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Post by cgiscgis on Feb 10, 2016 3:40:32 GMT -5
Sanofi is hiring no name journalists to cover their a$$ to make a lawsuit more difficult. Very insulting behavior, but what else can you expect in the biotech space!? I never liked frog legs!
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Post by tchalaa on Feb 10, 2016 4:18:47 GMT -5
Sanofi’s ‘conflicted’ handling of Afrezza stunted inhaled insulin R&D, says Dance CEO Sanofi dilemma Despite Sanofi’s “conflicted” management and subsequent abandonment of Afrezza, the market opportunity for inhaled insulin is still huge, according to Dance Biopharm's CEO. ..., Sanofi abandoned its commercialisation deal for the inhaled insulin product Afrezza, leaving developer MannKind Corporation looking for a new distribution and licensing partner. The news is the latest blow to the inhaled insulin sector which was left unsettled following the failure of Exubera in 2007. A lack of acceptance by patients and physicians led Pfizer to pull its product a year after launch and at a cost of $2.8bn, and within a matter of months fellow Big Pharma firms Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk abandoned their own development projects. Despite this background, Dance Biopharm’s CEO John Patton said there is still a market for inhaled insulin, though Sanofi’s actions have marred his own company’s efforts in developing Dance-501, a pocket-sized inhaler device and insulin container designed to deliver prandial insulin. “The less-than-optimal performance of Sanofi with Afrezza has had an impact on our development, because investors have become more sceptical about inhaled insulin, so raising money has been difficult and that has slowed our development effort.” he told in-Pharmatechnologist.com. “This particular news is not helping!” He continued, blaming both Exubera and Afrezza’s problems primarily on a lack of persistence and commitment by their marketers. “Exubera never had a chance, and Afrezza may have been priced too high and was targeted to a very small percentage of the insulin users.” Conflict of interest Sanofi is looking to reinvigorate growth in its diabetes franchise through its marketed products Lantus and Toujeo, and Patton said this left the French Pharma Giant “conflicted” when it came to Afrezza. “Inhaled insulin can directly compete with Lantus and Toujeo in Type 2 patients, and with all of the prandial insulins in both Type 1 and 2 they were conflicted. No way Sanofi was going to go against its golden goose franchise.” Last February, Dance raised $9.5m in private funding to prepare for further clinical trials of Dance-501. The product is a soft mist made by a little electronic device which has completed Phase II trials and, according to the firm, has an action not quite as fast as Afrezza but lasts longer than MannKind’s product. “Inhaled insulin will be enormously successful someday,” Patton said. “We believe our soft mist product will lead the way.” www.in-pharmatechnologist.com/Drug-Delivery/Dance-Biopharm-Sanofi-s-Afrezza-handling-stunted-inhaled-insulin-R-D
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Post by mindovermatter on Feb 10, 2016 7:04:22 GMT -5
Well it's evident that Bernie Sanders is going to focus on the drug companies. He targeted three of them tonight. He didn't say who they are so it's hard to determine if Sanofi was one of them. But you can imagine that drug stocks will tank tomorrow. Bernie's comments below We should not be paying by far the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs at a time -- listen to this, when the top three drug companies in this country made $45 billion dollars in profit last year. That is an obscenity, and let me tell you something. When we make it to the White House, the pharmaceutical industry will not continue to rip-off the American people. Feel the Bern..... If only Socialist Bernie Chavez Sanders was as passionate about going after BIG GOVERNMENT that rips off the American people in a way no other industry can and does.
