Australia is the skin cancer capital of the world, but with a shortage of dermatologists, patients often wait too long to get skin checks that could end up costing them their lives.

Innovent Biologics Inc. unveiled for the first time safety and efficacy data of IBI-354, an HER2 monoclonal antibody-camptothecin derivative conjugate that shows promising efficacy signals across a range of advanced solid tumors, during the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2024 Congress. An HER2-targeted antibody-drug conjugate developed using Innovent's topoisomerase inhibitor NT3 platform, IBI-354 combines a hydrophilic linker design with a hydrophobic payload to enhance the bystander effect, targeting adjacent antigen-low or negative tumor cells.

Radiopharmaceutical company Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. is continuing its buying spree to shore up dominance in the radiopharmaceutical market with its latest acquisition of RLS Radiopharmacies for $250 million to expand its U.S. manufacturing presence and establish a next-generation radiometal production network.

Chengdian (Suzhou) Biopharmaceutical Co. Ltd. has received IND clearance from the FDA, allowing it to initiate a first-in-human phase I trial of CD-001.

More than three months ago, investors first learned that ivonescimab, a PD-1/VEGF-targeting bispecific antibody from Summit Therapeutics and Akeso Pharmaceuticals Inc., bested Keytruda (pembrolizumab) in PD-L1-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). At the 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer over the weekend, Summit rolled out detailed data from the phase III Harmoni-2 trial, which included a nearly doubling of progression-free survival for ivonescimab compared to Merck & Co. Inc.’s established blockbuster drug.

Technological breakthroughs are changing the biopharmaceutical landscape and forcing regulators to think on their feet and facilitate (not impede) innovation, experts said at the Global Bio Conference (GBC) 2024. “Regulatory speed and agility are necessary amid emergencies to cater to unmet medical needs,” Choong May Ling, CEO of Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority, told audience members in Seoul, South Korea.

Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region for health care spending, and by 2030 APAC will account for more than 20% of global health care spending, Tom Lawry, managing director of Second Century Tech told the APACMed Forum 2024 conference held in Singapore, Sept 5-6.

South Korean artificial intelligence-based drug developer Pharos Ibio Co. Ltd. said that the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) granted an orphan drug designation for PHI-101, a second-line therapy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML).