Lynne Peterson is the Senior Writer for Trends-in-Medicine.

Here is the medical news to watch for March 15-21, 2021.

Cardiology

  • The Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT) virtual meeting has been taking place every weekend since February 13. On Friday, March 19, the topic of the day will be shock therapy. The next day will have live cases, talks on physiology, nutrition, and advanced techniques for complex lesions.
  • The FDA is expected to make a decision by March 21 on expanded approval for rilonacept (Arcalyst), a weekly injectable IL-1 inhibitor that Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals licensed from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, to treat recurrent pericarditis.
  • The International Stroke Conference (ISC21) will take place virtually March 17-19. There will be a special focus on the cerebrovascular manifestations of Covid-19, a debate on conscious sedation vs. general anesthesia, a discussion of the future of neuroprotection in stroke, and, of course, late-breaking science abstracts.
  • The European Society of Cardiology’s Cardio Genomics 2021 will take place virtually March 20. The focus of the meeting is promoting genetic and genomic literacy among healthcare professionals, particularly greater awareness of genomic medicine in cardiology and improving patient care through therapeutic innovation.

Endocrinology: The Endocrine Society’s annual meeting, ENDO 2021, will take place virtually March 20-23. Among the data to watch:

  • Phase II trial results for a CaSR antagonist (BridgeBio Pharma/Calcilytix Therapeutics’ encaleret, CLTX-305) in autosomal dominant hypocalcemia Type 1 (ADH1).
  • Details of the phase III trial of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’ Imcivree (setmelanotide), an MC4R agonist, in people with obesity due to Alström syndrome or Bardet-Biedl syndrome.
  • Phase I and II data on a CRF1 receptor antagonist (Spruce Biosciences’ tildacerfont) in classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia.
  • Phase III results with Strongbridge Biopharma’s Recorlev (levoketoconazole, COR-003), a cortisol synthesis inhibitor, in endogenous Cushing’s syndrome.

Nephrology

  • The FDA was expected to make a decision by March 20 on an oral HIF-PH inhibitor that promotes erythropoiesis in chronic kidney disease patients with anemia, FibroGen and AstraZeneca’s roxadustat. However, the FDA now wants an advisory committee review, which hasn’t yet been scheduled, so it is likely that the decision will be postponed.
  • The annual Renal Physicians Association (RPA) meeting will be virtual this year on March 18-20. Among the interesting topics: disruptive innovation, new payment models, Covid-19 and the kidney, telehealth, peritoneal dialysis, and an update on HIF-PH inhibitors.

Neurology: The virtual Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Clinical and Scientific Conference will take place March 15-18. Among the data to watch:

  • New long-term functional data from a phase I/II trial of Sarepta Therapeutics’ SRP-9003 in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy Type 2E (LGMD2E).
  • Sarepta’s SRP-9001 in a Phase II trial in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
  • A gene therapy (Solid Biosciences’ SGT-001) in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Oncology: The Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) International Conference on Surgical Cancer Care will take place virtually March 18-19. The first day will focus on breast, colorectal, endocrine, head & neck, and hepato-pancreato-biliary cancer. The next day will consider melanoma, peritoneal surface malignancies, sarcoma, and upper gastrointestinal cancer.

Pharmacology: The second part of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (ASCPT) virtual meeting is March 15-17. Among the topics in this part of the meeting: use of real-world data, the role of translational informatics in the Covid-19 pandemic, a patient forum, and more posters.

Lynne Peterson, Contributing Writer, Senior Writer for Trends-in-Medicine

Cat ID: 914

Topic ID: 74,914,730,914,533,795,935,718,903,192,725

Author