Dendreon cuts GSK deal over prostate cancer drug sales (Weekend Rounds)

Life science current events this week including Dendreon cuts deal with GSK over poor prostate cancer drug sales, BioDelivery Sciences International on track for a New Drug Application filing in 2012 and Neoprobe outlines approval plan for colorectal cancer drug.

A review of life science current events reported by MedCity News this week:

Provenge fallout leads Dendreon to end GSK supply pact. Dendreon executives dropped a bombshell during its release of second-quarter earnings when it revealed that sales of the drug were well below projections. The company abandoned sales forecasts for the high-priced drug and said that part of the reason for the slow uptake of the product was uncertainty among physicians about whether they would be reimbursed for a treatment that costs $93,000 a year.

BDSI’s opioid-addiction drug candidate aims to challenge market leader RB. An opioid-dependence treatment being developed by BioDelivery Sciences International (NASDAQ:BDSI) is on track for a New Drug Application filing in the second half of 2012, making it a contender to compete against current market leader Reckitt Benckiser (LSE:RB).

Neoprobe gains regulatory clarity on colorectal cancer detection drug. Neoprobe says it must present detailed plans for clinical development to both the FDA and EMA to align, to the extent possible, the clinical studies required for approval of RIGScan. The drug is likely several years away from approval.

AtriCure: Is now the time for a strategic acquirer to step up? AtriCure appears likely to be the first company poised to obtain a label for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and that could spark lots of interest from huge device firms like Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ).

InvaCare founders donate $5M to Case Western Reserve. The gift will go toward the establishment of a Richey-Mixon Building, which would include space for Case’s school of engineering, as well as space for startups and established companies to work collaboratively with representatives of the university, according to a statement from Case.

Shares0
Shares0