Top Ten most popular articles on Pharmafile.com this week!
pharmafile | February 1, 2019 | News story | Business Services, Manufacturing and Production, Medical Communications, Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | Cancer, England, NHS, Purdue, Vertex, insys, israel, oncology, pharma, top 10
Scandal dominated this week’s news after Sunrise Lee, a stripper turned Insys sales rep was alleged to have given a disreputable doctor a lap dance in an effort to persuade him to prescribe the potent opioid fentanyl to his patients. Meanwhile Vertex terminated COO Ian Smith over ‘personal behaviour’ while an Israeli biotech made the dubious claim that it had created a complete cure for cancer.
In other news, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said that patients would be able to pay the NHS to sequence their genes, as long as they shared their data. The story prompted fears of the creation of a two tiered system in Britain’s beloved NHS. Meanwhile Novartis warned of the impact of no-deal Brexit.
Check out the top ten most popular stories of this week!
The NHS will provide paid-for health reports, informing patients as to the likelihood that they will develop diseases such as Alzheimer’s or cancer, as long as those people share their data.
9. Opioid drugmaker Purdue Pharma inks deal with Alivio over non-opioid inflammation drug
Opioid drugmaker Purdue Pharma has entered into an agreement with inflammatory disease specialist Alivio Therapeutics for the development of the non-opioid treatment for interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome, ALV-107.
8. Alexander Hardy returns to Genentech as new CEO
Genetech, the biotech subsidiary of Swiss firm Roche, has named its new CEO, revealing that Alexander Hardy will be returning to the company to lead its operations.
7. Vertex ousts COO Ian Smith over ‘personal behaviour’
Boston-based firm Vertex Pharmaceuticals has fired Chief Operating Officer (COO) and interim Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Ian Smith. Smith’s termination, which is said to be unrelated to the company’s financial and business performance is effective immediately.
6. Roche pulls plug on Alzheimer’s drug after Phase 3 failure
Roche has announced that it is to terminate two Phase 3 studies investigating the efficacy of its anti-beta-amyloid molecule crenezumab in the treatment of early sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (AD), after it became apparent that the drug was unlikely to meet its primary endpoint.
5. Bristol-Myers Squibb withdraws lung cancer combo therapy marketing application
Bristol-Myers Squibb has been forced to withdraw a marketing application for its combination of Opdivo and Yervoy for lung cancer.
4. Mylan’s Wixela becomes first FDA-approved generic version of GSK’s Advair inhaler
Mylan’s Wixela has become the first generic version of GlaxoSmithKline’s Advair Diskus (fluticasone propionate and salmeterol inhalation powder) inhaler to be approved in the US.
3. Novartis warns of huge impact of no-deal Brexit
Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis has called on the British government to ‘ensure continuity of supply’ in the case of a ‘disorderly’ no-deal Brexit.
2. Stripper-turned-Insys sales rep gave lap dance to persuade doctor to prescribe fentanyl
A pharmaceutical executive working for Insys therapeutics has been accused of giving a doctor a lap dance in an effort to persuade him to prescribe a fentanyl spray to his patients.
1. Israeli biotech claims it has developed cure for cancer
An Israeli biotech has claimed that it has developed a complete cure for cancer.
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