In the halls of MD Anderson Cancer Center, the drug Vitrakvi is known for having a 'Lazarus effect' in some patients because it can reverse ...
REUTERS: In the halls of MD Anderson Cancer Center, the drug Vitrakvi is known for having a"Lazarus effect" in some patients because it can reverse late-stage cancer that has defied all other treatment options.
Lilly told Reuters the company has signed an agreement with Thermo Fisher Scientific to develop a companion diagnostic test for its experimental drug, LOXO-292. According to Dr. Brian Alexander, chief medical officer of Roche's gene testing company Foundation Medicine, only about 15per cent of U.S. patients with advanced cancers get comprehensive genomic profiling. Another 25per cent get single-gene testing, he said, and a large proportion"are not getting any testing at all."
Finding patients with such rare mutations is like"looking for the needle in the haystack," said Stefan Oelrich, head of pharmaceuticals at Bayer. Cancer patients and drug companies alike got a boost last year when the federal Medicare health program for the elderly and disabled said it would cover FDA-approved tests for advanced cancer patients that can identify hundreds of genetic mutations at once. A Medicare endorsement is generally followed by widespread coverage decisions by private insurers.
Lilly bought Loxo in January for US$8 billion to profit from its targeted drugs in early-stage development. Bayer secured the rights to Loxo's two leading compounds in a 2017 alliance.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Polyphor reinvents itself after abandoning antibiotic trialZURICH: Drugmaker Polyphor is hiring new managers and shifting focus after a trial of its top antibiotic hopeful proved too dangerous to continue, ...
Read more »
Novartis wins FDA's breakthrough tag for lung cancer hopefulNovartis has secured the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Breakthrough Therapy Designation for its investigational medicine capmatinib, which ...
Read more »
Facebook, tech companies meet with US intelligence on 2020 election strategyWASHINGTON: A number of technology companies including Facebook Inc , Alphabet's Google , Microsoft Corp and Twitter Inc met with representatives ...
Read more »
Cathay Pacific says Chairman John Slosar resigns
Read more »
ST Podcast: The Greta effect in SingaporeIn this new podcast series for 2019, The Straits Times dives into all things green, blue and brown. Green Pulse analyses the beat of the changing environment, from biodiversity conservation to climate change. . Read more at straitstimes.com.
Read more »