COVID-19

Despite sales success in Japan and a fast track designation in the US, Shionogi’s oral COVID-19 therapeutic has missed statistical significance in a global Phase III trial in patients with mild to moderate symptoms.

In this week's podcast edition of Five Must-Know Things: AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria farewell; the next wave of cardiometabolics; Pfizer recruits prominent analyst: foundation pleas for China rare disease therapies; and Gossamer partners up for respiratory therapy.

But it rescues embattled Novavax.

The voluntary withdrawal of the license for the UK major's COVID-19 vaccine is due to a surplus of available updated jabs from other companies that target new variants and is not connected to the mis- and disinformation being peddled on the internet and elsewhere on very rare adverse events.

Pfizer’s management team addressed topics ranging from COVID-19 revenues to Medicare’s drug negotiation program and new product launches.

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.