Worries Over New Apellis Eye Drug Linked To Blindness In 5 People
Stat says that even though five elderly people were blinded in one eye after receiving injections of the newly-approved treatment, the cause remains unknown. In other news: CVS will cut 5,000 jobs to reduce costs, interest in a new cancer-detecting blood test, and more.
Stat:
New Safety Details Link Apellis Eye Drug To Rare Cases Of Blindness
Five elderly people have been blinded in one eye by a severe side effect after receiving injections of a newly approved treatment for eye disease from Apellis Pharmaceuticals. The frequency of this side effect — a severe type of eye inflammation — is low but its cause remains unknown. (Feuerstein, 7/31)
In other pharmaceutical developments —
The Wall Street Journal:
CVS To Shed 5,000 Jobs In Cost-Cutting Push
CVS Health said it is shedding about 5,000 jobs to help reduce costs as the retail pharmacy giant sharpens its focus on healthcare services. The company on Monday said in a statement that the jobs affected are primarily corporate positions. CVS said it doesn’t expect customer-oriented roles in stores, pharmacies and clinics will be affected in the layoff plan. (Yeung, 7/31)
Stat:
Vivek Ramaswamy Wants To ‘Gut’ The FDA. His Claims Don’t Hold Up To Scrutiny
STAT readers know Vivek Ramaswamy from his time as the founder of the biotech conglomerate Roivant — and for his role in some of its various subsidiaries and spinoffs. Of course, the world now knows Ramaswamy for a very different reason: He’s running for president, and has made the cut to participate in the first debate of the Republican primary. Earlier this month, Ramaswamy posted a video on Twitter trading on his biotech bona fides to talk about his plans to “expose and ultimately gut” the Food and Drug Administration. (Feuerstein and Herper, 7/31)
San Francisco Chronicle:
New Blood Test That Screens For Cancer Raises Hopes — And Concerns
Galleri, priced at $949, is the first of a wave of so-called multi-cancer early-detection tests, which analyze DNA fragments in the blood for abnormalities associated with cancer. Grail, the Menlo Park-based biotech company that created Galleri, says it checks more than a million specific DNA sites for cancer signals and can identify more than 50 types of cancer, including cervical, colon, breast and prostate. More than a dozen prospective rivals are developing their own cancer-screening products. (Kreidler, 7/31)
Stat:
Flow Neuroscience Device Shows Promise In Trial For Depression
Flow Neuroscience, a small Swedish company treating depression with brain-stimulating headsets, released early data on Monday showing that its device relieved depressive symptoms in clinical trials. (Lawrence, 7/31)
Modern Healthcare:
Wegovy, Ozempic Craze Leaves Traditional Weight Loss Docs Wary
The popularity of GLP-1s, such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic, has led to a growing number of weight loss entrants in the virtual health industry. In the last year, digital health companies such as Teladoc and Noom have launched virtual weight loss businesses with GLP-1 medication prescription offerings. Traditional weight loss company WeightWatchers acquired a telehealth company to begin prescribing the drugs. (Turner, 7/31)
Also —
The Baltimore Sun:
Family Of Henrietta Lacks Settles HeLa Cell Lawsuit With Biotech Giant, Lawyer Says
The family of Henrietta Lacks agreed Monday to settle a lawsuit against Thermo Fisher Scientific, a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company that sold products derived from the Baltimore County resident’s cells, according to civil rights attorney Ben Crump. The terms of the settlement are confidential, Crump said in a statement shortly before midnight Monday. (Roberts and Belson, 8/1)
The Washington Post:
How Scientists Make Corrections And Retractions After Errors In Research
Marc Tessier-Lavigne, an internationally known neuroscientist, recently resigned as president of Stanford University after an investigation determined he had failed to correct errors in years-old scientific papers, and that labs he led had an unusual number of instances of manipulated data. Tessier-Lavigne said he would ask for three papers to be retracted and two corrected, a request the publications say they will honor or review. (Svrluga and Johnson, 7/31)
