Genentech’s Next Move
Genentech stunned the cancer world last week with news that its Avastin colon cancer drug extended patients’ lives by five months, proving wrong skeptics who said the blood vessel-blocking drug would never work. Now the biotech pioneer is embarking on a bold strategy to dominate the cancer drug market for decades to come by combining drugs even before they are approved.

This Dutchman Is Flying
Maverick biotech firm Genzyme is winning big profits from a contrarian strategy: Think small

GM crops ‘good for developing countries’ In a discussion paper out on Tuesday to coincide with a national GM debate in the UK, the influential Nuffield Council on Bio-ethics says the technology has the potential to increase crop yields and improve the livelihoods of poor people.

BIOTECH RALLIES The promise of new cancer therapies coming out of last week’s American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago has helped restore vigor to the biopharmaceutical industry. It has also gotten a boost from a spate of new product approvals and generally upbeat earnings reports this year.

Financial Snapshot For May 2003: Yee Hah The biotech sector has turned in a remarkable performance this year – especially in May, when the stocks took off like a rocket. And, so far, they’re still climbing…

BIOTECH TEMPERATURE RISES
Investors are showing classic symptoms of biotech fever.
They’re seizing on good news about drug trials, cheering new drug-related news and buying shares contagiously…

Biotech is benign
Europe’s continued blocking of GM imports is illegal, unjustified and founded on ignorance.

Science and Law: Swapping the lab for the law
For scientists who want a career in law, the options are greater than ever – and some don’t even involve going back to school

Biotech sector keeps surging / Cancer drug news and FDA approvals create optimism
Industry observers say the sector’s sea change from pessimism to optimism comes from two sources: Good news about experimental cancer drugs from a major scientific meeting this month; and a set of recent approvals by the Food and Drug Administration, whose new leadership is seen as more company-friendly.

Early stage biotechnology collaborations
The range of deals an early stage biotechnology company may enter into is wide (see box ‘What is an early stage biotechnology collaboration?’). This chapter examines, by reference to a few of the types of agreements that an early stage company may enter into, some of the key intellectual property (IP) and other legal issues that arise when undertaking such deals