Editor’s note: Welcome to Editors' (re)View, our editors’ takes on things going on in the pharma world that deserve some extra consideration.
Promising MS treatment option
It may be too soon for a recap, but today we reported on the FDA’s first approval of biosimilar for Biogen's multiple sclerosis treatment Tysabri.
The Sandoz biosim, Tyruko, is also indicated to treat Crohn’s disease. The drug will now offer a more affordable treatment option for patients suffering with the autoimmune conditions. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disorder affecting the central nervous system, causing communication disruptions between the brain and body, and a prevalent cause of neurological disability in young adults, occurring more in women.
While there are numerous treatment options for M.S., most of them are quite pricey. Tyruko’s reference drug, for example, averages $17,244.64 for one 15 ml vial. As of October 2022, estimates indicate that the annual expense for treating MS could reach up to $88,487. Tyruko’s price tag has yet to be revealed, but the new approval should render savings for patients.
— Andrea Corona
Who wants to date a pharma bro millionaire?
Ready for some Friday levity? Martin Shkreli is newly single and looking for…something…according to his Twitter post.
The 'Pharma Bro' — who was released early from a low-security federal prison last year — posted a tweet declaring that while he doesn’t “have the time or capacity to really be in a relationship” those who are still interested can fill out a 27-question “Date Martin Shkreli Form.”
Shkreli became pharma’s most-loathed CEO in 2015 after Turing raised the price of Daraprim, which is used to prevent infections in HIV or transplant patients and treat toxoplasmosis, by 5,000% overnight. In the midst of the backlash, Shkreli was convicted of securities fraud and sentenced to seven years in a prison near Philadelphia.
I will spare you most of the details, but the form is an eclectic mix of questions that range from jail time and gang affiliations to requiring a link to prospective daters’ Github and their favorite arXiv article. (Github= AI-powered developer platform to build software. arXiv = open-access archive for scholarly articles in the fields of physics, quantitative biology, computer science, etc.)
Oddly enough, this is not the first time Shkreli’s love life has attracted media attention. In 2020, Elle magazine featured a mind-boggling profile detailing the love story between the then-incarcerated Shkreli and the reporter who broke the news of his arrest.
So in case anyone was wondering if there’s love after pharma, we may soon find out...
— Karen Langhauser
