STAT+: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about pancreatic and lung cancer drugs, China biotech growth, and more

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to another working week. We hope the weekend respite was relaxing and invigorating because that oh-too-familiar routine of meetings, deadlines, and the like has returned with a vengeance. You knew this would happen, yes? To cope, we are relying, as always, on a cuppa stimulation. Our choice today is honeybush vanilla turmeric. Feel free to join us. Remember, no prescription is required. Meanwhile, here are some tidbits to help you along. Best of luck accomplishing your goals today, and, of course, do keep in touch. …

Detailed study data for a pancreatic cancer treatment from Revolution Medicines confirmed what was previously announced in April by the company in a press release, STAT tells us. Patients with advanced pancreatic cancer who received daraxonrasib as a second-line treatment achieved a median overall survival of 13.2 months, compared to 6.7 months for patients offered standard chemotherapy. Statistically, the drug reduced the risk of death by 60% compared with chemotherapy. The data were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the study was published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine. Meanwhile, the company has begun sending the experimental treatment to physicians and their patients under an early access program authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

For decades, an annual gathering of oncologists has featured drug trials that were run mainly at American and European hospitals, but at this year’s meeting, the signs are everywhere of China’s ascendance as a powerhouse in drug development — and of the threat that many believe it poses to American biotechnology, The New York Times explains. The clearest sign: In what appears to be a first, one of the conference’s five coveted headliners will be a presentation of a clinical trial conducted only in China. That milestone at the ASCO meeting reflects the dizzying growth of China’s biotechnology sector. In just a few years, it has transformed from a sleepy industry into a juggernaut rapidly inventing and testing cutting-edge medicines.

Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

المصدر: STAT News