Newly-Approved Diabetes Drug Found To Also Boost Weight Loss

CNN: Overweight People Lost 35 To 52 Pounds On Newly Approved Diabetes Drug, Study Says 
A weekly dose of a medication recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat type 2 diabetes may help adults without diabetes lose weight as well, a new study found. Tirzepatide, which is sold under the brand name Mounjaro, was studied in people without diabetes in three dosages: 5, 10 and 15 milligrams. Participants with obesity or who were overweight and took the 5-milligram dose lost an average of 35 pounds (16 killograms), those on the 10-milligram dose lost an average of 49 pounds (22 kilograms), and participants on the 15-milligram dose lost an average of 52 pounds (23.6 kilograms). (LaMotte and Langmaid, 6/6)

In other pharmaceutical developments —

Stat: Adicet Therapy Shows Complete Remissions In Early Study Of Lymphoma
Adicet Bio reported Monday that a unique, off-the-shelf therapy made from a special type of T cell induced complete remissions in patients with advanced and aggressive B-cell lymphomas, including patients with cancer who relapsed after receiving a personalized CAR-T treatment. In the early-stage study, six of eight patients achieved complete remissions after a single infusion of Adicet’s therapy, called ADI-001. Three of the patients were particularly difficult to treat because they entered the study with lymphomas that had relapsed after they received CAR-T treatments; all achieved complete remissions with ADI-001, Adicet said. (Feuerstein, 6/6)

Stat: Praxis' Novel Antidepressant Fails Make-Or-Break Trial
A novel antidepressant from Praxis Precision Medicines failed to outperform placebo in a pivotal study, the company said Monday, casting doubt on what was meant to be a nuanced approach to the brain’s natural regulatory system. The drug, a once-daily oral treatment known as PRAX-114, missed its primary and secondary goals in a study enrolling about 200 patients with major depressive disorder. After two and four weeks of treatment, patients receiving PRAX-114 did not see their symptoms significantly improve compared to placebo, the company said. Praxis did not disclose details of the trial results. (Garde, 6/6)

KHN: California Wants To Slash Insulin Prices By Becoming A Drugmaker. Can It Succeed? 
California is diving into the prescription drug business, attempting to achieve what no other state has done: produce its own brand of generic insulin and sell it at below-market prices to people with diabetes like Sabrina Caudillo. Caudillo said she feels like a “prisoner” to the three major pharmaceutical companies that control the price of insulin, which ranges from $300 to $400 per vial without insurance. The price Caudillo paid in 2017, when she was diagnosed, is etched into her memory: $274. (Hart, 6/7)

Also —

Stat: Many Black Cancer Patients Not Offered Access To Clinical Trials, Survey Finds
Nobody offered Stephanie Walker a clinical trial when she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. Nobody talked to her about what her options might be in clinical trials. She didn’t have a nurse or patient navigator, either, who could guide her through the treatment process. “It was just me, the oncologist, and his PA,” Walker, a registered nurse and patient advocate with the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance, said. It frustrates her to look back on that time, especially in the context of a new study that she and other patients and patient advocates led that examines the experiences of Black women with metastatic breast cancer. According to the study results that Walker presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting on Monday, the majority of Black women with metastatic breast cancer don’t get enrolled into clinical trials. Only 40% of Black respondents said they were even offered a trial. (Chen, 6/6)

Modern Healthcare: Surescripts Names Outsider As CEO
Surescripts named an outsider, Frank Harvey, as its CEO, the e-prescription company said Monday. Harvey, who most recently led private-equity investments for healthcare technology companies at ATLS Investments, will take the helm June 27. He succeeds Tom Skelton, who in November announced plans to retire. Before ATLS Investments, Harvey served as CEO of Mirixa, a technology company focused on medication therapy management that was acquired by Cardinal Health, and as CEO of Liberty Medical Supply, a company that sells prescription drugs and other medical supplies. (Kim Cohen, 6/6)