Top Ten most popular articles on Pharmafile.com this week

It's another end of the week here at Pharmafile and here we run down our top 10 articles and features you've been reading in the past seven days.

10. Novartis enters license agreement with Pliant Therapeutics for fibrosis assets

Novartis has signed a collaboration and license agreement with Pliant Therapeutics to develop and commercialise preclinical asset PLN-1474 which is designed to inhibit the αVβ1 integrin.

9. Medical cannabis: Growth by leaps and bounds

This article follows parts one and two of our trio of in-depth pieces focusing on the growing medical cannabis phenomenon. In June 2019, Pharmafocus visited the headquarters of cannabis company Canopy Growth in the Canadian town of Smiths Falls. Louis Goss investigates how the industry is taking off in Canada and how this might inform the evolution of medicinal cannabis legislation in the UK.

8. Damage control: How will pharma manage the health economic impacts of Brexit?

When it comes to life sciences and patient outcomes, the UK’s destiny is inextricably tied to its relationship with the EU. With services already stretched to breaking point and key patients already unable to access the crucial medicines they need, how will the UK’s health economics be hit by an incoming Brexit?

7. Roche's Tecentriq/Avastin combo smashes endpoints at Phase 3 in unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma

New Phase 3 data has emerged demonstrating the efficacy of Roche’s Tecentriq (atezolizumab) in combination with Avastin (bevacizumab) in the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients who have not received prior systemic therapy.

6. US FDA approves Vertex’s new breakthrough therapy for cystic fibrosis

The US FDA has approved Trikafta (elexacaftor/ivacaftor/tezacaftor) – the first triple combination therapy available for patients with most common cystic fibrosis mutation.

5. Teva offers massive $23 billion to avoid thousands of lawsuits

Israeli drug company Teva has said that it would offer $250 million in cash and a supply of Suboxone, an opioid addiction treatment worth $23 billion to settle amassing litigation against the company.

4. AstraZeneca receives FDA approval for Farxiga

AstraZeneca have announced that the US FDA has approved Farxiga (dapagliflozin) to reduce the risk of hospitalisation for heart failure in adults with type-2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease (CVD) or multiple cardiovascular (CV) risk factors.

3. “No deal” Brexit and life sciences: What happens?

Prime Minister Boris Johnson may have agreed a withdrawal agreement with the European Union at the 11th hour, but despite the best efforts of UK Parliament a "no deal" exit could still present a viable threat. It's still all to play for over the next week or so in Westminster, but in the event that the Prime Minister's deal does not gain the support of Parliament or if "no deal" emerges at a later date, where does this leave the UK’s life sciences? Tim Matthews, Partner at legal firm Barlow Robbins LLP, explains.

2. MSD to cut around 500 jobs in US next year

MSD have announced it plans to eliminate approximately 500 jobs in multiple US states according to a filing with the Pennsylvania Department of Labour and Industry.

1. GlaxoSmithKline sells two vaccines for up to £822m

GlaxoSmithKline has announced it will divest two of its major vaccines to Denmark-based Bavarian Nordic in a deal that will see the company receive an upfront payment of approximately £259 million and milestone payments for a total of £822m.