Rise and shine, everyone, another busy day is on the way. We can tell because the official mascot is keeping busy bounding about the official grounds in search of creatures and the parade of vehicles passing is steadily increasing. As for us, we are going about our usual affairs. First up is the ritual cup or three of stimulation. Our choice today is mocha marshmallow. As always, you are invited to join us. But please do not feel obligated. In any event, we have also been busy collecting tidbits for you to peruse, which we hope will ease your journey today. On that note, we hope you conquer the world and, of course, do keep in touch. Postcards and telegrams remain welcome. …
GSK plans to purchase Bellus Health for $2 billion, adding a promising chronic cough drug to its pipeline, STAT tells us. With the acquisition, GSK will get the experimental drug camlipixant, which is in a Phase 3 trial for refractory chronic cough. There are no chronic cough drugs approved in the United States or European Union. A readout from the study is expected in the second half of 2024, and GSK said it anticipates the medicine could receive regulatory approval in 2026. Over the past 12 months, GSK has spent approximately $6 billion to acquire three smaller drug makers — Affinivax, Sierra Oncology, and now Bellus — as it expects loss of patent protection on a key compound.