“We aim to be a start-up company with an academic spirit”

Chronic pain and Alzheimer’s are two diseases that plague many people worldwide and seem impossible to cure. However, Huddinge-based company Alzecure is working on developing drugs for both conditions.

Biosimilars bring price pressure, but are they sufficiently used?

When biosimilars were introduced just over 16 years ago, hopes were raised that they would give many more patients access to effective but otherwise extremely expensive treatments with biological drugs. So, how well has Swedish healthcare used biosimilars? The answer partly depends on whom you ask.

Bought a tablet factory – and built his own empire

In 1995, Thomas Eldered was CEO of one of Pharmacia’s factories in the Stockholm area when the Swedish pharmaceutical giant, after a takeover, decided to move its production abroad. 34-year-old Thomas was facing an imminent risk of losing his job. However, instead, it actually turned out to be the starting point for one of the biggest success stories in Swedish life science.

Marie Gårdmark: Potential step change – EU regulators get to play with data

A new pilot from EMA is starting in September to assess wether the analysis of 'raw data' by regulatory authorities improves the evaluation of marketing approval for new medicines. Marie Grådmark writes in a column that she is looking forward to the outcome of the pilot to hopefully then understand if “in house” analyses actually will add value.

Anders Blanck about his 17 years at Lif: “The industry is enjoying greater public trust now"

The announcement came as a surprise to those around him, but according to the protagonist himself, the timing was excellent. Anders Blanck is now leaving Lif – a decision that has been growing for some time. “I have been pretty much married to my mission. However, I will turn 56 this autumn, and if I’m going to do something else in my professional life, now is the time,” he says.

Sverige i jumboligan – få sjukhussängar per person

I en undersökning över hur många sjukhussängar OECD-länderna har per person hamnar Sverige hamnar på plats fem, från botten.

Amorphous materials take centre stage when Orexo develops new formulations

Swift resolution but with maintained stability. Orexo’s new drug delivery platform tackles the problem of amorphous materials. “Our technology has the positive properties of the material, and it also cracks some of the problems,” says the company’s Research and Development Manager Robert Rönn.

New rules for diagnostic products, but who will certify them? “An extreme shortage area”

In less than two weeks, new and stricter EU rules will enter into force for thousands of products used in important diagnoses of, among other things, cancer and Covid-19. However, not one single institute in the entire Nordic region is able to certify the diagnostics companies’ products according to the new regulations. “In the end, it risks affecting patients,” says Anna Lefèvre Skjöldebrand, CEO of Swedish Medtech.

Søren Bregenholt omvald som ordförande i MVA

Under Medicon Valley Alliance årsstämma fick styrelsen förnyat förtroende och valdes om.

Lucy Robertshaw: Are we in the perfect storm?

“Is there a perfect storm on the horizon again as elective surgeries were cancelled due to patients being admitted with Covid-19? We now have a long backlog of people who are presenting with chronic diseases that need to access healthcare again”, writes Lucy Robertshaw in a column.

This is how Anette Steenberg will put Medicon Valley on the world map

Anette Steenberg has been CEO of the Swedish-Danish life science cluster Medicon Valley Alliance since 1 November last year. Life Science Sweden called her to ask about her visions and the challenges of merging the worlds of Swedish and Danish life science.

CAR-T therapies give continued hope: “Almost half of the patients have become disease-free”

When the first CAR-T therapies appeared, hopes were raised for the effective treatment for critically ill cancer patients. After a somewhat sluggish start, about 90 patients in Sweden have now been treated with this method. “Almost half of them have become disease-free, at least of those treated with Yescarta, which are the ones I know best,” says Gunilla Enblad, Chairman of the national working group for CAR-T treatment.

“Together Stockholm-Uppsala and Medicon Valley can make Scandinavia a leading life science region”

“Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland all have national life science strategies, but the Swedish strategy is the only one explicitly emphasizing the Nordic dimension. But what if the leading life science nations, Denmark and Sweden, joined forces, took the lead and pioneered Nordic life science collaboration? Wouldn´t we then be able to "bake a bigger cake?", writes Anette Steenberg and Ulf G. Andersson in a debate article.

Oasmia tar in 151 miljoner – och byter namn

Styrelsen i cancerforskningsföretaget Oasmia har beslutat om en nyemission på 151 miljoner kronor. Samtidigt föreslås ett namnbyte av företaget till Vivesto.

"Transparens är centralt kopplat till hållbarhetsfrågor"

Pauline Göthberg leder regionernas arbete med hållbar upphandling. Trots att många brister har åtgärdats under senaste åren har pandemin förstärkt riskerna med förekomsten av bland annat barnarbete längre ner i leveranskedjorna

VD:n om att bygga världsföretag: ”Utveckla inte läkemedel för Nobelpris”

För att bygga ett medicinskt företag i världsklass krävs fyra grundelement, enligt Ascelia Pharmas vd Magnus Corfitzen. – Tre av dem blir ni inte överraskade av. Den fjärde, I don´t know, sa han när han talade på The Future of Swedish & Danish Life Science.

Anna Törner: You won’t find this many Concorde projects anywhere else

"Suddenly Concorde projects seem reasonable in life science because it´s about life and death", writes Anna Törner in a column.

Grundare och känd forskare lämnar Alligator Bioscience

Alligator Bioscience grundare Carl Borrebaeck lämnar bolaget i protest mot valberedningens förslag på ny styrelse. ”Företaget dräneras på immunonkologisk kompetens”, säger han.

Hjälp - svensk industri efter i digitaliseringen

En internationell undersökning som it-konsultbolaget Experis gjort visar att svenska företag digitaliserar och automatiserar sin verksamhet långsammare än jämförbara länder.

Marie Gårdmark: Big data evidence generation drives change in the EU regulatory system

Rapid developments in technology have led to the possibility for the generation and analysis of vast volumes of data. Will the availability of big data lead to fundamental changes to the regulatory system? In a column Marie Gårdmark, CEO and Senior Consultant at RegSmart Life Science, develops her views on this subject.

Column: Why there cannot be a complete cure for cancer – but there is certainly another way!

"Is there a new way we need to be thinking about how to prevent cancer?" Lucy Robertshaw reflects upon which is the smartest way to beat cancer.

Anna Törner: Ingenstans finns så många Concordeprojekt

Plötsligt känns det rimligt med Concordeprojekt inom life science – för att det handlar om liv och död, skriver Anna Törner i en krönika.

Björn Arvidsson: Let's build on the positive momentum

Progress needs narratives and heroes, and more than ever, going into the new year feels like an opportunity for a fresh start.

New diagnostic test soon ready for the market