The Readout Loud

Why is old exon science getting new traction? What’s unsettling biotech VCs? And who will be the next CEO of PhRMA?

Adam is out, so Elaine and Allison dive into the latest news, including how China and artificial intelligence are straining biotech VC firms, in addition to more M&A. They also discuss how a cancelled Food and Drug Administration meeting led to a biotech’s demise. Plus, there’s new hope for an old theory on treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy. STAT reporter Jason Mast details the clinical testing underway.

How has the Food and Drug Administration's recent decisions on rare disease drugs affected investment trends? Why is Eli Lilly getting into sleep medicine? And where did Allison go on her vacation?

We discuss all that and more on this week's episode of “The Readout LOUD,” STAT's weekly biotech podcast. Biotech investor Rod Wong joins us to talk about why an industry-patient coalition he's part of sent a letter to President Trump asking for more regulatory flexibility at the FDA.

We also discuss the U.S. approval of Eli Lilly's obesity pill, recent deal-making by large pharma companies, a strange story about promotion of psychedelic drugs on YouTube, and more.

On this week’s episode of "The Readout LOUD": Allison DeAngelis is still away, leaving Elaine Chen and Adam Feuerstein to mind the podcasting store. You've been warned.

Eli Lilly’s deal man Jake van Naarden is very, very busy, so what does that mean for biotech and pharma? Speaking of deals, Merck is buying Terns for nearly $7 billion. Why are some people mad about it?

You might be surprised to hear this, but off-the-shelf CAR-T therapies for cancer are still a thing. We preview an interesting data readout coming soon from Allogene Therapeutics. And finally, someone forgot to tell Wave Life Sciences that weight loss drugs are supposed to help people lose weight.

On this week's episode of "The Readout LOUD," we bring you a special conversation with Stelios Papadapolous, also know as the "godfather" of biotech. He sat down for an on-stage chat with our colleague Damian Garde Thursday afternoon during STAT’s Breakthrough Summit East event in New York City.

We also chat about the latest biotech news, including new weight loss data from Structure Therapeutics and Eli Lilly, plus recent staff departures from the Food and Drug Administration.

How was a known friend of Jeffrey Epstein able to raise $100 million, with the help of a prominent biotech VC? And will Vinay Prasad return to the Food and Drug Administration for a "three-peat"?

Damian Garde joins Allison, Adam, and Elaine to discuss his article about Boris Nikolic, a well-connected biotech investor with deep ties to Jeffrey Epstein, who has raised a new biotech investment firm.

The hosts also talk about Prasad's second exit from the FDA and a congressman's probing of the agency's rare disease drug denials. And they recap Novo Nordisk and Hims' detente and Xenon Pharmaceuticals' promising seizure data.