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Post by liane on Feb 10, 2016 7:44:36 GMT -5
OK - enough politics or this will get locked.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 10, 2016 9:38:42 GMT -5
Here's what I wrote just now to the WSJ's reporters: Dear Denise and Noemie, I was glad to see your article this evening in the Wall Street Journal. I have family members with diabetes and have followed the Afrezza story closely over the past year. Since “any publicity is good publicity”, I’m happy more diabetics now will know about Afrezza. But there were significant omissions in your coverage (perhaps caused by lack of space) which may in fact end up discouraging diabetics from trying Afrezza. They include: * There was absolutely nothing “substantial” about their efforts. By any measure, Sanofi made only minimal efforts to promote Afrezza. There is evidence of only one or two poorly designed print ads and not one TV ad. There is no evidence whatsoever that they educated or encouraged their reps with any real commitment. * Thus it was much less a question of safety concerns with users of Afrezza (you’ve read the chat and seen the Youtube videos, I’m sure, about the across-the-board positive and in many instances life-changing experiences from diabetics about Afrezza), it was simply an issue that the vast majority of diabetics and many endoctrinologists have not yet even heard of Afrezza. * Through careful reading of one of the better discussion boards (e.g. ProBoards), you may likely suspect that Sanofi in fact clearly decided - likely from the moment the leadership passed to Mr. Brandicourt — to sandbag Afrezza, so it would not cut into sales of their Toujeo insulin. * One of the ways in which Sanofi sandbagged MannKind was to set and keep a premium price, as you noted. This is easily the reason many of the original adopters did not renew their prescriptions. (And of course, as you know, Mannkind will not venture any public statements on any of these issues as they are still negotiating with Sanofi the exact terms and timing of the termination agreement.) * Afrezza replicates exactly what the pancreas produces: it is the only insulin on the market that is a monomer, not a polymer, like injectable ones. This provides not only rapid uptake but also fast dispersal from the blood, which makes it much less likely to cause long-term health issues to other organs. Sincerely, TB You make great points but like anything in life I think she is being a bit diplomatic in order to not burn herself for future articles
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Post by harryx1 on Feb 10, 2016 9:45:41 GMT -5
I know for a fact that several Afrezza users from this board & Twitter sent in their stories to the author of the WSJ article. Obviously many were not used. I would encourage everyone that to use the comment section of the article to convey the success you have had on it and/or the insurance issues you've had with it.
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Post by harryx1 on Feb 10, 2016 10:10:08 GMT -5
#RealStory
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Post by factspls88 on Feb 10, 2016 13:02:09 GMT -5
Sanofi’s ‘conflicted’ handling of Afrezza stunted inhaled insulin R&D, says Dance CEO Sanofi dilemma Despite Sanofi’s “conflicted” management and subsequent abandonment of Afrezza, the market opportunity for inhaled insulin is still huge, according to Dance Biopharm's CEO. ..., Sanofi abandoned its commercialisation deal for the inhaled insulin product Afrezza, leaving developer MannKind Corporation looking for a new distribution and licensing partner. The news is the latest blow to the inhaled insulin sector which was left unsettled following the failure of Exubera in 2007. A lack of acceptance by patients and physicians led Pfizer to pull its product a year after launch and at a cost of $2.8bn, and within a matter of months fellow Big Pharma firms Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk abandoned their own development projects. Despite this background, Dance Biopharm’s CEO John Patton said there is still a market for inhaled insulin, though Sanofi’s actions have marred his own company’s efforts in developing Dance-501, a pocket-sized inhaler device and insulin container designed to deliver prandial insulin. “The less-than-optimal performance of Sanofi with Afrezza has had an impact on our development, because investors have become more sceptical about inhaled insulin, so raising money has been difficult and that has slowed our development effort.” he told in-Pharmatechnologist.com. “This particular news is not helping!”He continued, blaming both Exubera and Afrezza’s problems primarily on a lack of persistence and commitment by their marketers.
“Exubera never had a chance, and Afrezza may have been priced too high and was targeted to a very small percentage of the insulin users.”
Conflict of interest Sanofi is looking to reinvigorate growth in its diabetes franchise through its marketed products Lantus and Toujeo, and Patton said this left the French Pharma Giant “conflicted” when it came to Afrezza. “Inhaled insulin can directly compete with Lantus and Toujeo in Type 2 patients, and with all of the prandial insulins in both Type 1 and 2 they were conflicted. No way Sanofi was going to go against its golden goose franchise.”
Last February, Dance raised $9.5m in private funding to prepare for further clinical trials of Dance-501. The product is a soft mist made by a little electronic device which has completed Phase II trials and, according to the firm, has an action not quite as fast as Afrezza but lasts longer than MannKind’s product. “Inhaled insulin will be enormously successful someday,” Patton said. “We believe our soft mist product will lead the way.” www.in-pharmatechnologist.com/Drug-Delivery/Dance-Biopharm-Sanofi-s-Afrezza-handling-stunted-inhaled-insulin-R-DI have to admit that I am embarrassed that I was unaware of Dance Pharma, a potential competitor to Afrezza, but better late than never. I applaud the CEO's bluntness when he speaks of the hatchet job Sanofi did on Afrezza and the category of inhaled insulin. It appears that the observations of an expert in the category, ie the CEO, align with those of many of us with respect to Sanofi's efforts in support of Afrezza and monumental conflict of interest vs. their own products. I suspect Mannkind management privately has the same view. What is especially concerning is his view of the damage Sanofi did to inhaled insulin and investor confidence in the category. Mannkind has huge obstacles to overcome to stay in business. I hope that whatever management is doing will remove those obstacles enough to start anew. The TS partnership is a great start. I hope that we are able to say that the likes of Google or Paul Allen and his VC fund are behind RLS. Even better if it is eventually revealed that Afrezza is as well. That could be a tall order, but I am hanging on until we find out.
