The BIO International Convention has concluded.  Hosted by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), this year’s Convention drew 17,307 attendees from 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and 65 countries to Philadelphia and its burgeoning biotech community.Continue reading→

Read more at Tucson.com: https://tucson.com/business/planned-oro-valley-biotech-incubator-secures-additional-funding/article_556b35e7-6c14-59d2-a0eb-9ef9bc4e0efc.html

PHOENIX, AZ – June 5, 2019 – OncoMyx Therapeutics, a privately-held oncolytic immunotherapy company founded on the myxoma virus (MYXV) platform from Arizona State University (ASU), announced today the completion of a $25 million series A financing led by Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund (BIVF), Delos Capital, and Xeraya Capital with participation from Korea Investment Partners (KIP), City Hill Ventures, and Madison Partners. OncoMyx plans to use the proceeds to advance development of its lead oncolytic virus (OV) therapeutic program for the treatment of various cancers.Continue reading→

• Roche’s VENTANA ROS1 (SP384) Rabbit Monoclonal Primary Antibody is the first and only in vitro diagnostic ROS1 immunohistochemistry assay on the market
• The biomarker may provide a cost-effective and efficient means to initially identify elevated ROS1 protein expression in cancer
• ROS1-positive cancer cases, which are predominantly found in younger non-smokers,¹ account for 1-2 percent of all non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cases

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This is an exciting time in biomedical innovation. New and highly innovative therapies are coming to market that promise significant improvements in patient health. They include a range of novel approaches to treating disease, like gene therapy, immunotherapy, and RNA interference. Many of the most transformative new therapies are designed to target serious, unmet medical needs among often small groups of patients.

Take gene therapy, for example. Gene therapies that are expected over the next few years have relatively small patient populations—ranging from 1,100 to 35,000 patients. A new therapy that’s expected to be approved any day by the FDA will treat spinal muscular atrophy, a fatal disease that afflicts an estimated 500 children each year.

How society pays for these medical breakthroughs is becoming an important part of the broader conversation around the cost of prescription drugs. As that discussion unfolds, it’s important to keep a couple things in mind.Continue reading→

The first approved gene therapy for a neuromuscular disease is now  available for children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) thanks to AveXis, a Novartis company.

SMA is caused by a mutated or missing survival motor neuron 1 gene (SMN1) that prevents the body from making enough survival motor neuron protein (SMN), ultimately leading to the loss of motor neurons, muscle weakness, and paralysis seen in SMA.

Newborn screening requirements for SMA in Arizona is the next important step.

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Rapid, accurate cancer test is critical for dogs’ treatment and survivalContinue reading→

When testing for such as lung cancer disease, doctors know that tissue biopsies are necessary and potentially life-saving, though the procedures used to gather tissue can lead to dangerous complications, from bleeding to lung collapse. To lower the need for invasive procedures, researchers at the University of Arizona developed a new blood test that can detect most major cancers and have launched a startup, DesertDx, to bring the invention to doctors and their patients.Continue reading→