Evaluating the infected blood scandal and the outcomes of its inquiry

Welcome to the July/August issue of Pharmafocus!

This issue includes all of the latest pharma news, from the launch of Eisai and Biogen’s Leqembi in China for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (page 4) and Gilead’s phase 3 clinical trial data for its HIV preventative (page 6) to the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of AbbVie’s Skyrizi for ulcerative colitis treatment (page 9) and Oxolife sharing phase 2 results for its new infertility drug (page 2), in addition to some fascinating articles.

Also in this issue, UCB considers how disease-modifying solutions may introduce a new era in treatment for epilepsies, looking specifically at how this could address an unmet need in the area (page 13). In addition, ProPharma evaluates how AI can be used in patient support, especially considering how it can be used to streamline operations and supplement human expertise (page 16), while Owen Mumford turns to sustainability, assessing the action needed to make drug discovery processes more sustainable and evaluating how the industry can meet its net zero goals (page 14).

Finally, I explore the lead up and resolution of the infected blood inquiry, creating an important timeline from the 1970s up to today. I also focus on the need for victim compensation and how the government eventually came to decide on its compensation plan (page 18).

I hope you find the time to enjoy the issue this summer, and Pharmafocus will be back soon with the September issue!

Betsy Goodfellow