“Global concern over access to and affordability of pharmaceutical products continues to drive regulatory and legislative debate and action, as well as worldwide cost containment efforts by governmental authorities. Such measures include the use of mandated discounts, price reporting requirements, mandated reference prices, restrictive formularies, changes to available intellectual property protections, as well as other efforts. In August 2022, the U.S. government enacted the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA).”
All entries for: Oncology
November 2, 2023
Eli Lilly & Company
Negative Outlook
Indianapolis, IN
10,001-50,000 employees
10001-50000 employees
Disease Area: Multiple, Oncology
Drug Type: Biologic
November 1, 2023
Exelixis
Negative Outlook
Alameda, CA
1,001-5,000 employees
1001-5000 employees
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Small Molecule
October 26, 2023
Seagen
Discontinued Drug, Discontinued Research
Bothell, WA
1,001-5,000 employees
1001-5000 employees
“Seagen Inc. ended a program to study one of its drugs to treat an early-stage form of bladder cancer because it would have been subject to government price negotiations shortly after approval, Chief Executive Officer David Epstein said.
The company had been looking into using its drug Padcev to treat the nonmuscle-invasive version of the disease that accounts for about 70% of newly diagnosed bladder cancer cases. It stopped after determining that there would be no financial return from the potential use, as approval would have likely come soon before the drug became subject to price bargaining under the Inflation Reduction Act…”
1 Discontinued Drug: Padcev (biologic)
1 Discontinued Research Program
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Biologic
October 25, 2023
Alkermes
Negative Outlook
Dublin, Ireland
1,001-5,000 employees
1001-5000 employees
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Small Molecule
October 10, 2023
Pfizer
Layoffs
New York, NY
50,001+ employees
50001+ employees
“Pfizer is conducting layoffs at its Boulder, CO research facility, months after announcing a retreat from a significant chunk of its early-stage research… The facility specialized in small molecule discovery, and housed nearly 300 employees, according to Pfizer’s website.”
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Small Molecule
October 4, 2023
Bristol Myers Squibb
Discontinued Research
Princeton, NJ
10,001-50,000 employees
10001-50000 employees
BMS, whose blood thinner Eliquis (apixaban) is also on the list, wrote via email that it, too, is discontinuing certain oncology programs due to the IRA, including a late-stage registration trial for the multiple myeloma drug iberdomide. “Much of our progress against cancer is the result of post-approval research for patients, [and] as a result of the IRA, this research and progress is now at risk,” the BMS spokesperson wrote.
2 Discontinued Research Programs: iberdomide clinical trial; unnamed oncology programs
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Biologic, Small Molecule
August 14, 2023
Xilio Therapeutics
Negative Outlook
Waltham, MA
51-200 employees
51-200 employees
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Biologic
August 10, 2023
Zymeworks
Negative Outlook
Middletown, DE
201-500 employees
201-500 employees
Disease Area: Multiple, Oncology, Therapeutics
Drug Type: Biologic
August 10, 2023
Genentech
Negative Outlook
San Francisco, CA
10,001-50,000 employees
10001-50000 employees
“Now, he’s arguing that the law’s new Medicare negotiation program could encourage Genentech to slow-walk research on how a drug could treat diseases with smaller populations in favor of making sure diseases with larger patient populations are the first to market. That would mean the company would sell more medicines in the window before Medicare is allowed to negotiate prices, because the clock for when discounts can kick in is based off of when the drug first goes on the market.
Speaking about an experimental therapy in the works that could treat ovarian cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer, he said, “Normally, we would develop it in a fast market approach for ovarian cancer. That’s the shortest path to patients … but that is a much smaller indication than prostate cancer, which would take three years longer.”
“So the dilemma we’re facing right now is, do we go with the initial indication being prostate cancer and then hold off on the development and the approval [for] ovarian [cancer] because the clock will be started with prostate?””
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Small Molecule
August 10, 2023
IDEAYA Biosciences
Negative Outlook
San Francisco, CA
51-200 employees
51-200 employees
Disease Area: Oncology
Drug Type: Small Molecule
