs CTE has also been seen in soldiers who have experienced blast induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) from improvised explosive devices (IEDs). I previously wrote on this blog about how nanotechnology may revolutionize the detection of TBI using a nanomaterial that changes color.

Research published in the May 16, 2012 issue of Science Translational Magazine by Lee Goldstein and colleagues from the Molecular Aging and Development Laboratory at Boston University & other institutions, compared CTE neuropathology in blast-exposed military veterans and athletes with repetitive concussion injury.

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TEDMED 2012: Francis Collins on how to brings drugs to market faster

By on May 18, 2012

If like me, you didn’t attend TEDMED in Washington DC, then you can now watch videos from the TEDMED 2012 conference.

With my interest in innovation and how to bring drugs to market faster, one video that caught my attention was by Francis Collins MD, PhD, Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) who talked about the challenges of going from basic science (fundamental knowledge) to its application.

In his presentation, Dr Collins talks about how it can take 14 years of research and the screening of 10,000 compounds to bring 1 new drug to market.

TEDMED 2012 Francis Collins Video Screen Shot 1 TEDMED 2012: Francis Collins on how to brings drugs to market faster

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AUA 2012 Twitter Conference Coverage #URO12

By on May 17, 2012

AUA 2012 Mobile App AUA 2012 Twitter Conference Coverage #URO12Although there is a lot of buzz around ASCO 2012 in a few weeks time, this weekend sees the start of the annual meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA) in Atlanta.  AUA 2012 runs from May 19-23 at the Georgia World Congress Center.

A few of the sessions that caught my attention include:

  • Basic Science Symposium on Nanomedicine and its application to urology. Several speakers will discuss how nanoparticles can be used for drug delivery, imaging and as therapeutic tools.
  • Society for Basic Urologic Research (SBUR) and Society of Urologic Oncology (SUO) joint meeting on personalized medicine and novel targets for cancer therapy.
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Innovation in Neurotechnology: how a paralyzed person uses thoughts to control a robotic arm

By on May 16, 2012

braingate array 244x300 Innovation in Neurotechnology: how a paralyzed person uses thoughts to control a robotic arm

Photo: braingate2.org

Research published online first today, and in the May 17 2012 issue of Nature describes promising results of a clinical trial with tetraplegics (all four limbs paralyzed) that allowed the control of an external robotic arm (DEKA arm) using an embedded microarray in the brain, the BrainGate neural interface system.

One of the two study participants who had the array implanted 5 years ago, was able to use her mind to control a robotic arm and serve herself coffee from a bottle, 15 years after she became completely paralyzed & unable to speak.

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AACR 2012: Promising CML & PI3K compounds from Indian company Piramal Healthcare

By on April 24, 2012

India to me conjures up thoughts of curry, cricket and call centers.  When I think about the Indian pharmaceutical industry, global manufacturers of generics such as Ranbaxy, Natco and Dr Reddy’s Laboratories come to mind.

AACR 2012 Exhibits Posters 300x225 AACR 2012: Promising CML & PI3K compounds from Indian company Piramal Healthcare

Photo: Pieter Droppert/Biotech Strategy Blog

What I don’t associate India with, is pharmaceutical drug discovery and the development of new drugs.

Pharmaceutical R&D is not only expensive, but requires a high-degree of expertise and comes with a high risk of failure.

Companies in the United States, Europe and Japan still develop most new drugs.

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