FirstTake on Pharma - Pharma News and Analysis Podcast

Latest Episodes:

The FirstTake Podcast – 30 September 2021 Sep 30, 2021

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In this episode, FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Virginia Li, Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss the week’s key industry news headlines, dig deeper into recent developments in the field of graft versus host disease and talk about the latest gene therapy safety concern.

The FirstTake Podcast – 23 September 2021 Sep 23, 2021

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In this episode, FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Virginia Li, Michael Flanagan and Simon King share their post-ESMO thoughts on exciting new clinical data in HER2-positive breast cancer, further emergence of the KRAS inhibitors into colorectal cancer and multiple developments in the field of gastric cancer.

The FirstTake Podcast – 16 September 2021 Sep 16, 2021

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In this episode editors Virginia Li, Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss AbbVie’s deal to in-license an investigational gene therapy for age related macular degeneration from Regenxbio, an increasing focus on mRNA vaccines and therapeutics among Chinese biotech companies and why a new academic study may pose further challenges for Biogen’s Aduhelm.

The FirstTake Podcast – Sanofi’s M&A hunt continues Sep 09, 2021

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In this episode, editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss Sanofi’s latest acquisition, ongoing safety concerns around gene therapies and expert feedback on anti-Tau therapies for Alzheimer’s disease.

The FirstTake Podcast – JAKs, Jardiance and booster shots Sep 02, 2021

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In this episode editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King the FDA’s new safety labelling for JAK inhibitors, impressive new data for Jardiance in heart failure and controversy around COVID-19 booster shots.

The FirstTake Podcast – A landmark approval in lupus Aug 05, 2021

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This week FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss US approval of the first new lupus therapy in a decade, Eli Lilly’s optimistic body language about bringing a new Alzheimer’s disease treatment to market next year and Sanofi’s acquisition of messenger RNA specialist Translate Bio.

The FirstTake Podcast – A tale of two COVID-19 vaccines Jul 29, 2021

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FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss Pfizer’s projected COVID-19 vaccine revenues for 2021 and whether clinical data validates the commercial dominance of this product over AstraZeneca’s competing vaccine, look at Keytruda’s increasingly compelling profile as a treatment for early-stage and advanced triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and put Amgen’s acquisition of Teneobio under the spotlight.

The FirstTake Podcast – Q2 earnings kick off with yet more Aduhelm controversy Jul 22, 2021

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FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss the start of Q2 earnings season, including the receding impact of COVID-19 on drug sales and Biogen’s claim of a misinformation conspiracy designed to derail adoption of Aduhelm. Also under the spotlight is the HIF-PH drug class and new cardiovascular data from Cytokinetics.

The FirstTake Podcast – Get the expert view on new Jardiance heart failure data Jul 15, 2021

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In this episode, editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss key opinion leader (KOL) feedback on new heart failure data for Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s SGLT-2 inhibitor Jardiance, look at Biogen’s deal to in-license a Chinese developed BTK inhibitor in early stage testing for multiple sclerosis and talk about Eli Lilly’s bid to upgrade first-generation KRAS inhibitors.

The FirstTake Podcast – Jardiance delivers key win in heart failure Jul 08, 2021

Show notes

FirstWord Pharma PLUS editors Michael Flanagan and Simon King discuss the potential role of Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s Jardiance as a future treatment for heart failure, the FDA’s decision to narrow labelling for Biogen’s Aduhelm, the pending departure of cancer R&D head Axel Hoos from GlaxoSmithKline and whether UCB’s bimekizumab can disrupt the psoriasis market.