BUSINESS INSIGHTS, VIEWS AND ANALYSIS
Rancho BioSciences | February 02, 2023
On February 1, 2023, Rancho Biosciences, a leading provider of data sciences services, announced that BenevolentAI has joined the SCDS consortium as its fifth member. Rancho Biosciences launched its Single Cell Data Science (SCDS) pre-competitive consortium on February 26, 2022, with four Charter Members: Bristol Myers Squibb, Janssen Research & Development LLC, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies, Novartis, and Vesalius Therapeutics.
The consortium's mission is to establish a uniform industry standard for creating and formatting single-cell datasets through a systematic effort to build data models and ensure that public data are curated consistently. Due to the evident impact of single-cell transcriptomics technology on drug discovery, pharmaceutical firms continue to adopt single-cell sequencing techniques at an exponential rate.
The availability of ever-increasing volumes of single-cell datasets in the public domain enables pharmaceutical companies to vastly increase their universe of single-cell experiments over those generated internally. However, harnessing this enormous public data lake by locating, downloading, and curating single-cell data is difficult and time-consuming compared to the resources required for scientists to analyze data to derive value for biomedical research collectively.
To date, Rancho has provided 83 analysis-ready datasets by using its extensive curation knowledge and expertise. Each dataset contains 79 columns of curated metadata that have been verified against a 4-entity data model developed by Rancho for SCDS. Based on member priorities, Rancho will continue to contribute a steady stream of harmonized single-cell datasets to the consortium. With this shared cost model, these may be supplied at a far higher throughput and much more cost-effectively than a single company could do.
About Rancho BioSciences
Founded in 2012, Rancho BioSciences is a global fee-for-service data curation firm that provides analysis and development services to clients, including pharma, foundations, government, and biotech. With a global team of qualified Ph.D. and Ph.D./MD scientists that provide high-quality work based on their expertise and domain knowledge in biology, diseases, and clinical data, it strives to find cures for diseases by serving its clients and saving lives through Data. It aims to be the world's leading provider of data services and harness domain skills and expertise to address complex problems.
Read More
BUSINESS INSIGHTS, PHARMACY MARKET
DirectRx Pharmacy | February 15, 2023
On February 14, 2023, DirectRx, a leading national specialty pharmacy committed to serving individual patients with chronic and complex health needs, announced the launch of a new website and a suite of team member training programs.
The new website emphasizes the company's dedication to working with patients and prescribers to provide the best possible care. The training programs are designed to assist team members in developing professionally.
The DirectRx website emphasizes the company's concern for patients and dedication to collaborating with doctors to offer the highest quality care. The new additions to the website consist of a Prescribers tab highlighting the key ways in which DirectRx collaborates with its prescriber partners; a manufacturers tab highlighting the company's "industry best" time-to-fill, adherence and conversion rates; and an interactive Careers tab to help grow the DirectRx team.
Additionally, DirectRx has launched new training and development programs for team members to help them improve their skill set and stay with the firm longer. The new programs include pharmacy technicians in training, account managers in training and regional patient care coordinators in training. The specialty pharmacy is also expanding its managerial positions, including a customer service manager role and others.
DirectRx's Director, Alban Ivezaj, commented, "We're very excited to launch our new website as we feel it better captures our commitment to compassionate patient care and the best-in-class services we offer to our provider partners." He added, "As a result of that commitment, DirectRx has experienced significant growth across all regions of the U.S. - including servicing all 50 states and a 26 percent increase in the number of patients we serviced in 2022."
(Source – Globe Newswire)
About DirectRx Pharmacy
Founded in 1985, DirectRx is an independent pharmacy committed to providing patients with exceptional, individualized pharmaceutical care. With the belief that communication and teamwork are crucial to achieving good treatment outcomes, the physician, patient, and pharmacist form a circle of integrated services and coordinated care, so there are no gaps in patient care between physician and pharmacist. It stands apart from the competition due to its concern and commitment to providing unmatched customer service. The company is accredited by ACHC, NABP, WBENC and URAC. Since its establishment over three decades ago, the company has expanded to 49 states.
Read More
PHARMACY MARKET, PHARMA TECH
Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc and Zymeworks Inc. | December 28, 2022
Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc and Zymeworks Inc. recently informed that the former has chosen to keep its exclusive rights to develop and sell Zymeworks' Zanidatamab in key markets, such as the U.S., Europe, and Japan, as part of the license and collaboration agreement made in October 2022.
A pivotal trial in previously treated HER2-amplified biliary tract tumors (BTC) found that 41.3% (95% CI: 30.4, 52.8) of recruited patients with HER2-amplified and expressing (IHC2+ and 3+) illness achieved an objective response as judged by independent central review. The median response length was 12.9 months (95% CI: 5.95 to not attained). In this trial, Zanidatamab's safety profile was similar to what had been found in previous studies of monotherapy, while no new safety signals were found.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals stated that the compelling top-line clinical data from the pivotal study in patients with BTC demonstrated the transformative potential of Zanidatamab. This big win gives the company more confidence that it can make this medicine better for cancer patients who have big unmet needs. Even though its main focus will be on the ongoing clinical trials for BTC and GEA, these data will add to the growing amount of evidence that Zanidatamab is effective against a wide range of HER2-expressing cancers.
Zymeworks expressed that the collaboration with Jazz is going well, which will speed up the global development of Zanidatamab in many types of cancer and may give patients with hard-to-treat cancers and few treatment options access to a basic HER2-targeted drug.
Jazz will pay Zymeworks $325 million to exercise its option to develop and sell Zanidatamab in all countries except Asia-Pacific in the fourth quarter of 2022.
About Jazz Pharmaceuticals
Jazz Pharmaceuticals, founded in 2003 and located in Dublin (Ireland), innovates to improve the lives of patients and their families. The company transforms biopharmaceutical discoveries into innovative medications to reimagine what's possible.
About Zymeworks
Zymeworks develops next-generation multifunctional biotherapeutics. Zanidatamab is a new Azymetric™ HER2-targeted bispecific antibody being examined in numerous Phase 1, Phase 2, and pivotal clinical trials globally as a targeted therapeutic option for patients with HER2-positive solid tumors. Zanidatamab Zovodotin (ZW49) is a bispecific antibody-drug combination in Phase 1 clinical development. It combines Zanidatamab's unique design and antibody framework with Zymeworks' ZymeLink™ linker-cytotoxin.
Read More