Axiom Catalyst

May is ALS Awareness Month and this year Axiom is marking it with a dedicated podcast to help raise awareness about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) also known as motor neuron disease. ALS is fatal with the average life expectancy after diagnosis being two to five years, although some patients may live for years or decades. There is still no known cure for ALS and current treatment options primarily target symptoms to improve quality of life, rather than stopping the disease progression.

In this episode of Axiom Catalyst, Anna Graca is speaking with Dr Tim Williams from the Newcastle MND Care and Research Centre about how this devastating disease affects each individual differently and tremendous efforts of treating physicians and care coordinators to provide a personalised support to these patients and their families. 

There are~ 30 million people in Europe alone living with a rare condition, of which 75% have neurological symptoms. While significant progress has been made to address needs of these patients, key challenges remain including the scarcity of the expertise and fragmentation of research efforts that translate into delayed diagnosis, few disease modifying therapies, and difficulty in accessing adequate care.

In this episode of Axiom Catalyst, we invited Frédéric Destrebecq, the Executive Director of the European Brain Foundation and European Brain Council to discuss how coordinated efforts between patient organisations, research and clinical networks, drug innovators and policy makers, can tackle these challenges and reduce the high burden posed by rare neurological disorders in Europe and beyond.

While significant therapeutic advances are underway for inherited blood disorders such as sickle cell disease, hemophilia and β-thalassemia, key challenges remain for the commercialization of these therapies, as well as disparities in access to these treatments and level of care received by patients.

In this episode of Axiom Catalyst, we invited John James, CEO of Sickle Cell Society to discuss the impact of sickle celldisease on day-to-day lives of patients living in the UK, as well as current challenges in their clinical journey. We also explore the outreach work done by the Sickle Cell Society including key local initiatives such as the Hackney engagement project, and the translatory impact of their patient support work.

Join Nicole, Kiana, and Madelyn's discussion on updates seen at ASCO GU 2023. We analyze some of the most anticipated read outs in RCC, bladder, and prostate cancers and consider what this data means for physicians and patients.

Join Justin, Rodrigo and Eriko’s discussion on bispecific antibody and CAR-T therapies. These innovative options are increasingly becoming available in late-line treatments for heme cancers. In this episode, we cover the advantages and disadvantages of bispecific and CAR-T treatments, emerging CRS considerations, as well as future directions for both modalities in how they pertain to myeloma and lymphoma treatment.

Join Mahim, Samy, & Aman on exciting updates following the ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium data readouts as we start 2023 with some exciting updates. In this episode, we share the latest news following recent approvals, 3-year data readouts, and developments in Gastrointestinal, Pancreatic, Colorectal, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, and Biliary Tract Cancer.

Join Mahim and Allegra's discussions on the latest developments in gynecologic oncology as we wrap up 2022 and enter into the new year. In this episode, we recap the impact of antibody drug-conjugate approvals in cervical and ovarian cancers, new PARP inhibitor data in ovarian cancer, and exciting immunotherapy results in frontline endometrial cancer.

In collaboration with Nick Gherardin from University of Melbourne, and Hafiz, Anne has recently co-authored a review article in Frontiers in Oncology about the novel clinical strategies companies are taking to bring gamma delta-inspired therapies to the clinic.

Anne Cherry joins the Axiom Catalyst with Mahim Misra to discuss her paper and some of the exciting developments in gamma delta inspired therapies.

Dr. John Tsai, former President of Global Drug Development and CMO of Novartis, joins the Axiom Table with Hafiz Sikder. The conversation spans the changing landscape of Immuno-Oncology, AI, and the impact of COVID-19.

Michelle Werner, CEO Partner of Flagship Pioneering and CEO of Alltrna, joins Hafiz Sikder to discuss her work and role at Alltrna as well as her personal investment in the field. She dives deep into the impact of tRNA on drug development, premature stop codons, and her drive to do more for rare disease.