Hello, everyone, and how are you today? We are doing just fine, thank you, especially since the middle of the week is upon us. After all, we have made it this far, so we are determined to hang on for another couple of days. And why not? The alternatives — at least those we can identify — are not so appealing. And what better way to make the time fly than to keep busy. So fire up your coffee kettle, grab that cup of stimulation, and get cracking. Our flavor today is hazelnut mocha, for those tracking our habits. And of course, here is the latest menu of tidbits to get you started. We hope you have a wonderful day, and please do keep in touch. …
An experimental Alzheimer’s therapy from Roche successfully cleared a protein that’s a hallmark of the disease from patients’ brains, adding to evidence that the drug shows promise, STAT writes. The data are from an early-stage trial and so far Roche has not yet assessed whether there has been any corresponding change in cognitive function or disease progression. But U.S. regulators have in recent years approved similar medicines that can reduce levels of the protein, called amyloid, in patient brains and that in trials modestly slowed worsening Alzheimer’s. Moreover, the early findings of Roche’s treatment, an antibody called trontinemab, suggest it could be safer than some of the other amyloid-clearing treatments, although larger studies would need to confirm that. However, Roche did report one death in the trial, a 78-year-old woman who did not have ARIA, a type of brain swelling or bleeding, but who suffered a large brain bleed. The company has since changed the trial protocol to exclude patients with certain risk factors for such hemorrhages.
Eli Lilly’s third-quarter sales and earnings were lower than expected, a rare stumble for the company that had consistently reported strong sales and beat earnings forecasts since demand for its blockbuster weight loss and diabetes drugs began booming, STAT says. Lilly said sales of its GLP-1 drugs were affected by drug wholesalers buying less product. The diabetes treatment Mounjaro brought in $3.1 billion and the obesity medication Zepbound brought in $1.3 billion, lower than analysts’ predictions of $3.6 billion and $1.7 billion, respectively. Meanwhile, GSK’s once-booming vaccines business met new challenges in the third quarter, as the company lowered sales forecasts for vaccines for the year, STAT tells us. Notably, quarterly sales of the company’s RSV vaccine, which became a blockbuster after debuting last year, fell by more than 70% year over year, in part due to narrower U.S. recommendations for who should get the shot.
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