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Post by factspls88 on Feb 10, 2016 13:11:08 GMT -5
Here's what I wrote just now to the WSJ's reporters: Dear Denise and Noemie, I was glad to see your article this evening in the Wall Street Journal. I have family members with diabetes and have followed the Afrezza story closely over the past year. Since “any publicity is good publicity”, I’m happy more diabetics now will know about Afrezza. But there were significant omissions in your coverage (perhaps caused by lack of space) which may in fact end up discouraging diabetics from trying Afrezza. They include: * There was absolutely nothing “substantial” about their efforts. By any measure, Sanofi made only minimal efforts to promote Afrezza. There is evidence of only one or two poorly designed print ads and not one TV ad. There is no evidence whatsoever that they educated or encouraged their reps with any real commitment. * Thus it was much less a question of safety concerns with users of Afrezza (you’ve read the chat and seen the Youtube videos, I’m sure, about the across-the-board positive and in many instances life-changing experiences from diabetics about Afrezza), it was simply an issue that the vast majority of diabetics and many endoctrinologists have not yet even heard of Afrezza. * Through careful reading of one of the better discussion boards (e.g. ProBoards), you may likely suspect that Sanofi in fact clearly decided - likely from the moment the leadership passed to Mr. Brandicourt — to sandbag Afrezza, so it would not cut into sales of their Toujeo insulin. * One of the ways in which Sanofi sandbagged MannKind was to set and keep a premium price, as you noted. This is easily the reason many of the original adopters did not renew their prescriptions. (And of course, as you know, Mannkind will not venture any public statements on any of these issues as they are still negotiating with Sanofi the exact terms and timing of the termination agreement.) * Afrezza replicates exactly what the pancreas produces: it is the only insulin on the market that is a monomer, not a polymer, like injectable ones. This provides not only rapid uptake but also fast dispersal from the blood, which makes it much less likely to cause long-term health issues to other organs. Sincerely, TB I think this is excellent. Thank you for taking the time to respond to the WSJ.
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Post by LosingMyBullishness on Feb 10, 2016 13:25:55 GMT -5
Where are the reporters who really dig into the available material? Nothing about phase 1 instead or phase 2, nothing about thermostability. Not even a bit of sandbagging hyphothesis. Instead the old irrelevant spiro-issue (a thing that costs about 100 bucks), 3rd tier and needlephobia. The whole "surprise,.." marketing was so misdirected that it will have a legacy as Exubera does.
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Post by hawaiiguy42 on Feb 10, 2016 13:49:46 GMT -5
Afrezza will not end up like Exubera did... not if a "REAL" investigative reporter reveals to true Sanofi story. Who or whatever reporter that steps up to plate shall make a huge success in their reporting and make a name for themselves that everyone can "TRUST."
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Post by liane on Feb 10, 2016 13:50:25 GMT -5
factspls88, Not anywhere near being a competitor, and may never be. The Dance product is a nebulizer - so far less convenient to use than a Dreamboat. Also, tiny company, and a long way from potential approval.
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Post by suebeeee1 on Feb 10, 2016 13:58:02 GMT -5
I know for a fact that several Afrezza users from this board & Twitter sent in their stories to the author of the WSJ article. Obviously many were not used. I would encourage everyone that to use the comment section of the article to convey the success you have had on it and/or the insurance issues you've had with it. Great idea. Except I can't leave a comment without subscribing. Willing to write a statement and send through any member who fits subscribe. Email me.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 10, 2016 14:07:39 GMT -5
Where are the reporters who really dig into the available material? Nothing about phase 1 instead or phase 2, nothing about thermostability. Not even a bit of sandbagging hyphothesis. Instead the old irrelevant spiro-issue (a thing that costs about 100 bucks), 3rd tier and needlephobia. The whole "surprise,.." marketing was so misdirected that it will have a legacy as Exubera does. Send the story to VICE. Some of the conservative old fart republicans on this board will whine about it being a liberal backed media outlet but they are the closest thing to telling the truth nowadays
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Post by factspls88 on Feb 10, 2016 14:37:18 GMT -5
factspls88 , Not anywhere near being a competitor, and may never be. The Dance product is a nebulizer - so far less convenient to use than a Dreamboat. Also, tiny company, and a long way from potential approval. Agree that Dance is not near being a competitor since they are still in development, added to the fact that it appears their product is inferior to Afrezza, but I believe it's important to know who is playing, or trying to play, in the same place you are.
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