The perilous path of biotech drugs
“The idea for a revolutionary new drug to treat allergies and asthma came to scientist Tse Wen Chang in a dream …
It would take 16 years and cost the Changs and their partners, Genentech and Novartis, hundreds of millions of dollars to develop the drug and win government approval. And it still may fall short of expectations.”
Feds to Biotech: No More Fibbing!
“A little-noted change in drug-approval procedures is a step toward avoiding more ImClone-style stock scandals “
Pfizer Wins One For Sane Patents
“What’s in a patent? For the drug industry, everything. And that’s why a court appeal that Pfizer won late Friday [Feb 13] is so important. At issue was whether a researcher must actually discover a drug in order to patent it. “
Hospital ventures into stem-cell reimplantation
“Physicians at Caritas St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center recently launched an adult stem-cell reimplantation study to battle acute cardiac disease.
Project managers at the center, which is the teaching hospital for Tufts University School of Medicine, say it is the first such program in the world.”
Cloning Creates Human Embryos
“Scientists in South Korea report that they have created human embryos through cloning and extracted embryonic stem cells, the universal cells that hold great promise for medical research.
Their goal, the scientists say, is not to clone humans but to advance understanding of the causes and treatment of disease. “
Yali Friedman lives in Washington, DC and is author of Building Biotechnology and other books; founder of DrugPatentWatch; and chief editor of the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology.
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