| Data Blunder Dents NeuroSearch’s Reputation EP Vantage submits:NeuroSearch (NEUSF.PK), the Danish biotech that dazzled earlier this year with impressive results from a new Huntington’s disease treatment, Huntexil, just lost some of its gloss. In an embarrassing disclosure, the company announced that a new analysis of the phase III data revealed the primary endpoint of the trial had actually been missed. The disclosure cost NeuroSearch’s chief medical officer his job and the company a quarter of its market value, a value that had doubled in the wake of the initial announcement (NeuroSearch redeems itself with impressive Huntington’s phase III data, February 3, 2010). Although this certainly makes Huntexil look like a riskier project than previously, this appears to be more of a statistical than a clinical glitch, and stamping the trial a failure is probably a bit harsh. For faith to return, data due later this year from a phase IIb study being conducted in the US needs to be positive. Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Cord Blood America Spokesperson to Hold Webinar on Banking Stem Cells at Birth (PR Newswire) Cord Blood America, Inc. is pleased to announce that Natalie Curry, the Company's official spokesperson and medically saved by the first umbilical cord blood collection in the world, will discuss a wide range of topics about cord blood banking live from CBAI's laboratory in Las Vegas. us.rd.yahoo.com |
Vivus: An Option Pricing Case Study Bill Luby submits: Trading in Vivus (VVUS) was halted this morning, as the biotechnology company’s new weight-loss pill, Qnexa, is being reviewed by a panel of experts at the FDA. In many respects biotechnology stocks – particularly those which do not yet have products that are commercially available – are options dressed up as stocks. More than other sectors, a biotechnology stock is a company that is a portfolio of options on all the projects (drugs) that are in the research and development stage, plus commercial products which can be valued with more traditional discounted cash flow models and the like.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Another Big Bet on Obesity: Takeda Puts Orexigen on Solid Ground The Burrill Report submits: By Michael FitzhughJapan's Takeda (TKPHF.PK) is placing summer’s second major bet on an obesity drug with a $50 million investment in Orexigen's (OREX) Contrave, a combination drug meant to help people tackle the biology and behaviors behind overeating. Payments of more than $1 billion await Orexigen if it hits unspecified regulatory and sales-based milestones in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the countries covered by its new deal with Takeda. Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Another Setback for Roche's Cancer Drug The Burrill Report submits: By Michael FitzhughAvastin, Roche's (RHHBY.PK) phenomenally successful advanced cancer medicine, did not help people with early-stage colon cancer live longer or reduce their risk of relapses when combined with chemotherapy, new study data shows. Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |