Joseph Tyler, MS, Consultant at Pharmsupply Inc.
Brian Tham, Biotechnology Consultant at Pelegrine Bio.

On November 22nd, Nephron hosted a KOL call on the bioprocessing industry.  Bioprocessing has historically been one of the fastest growing areas of our coverage, and we think the long-term outlook is bright. However, the industry is facing some short-term headwinds from excess inventory and the roll-off of demand for COVID-19. Topics of discussion on this conference call included an overview on the environment for bioprocessing purchasing, stocking trends, demand dynamics from COVID-19, views on various suppliers and product categories, and a discussion on quality of CDMO participants. Both of our experts have significant experience as industry consultants in helping customers establish biologics manufacturing and evaluate these big debates.

On October 5th, we hosted an expert call discussion on how the ECLIPSE results and potential introduction of liquid biopsy might influence the market for CRC screening. Topics of discussion included adoption of non-invasive diagnostics for colorectal cancer screening, such as Cologuard and liquid biopsy. In addition, we will discuss the how emerging entrants in liquid biopsy stack up in the testing paradigm.

On September 8th, we hosted a KOL call with two researchers to discuss their experience with Illumina and considerations when evaluating competitor systems. Dr. Joseph Powell is a current NovaSeq customer, who weighed in on purchasing perspectives through the eyes of a high-throughput customer. Dr. Yuriy Alekseyev is a current NextSeq customer performing RNA Seq research, who discussed the competitive considerations for mid-throughput customers. Topics of discussion included an overview on research spending trends, experience working with Illumina, and perspectives on the credibility of emerging competitive launches.

Myriad published the results of the PRIME Care Study on Tuesday afternoon in JAMA. In the 2K patient study, GeneSight was successful on both of the co-primary endpoints. Despite the rosy headlines, the devil is always in the details! Such was the case with the GUIDED Study published in 2019.

To help pick through the results, Nephron hosted a Q&A call  with the leading KOL in the category of pharmacogenetics: Dr. Charlie Nemeroff. Topics of discussion included a review of the PRIME Care study, the pros and cons of the data, implications for clinical adoption of the test and payor coverage, and thoughts on the regulatory environment for pharmacogenetic testing. The primary company in focus wasMyriad Genetics (MYGN).

On Friday we were joined for a discussion with two diagnostics experts, Ms. Camille Hu and Terry Robins, who provided an on-the-ground view as to what is happening in the China market for diagnostics testing. Topics of discussion included:

1) Perspectives on investments in the Diagnostics industry in China;
2) An update on COVID-19 trends in the region and implications for the diagnostics industry; 3) An overview on how the Chinese national government, local provinces and cities approach Diagnostics purchasing;
4) Recent updates around procurement initiatives in the Diagnostics industry;
5) Perceptions of Western multi-national companies in the region;
6) An overview on the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals.

On March 29th, Richard Panico and John Diaz joined us for an update on the latest trends in biopharma services. The durability of biopharma investment has been a major area of focus for our CROs and life science tools coverage to start 2022. In this discussion, we debated funding trends, clinical trial demand, the impact of consolidation of the CRO industry, demand for labor, and also discuss the use of data and technology in clinical trials.

Following the ASCO-GI annual meeting, Nephron hosted a discussion with two key opinion leaders to discuss the latest innovation in diagnostics for colorectal cancer (CRC). Topics of discussion included adoption of non-invasive diagnostics for colorectal cancer screening, such as Cologuard and liquid biopsy. In addition, we discussed the latest data updates from Exact Sciences for Cologuard 2.0, and how emerging entrants in liquid biopsy stack up in the testing paradigm. Finally, we discussed the latest updates in minimal residual disease (MRD) testing and recurrence monitoring in clinical practice for treatment of GI cancers.

Heading into 3Q21 earnings, one of the top debates for our coverage is the China region – and changes in policy which may encourage “buy local” initiatives in Diagnostics. Diagnostics experts  Dr. Mao Mao and Ms. Camille Hu joined us for a discussion and provided an on-the-ground view as to what is happening in the market. Topics of discussion included:

1) An overview on how the Chinese national government, local provinces and cities approach Diagnostics purchasing

2) Recent updates around procurement initiatives in the Diagnostics industry

3) Perceptions of Western multi-national companies in the region

4) An overview on the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals

5) An update on the sequencing market, and competition for Illumina from BGI

This morning, Nephron hosted Dr. Albert Vilella for a conversation focused on next generation sequencing (NGS) and genomics technologies.  Topics of discussion included investment trends in NGS, an overview on the differentiation amongst new platforms under development, a discussion on the relative cost and quality of different systems, and how the competitive landscape could change over the next few years.

On Monday July 12th, Nephron hosted Ross Margulies of Foley Hoag. Topics of discussion included:

• The status of 340B under the Biden administration, including the threat to fine drug makers for curtailing distribution of discounted drugs to contract pharmacies, the role, if any of alternative dispute resolution to resolve the issue, and what might be next from the administration.
• An update on the many lawsuits by drug makers, hospitals and other entities concerning the contract pharmacy issue.
• Forecasting the most likely legal, legislative, and regulatory outcome.