COVID-19

Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty toppled after recording the highest ever annual sales for a pharmaceutical in 2022, while Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic climbed rapidly. But Merck & Co’s immuno-oncology blockbuster Keytruda was secure in the number one spot in 2023 as COVID-19 receded.

Social media-promoted vaccine hesitancy could have been a factor in the dip in established fourth-quarter vaccine sales with younger age groups targeted rather than seniors. Other drug categories may benefit from lifestyle changes prompted by the pandemic.

The model, more common with high-cost gene therapies, is designed to de-risk use of the drug for hospitals in the event that patients with COVID-19-related ARDS do not survive.

While attempting to move beyond post-pandemic unfavorable revenue comparisons, other unfavorable comparisons emerged at Pfizer.

A shift in the mix of drugs is helping to drive market growth, while geopolitical conflict and climate change are having effects as well, with climate change likely to become more disruptive.

Humira currently holds the record as the bestselling drug ever. But Keytruda is coming for its crown – and beyond that, Zepbound.

From the unfavorable comparisons brought about by lower pandemic-related product sales, vaccines for other diseases bring hopes for longer-term success.

The RSV vaccine performed well in the third quarter but is in a competitive fight with GSK’s Arexvy. Pfizer also announced Phase III results for its mRNA-based flu vaccine.

The company lowered Paxlovid and Comirnaty 2023 revenue projections by $9bn, announced plans for the commercial transition of the products, and revealed a cost-cutting plan.

The US biotech major says that preliminary data show that its mRNA-1083 combination vaccine yielded antibody levels in the blood similar to or greater than two Sanofi flu vaccines and its own COVID-19 shot Spikevax.

Slower COVID-19 vaccine sales will see Moderna’s revenues decline this year, but the company is investing heavily to speed a new wave of therapies to the market.

In this week's podcast edition of Five Must-Know Things: the rise of Novo Nordisk; senior level changes at Novartis; Moderna’s progress against BA.2.86; major new CNS drugs coming; and Boehringer Ingelheim’s head of innovation on R&D priorities.

Some of China's makers of COVID-19 antivirals are fast-tracking neutralizing antibodies and peptide fusion inhibitors in clinical trials, while vaccine developers are embroiled in a tougher situation against the mutating coronavirus.

Pfizer said it also had preclinical data showing that the updated version of its vaccine has activity against the subvariant, which may be able to break through immunity

The company’s Phase II POC trial did not meet the pain primary endpoint, but fatigue may be more relevant in long COVID despite the condition’s overlap with fibromyalgia.

Emergex CEO and ex-research director at the University of Oxford, Thomas Rademacher, spoke with Scrip about the myth of the “Wuhan virus” and why synthetic T-cell adaptive vaccines are expected to be superior to RNA/mRNA ones. More partners are being sought for additional delivery mechanisms, the founder of the UK-based, clinical-stage biotech says in this podcast interview.