To say that 2014 was a good year for the biopharma industry would be a radical understatement. The flourishing capital markets, the record-breaking number of companies successfully going public via initial public offerings and the validation of scientific breakthroughs that only a few years ago had been mere theories all made for a banner year for the sector. Yet as BioWorld compiled its annual list of the most impactful stories, the top story was one that dominated headlines worldwide: the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa.