And so, another working week will soon draw to a close. Not a moment too soon, yes? This is, you may recall, our treasured signal to daydream about weekend plans. Our agenda is still shaping up, but already we have identified a few activities, such as firing up the leaf blower, promenading with the official mascots, and catching up on our growing reading list. There will also be time for another listening party, where the rotation will likely include this, this, this, this, and this. And what about you? There are myriad possibilities from which to choose this time of year, including a drive through the countryside, a stroll along a beach or a lake, or a long walk along city streets. If the weather fails to cooperate, you could always tidy up around the castle or stream a few moving pictures. And if contact with another soul is in order, you could reach out to someone special. Well, whatever you do, have a grand time. But be safe. Enjoy, and see you soon. …
Merck agreed to buy Cidara Therapeutics, the maker of an experimental flu therapy, in a $9.2 billion deal, as the pharmaceutical companies widens its pipeline to counter the impending revenue hit as its mega-blockbuster Keytruda loses patent protection, STAT writes. Cidara is developing a treatment that could provide protection from flu for people who do not mount robust responses to vaccines, including older people and those with compromised immune systems. It is also working in earlier stages on cancer therapies. Cidara shares have more than quadrupled since June, when promising Phase 2 study results of the flu treatment, known as CD388, were reported. Earlier this month, Cidara said it expected to finish enrollment in its Phase 3 study of the treatment by the end of the year.
A closely watched next-generation blood thinner being developed by Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson failed in one of three late-stage trials, STAT tells us. The drug, milvexian, is a selective factor XIa inhibitor designed to prevent harmful clotting in the blood. The companies have been testing the drug in three Phase 3 trials, in cases of acute coronary syndrome, and to address atrial fibrillation and prevent secondary strokes. But Bristol Myers reported that it will shut down the first trial, for acute coronary syndrome. In a February note to investors, Leerink analyst David Risinger said that the study in acute coronary syndrome was the least likely of the three big trials to succeed. Analysts have pegged the drug as a potential high earner. If it succeeds in the atrial fibrillation trial, it could top Eliquis, which the companies market, and bring in more than $14.5 billion in sales, Risinger wrote last year.
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