AGENUS Agenus (AGEN) announced the upcoming launch of its Biotech Electronic Security Token (BEST); the first digital security offering in healthcare. Tokenization enables qualified investors to directly invest in a single biotech product while preserving shareholder equity. Garo Armen, Chairman and CEO of Agenus said, "Today, by announcing the first of its kind asset backed digital security offering in healthcare, we open the doors for a transformative …

Can a liquid biopsy test be accurate enough for physicians to rely on in differentiating between malignant and benign lung nodules in early stage lung cancer and probably other cancers?  A Yes answer has come out from OncoCyte Corporation (OCX) which announced positive results from its key R&D Validation study demonstrating the accuracy of the Company’s DetermaVu™ liquid biopsy test for lung cancer.  The R&D Validation study …

Now You See it, Now You Don’t Deliberate Omissions of Real Facts Real facts might be displayed or concealed depending on the news announcers’ or bloggers’ self-interests. The following contains cases of deliberate or unintentional omission of facts that led to the decline of fundamentally sound biotech and biopharmaceutical firms in bullish market during the departed trading week . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please …

Prohost Letter #427 End of the Year Decisions ~ Part 2 As a result of the unexpected volatility in the stock market, we carefully reassessed each and very stock we picked for the Prohost Portfolio. Consequently, we had to change many of our 2019 targets in all 7 tables which represents the whole portfolio of companies we believe are offering lucrative investment opportunities. On January 3, …

Data published in Cancer Immunology Research indicate monotherapy and combination opportunities for COM701, a first-in-class cancer immunotherapy antibody targeting PVRIG CompuGen (CGEN) announced the online publication of preclinical data demonstrating the role of PVRIG as a novel immune checkpoint and the potential of its first-in-class inhibitory antibody product COM701 targeting PVRIG, to serve as an effective cancer immunotherapy. The findings were published in two peer-reviewed papers in …

Lipocine (LPCN), a specialty pharmaceutical company, announced that an approximately eight-week top-line study using LPCN 1144 in subjects with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) who might have the potential to develop NASH.  Treatment results showed an absolute mean reduction from baseline of 7.6% liver fat and demonstrated a 38% relative mean liver fat reduction from baseline. Moreover, there was an 86% responder rate in which subjects experienced …

On January 8, 2019 the osteoporosis monoclonal antibody Evenity (romosozumab) developed by Amgen and UCB was granted approval by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for osteoporosis in patients at high risk of bone fracture. Yesterday, Amgen (AMGN) and UCB (Euronext Brussels: UCB) announced that 19 out of 20 members of the  U.S. FDA, Bone, Reproductive and Urologic Drugs Advisory Committee (BRUDAC) voted YES for the approval of Evenity™ for osteoporosis …

More good news came  from Exelixis (EXEL). It was expected by many but not by those who ignore the good news in favor of any negative news or lack of news. The announced news is that the FDA approved Exelixis’ Cabometyx® (cabozantinib) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients who have been previously treated with sorafenib. More good news is Exelixis’ announcement that the firm is prepared to fully support the …

Prohost Letter #426 End of the Year Decisions ~ Part 1 We decided to make this Prohost Letter a guideline of our opinion regarding all the firms we picked for the Prohost Portfolio, rather than the few firms that we promised to elaborate on in the Prohost Portfolio that we posted on January 1, 2019 at the Prohost Biotech website . . . This content …

Exelixis collaborator, Daiichi Sankyo, Receives Regulatory Approval for MINNEBRO™ (Esaxerenone) Tablets for Hypertension in Japan Exelixis (EXEL) and Daiichi Sankyo announced that the the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) has approved Minnebro™ (esaxerenone) tablets of ,1.25 mg, 2.5 mg, and 5 mg, for hypertension. Minnebro was identified during a prior research collaboration between Exelixis and Daiichi Sankyo, which was entered into in March 2006. The product has been subsequently developed …

Gilead Sciences (GILD) has news that begins with an announcement today that Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) has approved Epclusa® (sofosbuvir 400mg/velpatasvir 100mg). Epclusa is once-daily treatment for adults with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection with decompensated cirrhosis, and for patients with chronic HCV infection without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis who have had prior treatment with a direct-acting antiviral therapy (DAA). In Japan, no treatment option …

Earlier this month the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track Designation for CTX001 for sickle cell disease (SCD). CTX001 is in clinical trials conducted by CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX). It is an investigational, autologous, gene-edited hematopoietic stem cell therapy for patients suffering from severe hemoglobinopathies. The FDA’s Fast Track program is designed to facilitate the development and expedite the review of drugs to …

Why Loxo Oncology and Sage Therapeutics Have Occupied Today's Headline News LOXO Oncology Eli Lilly (LILY) announced its intention to acquire Loxo Oncology (LOXO) for around $8 billion in cash.  The offer translates to around $235 a share, representing a premium of 69%. Loxo Oncology is developing a pipeline of targeted medicines focused on cancers that can be detected by genomic testing. We remind that last week Bristol-Myers …

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (RYTM) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for rare genetic disorders of obesity. It is currently evaluating the efficacy and safety of setmelanotide, the company’s first-in-class MC4R agonist in Phase 3 studies, in patients who suffer from POMC deficiency obesity, LEPR deficiency obesity, BBS and Alström Syndrome. It is obvious that this firm has taken advantage of …

Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) will acquire Celgene (CELG) in a cash and stock transaction with an equity value of approximately $74 billion. Under the terms of the agreement: Celgene shareholders will receive 1.0 Bristol-Myers Squibb share and $50.00 in cash for each share of Celgene. They will also receive one tradeable Contingent Value Right (CVR) for each share of Celgene, which will entitle the holder to receive a …

The NEW Prohost Portfolio Small Important Changes We are making some very small but important changes in our portfolio. Each table represents a sector among the various technological divisions that create more effective products currently being used, or intended to be used, in the management of various illnesses...