Welcome to the October issue of Pharmafocus!

This month’s magazine includes the latest news, from Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy being made available in the UK (page 4) and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency granting marketing authorisation to AbbVie’s Aquipta for migraine treatment (page 8), to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence publishing draft guidance for the use of AI in radiotherapy treatment planning (page 11) and Abbott acquiring Bigfoot Biomedical (page 12).

As well as the news, this issue also includes a fascinating article from PacBio on how whole genome sequencing can be used in the diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases and how this differs from other sequencing methods (page 18), another from Veeva exploring the role of generative AI in life sciences sales and marketing as well as how this can improve pharma sales (page 14), and Daiichi Sankyo considers the burden of breast cancer and novel precision medicine treatments (page 16).

Also in this issue, I consider the significance of World Mental Health Day on 10 October and the importance of looking after our mental health in the autumn and winter months when many people struggle with seasonal affective disorder (page 20).

As the summer seems to finally be on its way out, I hope you find time to cosy up with your favourite blanket and enjoy this issue!

Betsy Goodfellow