“Lack of knowledge is the true bottleneck to clinical translation. We need to stop telling basic scientists, especially trainees, that their work’s value lies in its translatability.” That is the unexpected advice of none other than William Kaelin Jr., whose scientific discoveries have proved to be both top-rate science and very translatable indeed. His work, for which Kaelin has won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and a host of other awards, has enabled the development of multiple therapies targeting anemia and cancer, including vadadustat.

Millions of people are affected by blood disorders, and the prevalence is expected to grow as our population ages. It is not surprising that, according to the American Society of Hematology, the FDA approved several new therapies – or new indications for previously approved therapies – in 2019 for people living with non-malignant blood disorders. Those included two disease-modifying treatments for sickle cell disease and the first anticoagulant for venous thromboembolism management in children.

At 26 years old, Karen Jury stood before a class of elementary students as her right arm tingled before falling completely numb. That led to a conversation with her doctor. Years of migraine headaches and a recurring sensation of shock waves throughout her body, simply from the turn of her head, resulted in a scheduled spinal tap and an MRI. She received a diagnosis of Arnold-Chiari malformation, a structural defect in the base of the skull and cerebellum.

Jaime Sanders was just a child, barely 8 years old, when a debilitating condition kept her inside from recess and home from school. “I would get these intense headaches focused on the left side like a sledgehammer was banging on my head,” she said.

While the efficacy of three central nervous system (CNS) drugs awaiting regulatory approvals is not vastly different from currently marketed products, their formulations and methods of delivery, combined with what payers will support, make them formidable players in the multiple sclerosis (MS) and migraine markets.

No matter how effective it is, a drug is worthless if the people who need it can’t afford it. That’s been almost an anthem for patients and policy wonks testifying before U.S. Congress on drug prices.

New analysis from Clarivate Analytics' Cortellis Forecast Team predicts 11 medicines set to enter the market in 2020 will reach more than $1 billion in sales by 2024.

Data for this report were compiled from Cortellis, the suite of life sciences intelligence solutions from Clarivate Analytics. Cortellis includes the broadest and deepest range of sources of intelligence across the R&D lifecycle, including annual filings, drug pipelines, clinical trials, patents, chemistry, deals, conferences and company announcements.