Are biotech and pharma companies doing well, or falling apart at the seams? People will have differences of opinion on this, but one thing is clear: it’s all relative. At a speech to a trade group in Philadelphia last month, James Greenwood, president of the biotechnology trade group BIO, asked the government to stop picking … Continue reading “Biopharmaceuticals: Nothing Compares to You”
Author: Stewart Lyman
Stewart Lyman is Owner and Manager of Lyman BioPharma Consulting LLC in Seattle. He provides advice to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies as well as academic researchers and venture capital firms. Previously, he spent 14 years as a scientist at Immunex prior to its acquisition by Amgen.
Biopharma Industry Meetings Could Use Some Fresh Voices
One or more notices of upcoming biopharma industry conferences arrive in my email every day. I give their agendas a quick glance before deleting them, as they’re seldom in areas I focus on. The vast majority of presenters are plucked from the ranks of top-tier Big Pharma; there’s a seminar from Pfizer, a speaker from … Continue reading “Biopharma Industry Meetings Could Use Some Fresh Voices”
(Mis)Understanding Drug Discovery: It’s Much Harder Than Rocket Science
Developing new medicines is an amazingly difficult undertaking. The research portion alone is daunting, and for those of us who have actually attempted it, humbling. A recent article reminded me just how little many people understand about the drug discovery process. The basic premise of “Pharma Needs an Innovation Intervention” was that pharma should change … Continue reading “(Mis)Understanding Drug Discovery: It’s Much Harder Than Rocket Science”
This Drug Didn’t Work for Me. May I Have My $88,000 Back, Please?
If you bought a new toaster, carried it home, plugged it in, and it didn’t work, what would you do? Suppose you purchased a pineapple at the grocery store, sliced it open, and found it was inedible. In both cases you’d seek the same remedy: you’d return the item and ask for your money back. … Continue reading “This Drug Didn’t Work for Me. May I Have My $88,000 Back, Please?”
Pharma-Academic Alliances: What the Numbers Don’t Tell You
If you’ve been following the drug industry at all for the past few years, you know that Big Pharma has gone alliance crazy. It seems that every other week a new deal is announced in which a pharmaceutical company has partnered with an academic institution to help identify or develop new drugs for a variety … Continue reading “Pharma-Academic Alliances: What the Numbers Don’t Tell You”
Why Do I Love Drug Regulation? Simple: It Keeps Us Safe
I frequently read comments from pundits and politicians decrying the US drug regulatory system, specifically the FDA. Many of these people, reading from the same PR playbook, will try to convince you that regulation is the primary factor in stifling innovation. But based on history, I am convinced that without adequate government regulation, companies in … Continue reading “Why Do I Love Drug Regulation? Simple: It Keeps Us Safe”
Who’s Going to Pay for Future Drug Development? (Part 2)
In the first part of this article, I detailed how pharma and biotech companies, along with the federal government, provide the majority of funding for biomedical research in the U.S. In this second part, I’ll turn my attention to a number of other sources, both for-profit and nonprofit, that also provide the capital that drives … Continue reading “Who’s Going to Pay for Future Drug Development? (Part 2)”
Who’s Going to Pay for Future Drug Development? (Part 1)
In case you haven’t noticed, heart disease remains a debilitating illness for millions. Cancer, despite some recent advances, has not been cured. Drug resistant strains of bacteria are spreading across the globe. There are still no effective treatments for Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, and a huge number of other illnesses. The number … Continue reading “Who’s Going to Pay for Future Drug Development? (Part 1)”
Advice Received, But Not Taken: Tales from the Biotech Trenches
Biotechnology is a challenging business, with drug development timelines that are long, costly, and dependent on the approval of government regulatory agencies. The vast majority of biotechs never succeed in developing a new drug. There are many issues that contribute to whether or not a company achieves its goals and makes it in the marketplace. … Continue reading “Advice Received, But Not Taken: Tales from the Biotech Trenches”
What Does Biotech Really Suffer From? Information Overload, or Underload?
Cognitive dissonance is defined as “an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding conflicting ideas simultaneously.” I’m suffering from a serious case of discomfort as I try to figure out which is the bigger problem facing biotech scientists: too much information, or too little. Information overload is a serious issue in biomedical research, if not virtually all … Continue reading “What Does Biotech Really Suffer From? Information Overload, or Underload?”
The Myth of the “Patent Cliff”
Doctors, patients, and investors who follow the biopharmaceutical business all recognize that the industry is exceedingly complex and in the midst of change. Companies struggle daily with a multifaceted mix of scientific, clinical, and business unknowns. Will a drug be medically effective and make it through clinical trials? Will it get the thumbs up from … Continue reading “The Myth of the “Patent Cliff””
The Winners of the IRS Biotech Grant Program Are…
[Updated: 11:30 am, 11/4/10] The biotech industry was a key beneficiary last spring of the new health care law. $1 billion worth of Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Credits were dangled in front of the small to mid sized biotechs that met the designated criteria. The Treasury Department and IRS were put in charge of this … Continue reading “The Winners of the IRS Biotech Grant Program Are…”
The Challenge of Understanding Biotech: Sifting Through the Fog and Jargon
I recently enjoyed reading two books on the mortgage meltdown, “The Big Short” by Michael Lewis and Gregory Zuckerman’s “The Greatest Trade Ever.” They each provided a detailed post-mortem on the implosion of the housing bubble. What fascinated me most about their accounts was how virtually everyone on Wall Street, with a few notable exceptions, … Continue reading “The Challenge of Understanding Biotech: Sifting Through the Fog and Jargon”
ZymoGenetics Will Be Missed. How Seattle Biotech Can Recover and Thrive
I agree with Carl Weissman’s recent Xconomy column about the ZymoGenetics acquisition when he says that Seattle needs to be a place where biotech startups thrive. Unfortunately, his column didn’t put forth any novel solutions for making this happen (I know this wasn’t his point in writing the article). I am also in agreement that … Continue reading “ZymoGenetics Will Be Missed. How Seattle Biotech Can Recover and Thrive”
Biotech Drug Discovery in Seattle: A Look Back
The drug discovery and development process is a difficult one that takes considerable expertise in both the research and business realms. Seattle currently has approximately 103 biotechnology companies, 21 of which are publicly traded. The area also has a number of non-profit research organizations that participate in a variety of efforts to find new medicines. … Continue reading “Biotech Drug Discovery in Seattle: A Look Back”
Biotech’s $1 Billion Tax Credits Are Up for Grabs! OK, Now Everybody Relax
The rules regarding the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Credit have now been released by the Treasury Department. You can read the fact sheet, and detailed description of the legislation yourself, but here are 10 key points I came away with after reading them. 1. The first thing that everyone can do is relax. In contrast … Continue reading “Biotech’s $1 Billion Tax Credits Are Up for Grabs! OK, Now Everybody Relax”
Biotech’s Second Big Win in Healthcare Reform: A Tax Credit Bonanza
The biotech industry won a major victory last month when President Obama signed healthcare reform into law. Biologic drugs, those developed through genetic engineering techniques and incubated in living cells, will now be granted a 12-year period of data exclusivity on the market, to protect them from cheaper copycat competitors. That will allow the innovative … Continue reading “Biotech’s Second Big Win in Healthcare Reform: A Tax Credit Bonanza”
The Pharmaceutical R&D Model is Broken. Here’s How to Fix It
Research is the lifeblood of the biotech and pharmaceuticals business. The pharma and biotech industry spent some $65 billion dollars on R & D in 2008, according to the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association. That’s a tremendous amount of money considering that the FDA only approved 24 new drugs (21 new molecular entities and 3 … Continue reading “The Pharmaceutical R&D Model is Broken. Here’s How to Fix It”
A Brief Year-End Review of Seattle Biotech
Well, 2009 did not turn out to be the biotechnology disaster here in Seattle that many people had predicted. By my reckoning, only four of the local biotech companies that I track on my website went bust in 2009 (Eden Biosciences, VizX Labs, Northstar Neurosciences, and Rosetta Inpharmatics). This last blow was softened when Microsoft … Continue reading “A Brief Year-End Review of Seattle Biotech”
Hollywood Sees Corruption in Pharma, and Suddenly Scientists are the Bad Guys
A recent article in the journal Science described a significant gene-therapy based advance in the treatment of two boys with adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), a rare and lethal genetic disease. This was wonderful news for those who have affected family members. This devastating affliction was the focal point of the beautifully crafted movie “Lorenzo’s Oil.” The film … Continue reading “Hollywood Sees Corruption in Pharma, and Suddenly Scientists are the Bad Guys”
“Don’t Touch My Bags If You Please, Mr. Customs Man”
Imagine the following scenario for a minute: A middle-aged man books a round trip ticket from San Francisco to Shanghai. His reservation indicates this will be a short trip; he is going to be in China less than one full day. Upon arrival at the airport in Shanghai, the immigration control officer asks him “What … Continue reading ““Don’t Touch My Bags If You Please, Mr. Customs Man””
Why Big Pharma Wants To Be Like Big Biotech
Why would a Big Pharma company want to remake itself as a biotech? In a recent Xconomy piece, I discussed the changes in Roche’s corporate culture brought on by their recent acquisition of Genentech, along with recommendations for creating an innovative biotech research culture. What I didn’t have the space to dive into was a … Continue reading “Why Big Pharma Wants To Be Like Big Biotech”
Forget the Shortcuts: Creating a Truly Innovative Biotech Culture
Watching the acquisition of Genentech by Roche has been a fascinating process. I wasn’t so interested in the eventual price paid per share, but whether Basel, Switzerland-based Roche, one of the oldest and most traditional pharma companies, could preserve the special science-based culture at Genentech that made it the world’s pre-eminent biotech company. Would Genentech’s … Continue reading “Forget the Shortcuts: Creating a Truly Innovative Biotech Culture”
Measuring Success in the Biotech World
What defines success in biotechnology? I’ve noticed that many companies are described as being successful, but there’s no widely agreed upon definition for success within the industry. Lack of agreement on a definition of biotechnology success can serve as a source of friction within a company’s senior management group—some of whom may be trained in … Continue reading “Measuring Success in the Biotech World”
Two Simple Ways to Revitalize Seattle Biotech
Seattle’s biotech community used to be among the top-ranked in the nation. But as some 2,500 layoffs have piled up in the local biotech sector since 2002, Seattle has tumbled in the rankings. We need to face up to this fact first, before we can think seriously about how to get back on our feet … Continue reading “Two Simple Ways to Revitalize Seattle Biotech”