Today's Healthcare Pulse
FDA greenlights durvalumab combo for high‑risk bladder cancer
The FDA approved durvalumab (Imfinzi) combined with Bacillus Calmette‑Guerin for BCG‑naïve, high‑risk non‑muscle invasive bladder cancer. The POTOMAC trial enrolled 1,018 patients and showed a 32% reduction in disease recurrence risk (hazard ratio 0.68, p=0.015). Durvalumab is given at 1,500 mg IV every four weeks for up to 13 cycles.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Apogee Therapeutics raises $1.3B royalty financing
Biogen to Acquire Apellis for $5.6 B, Shares Jump 136% on Deal
Biogen announced a definitive agreement to buy Apellis Pharmaceuticals for $41 a share in cash, valuing the transaction at roughly $5.6 billion. The deal lifts Apellis shares 135.7% to $40.28 and adds two marketed complement‑inhibitor drugs, EMPAVELI and SYFOVRE, to Biogen’s portfolio.
Frailty, Innovation, and the Future of Myeloma Treatment With Joseph Mikhael, MD
Joseph Mikhael, MD, highlights a dramatic shift in multiple myeloma care for older adults, driven by refined frailty assessments and the rise of targeted immunotherapies such as CAR‑T cells and bispecific antibodies. These advances have translated into higher survival rates...
Chapter Partnership with OU Drives Student Engagement
Over the past two years, the HFMA Oklahoma Chapter partnered with the University of Oklahoma Hudson College of Public Health to embed HFMA certifications into the MHA curriculum. The collaboration has led 54 students to earn the Certified Specialist in...
Pennsylvania’s New ENDS Directory Law Raises the Bar for Market Access
Pennsylvania enacted Act 57 of 2025, creating an ENDS directory that limits market access to products with FDA PMTA approval before September 9, 2020. The law imposes a $50,000 surety bond, $2,000 per brand‑family and $200 per brand‑style certification fees, plus annual renewals, and...
Effective Device Management Requires Collaboration of Clinical Engineers, IT Teams
Medical devices are becoming increasingly sophisticated, blurring the lines between engineering and information technology responsibilities, says McLaren Health Care’s Samantha Jacques, a HIMSS26 Changemaker Award winner. She argues that effective device management now demands close collaboration between clinical engineers and...
More Research Links Artificial Sweetener Erythritol to Stroke Risk
A new animal study suggests that erythritol, a zero‑calorie sugar alcohol popular in low‑carb foods, may promote blood clot formation in the brain, raising concerns about stroke risk. Researchers observed increased cerebral clotting in mice fed typical dietary levels of...
Key Neurons Can Jumpstart Leg Movement After Spinal Injury
Researchers identified a rare subset of graft‑derived interneurons that can reconnect broken spinal circuits and trigger leg muscle activity in animal models of spinal cord injury. When these neurons were experimentally activated, 20‑30% of the subjects showed measurable leg movements,...
Pharma Goes on $25.5B, Eight-Day Acquisition Spree
Pharmaceutical companies launched an eight‑day acquisition blitz, with six firms announcing deals worth about $25.5 billion. Two of those transactions involve upfront payments exceeding $5 billion each, underscoring the aggressive pace. The deals focus on securing biotech pipelines and specialty drug assets...
Expanding ACCESS: Transplant Strategy Boosts Survival in Blood Cancers, Offers Potential Savings
The phase 2 ACCESS trial demonstrated that post‑transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) combined with tacrolimus and MMF enables high‑survival outcomes for patients receiving mismatched unrelated donor peripheral blood stem cell transplants. One‑year overall survival reached 86% for donors mismatched at less than 7/8...
Elaine Chen Showcases Biotech Deals and Mind‑bending Insights
I'd like to draw your attention to my fantastic @statnews colleague @elaineywchen. She led the way our obesity drug coverage, is a host on our podcast, and writes our biotech newsletter most days. Today has two big examples of the...
Trump Administration Tells Hospitals to Align With New Nutrition Guidelines
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a Quality and Safety Special Alert urging hospitals to redesign patient meals in line with the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which prioritize fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and minimally processed proteins while...
Is a ‘Genuinely Held’ Political Belief Enough for a Vaccine Exemption?
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal dismissed a registered nurse's challenge to a COVID‑19 vaccine mandate, ruling that a vague medical note does not constitute a protected disability and that a genuinely held political belief does not exempt compliance with...
‘Boy Erased’ Author on the “Humiliation” Of Supreme Court Gay Conversion Therapy Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an 8‑1 decision that treats gay conversion therapy for minors as protected speech, sharply limiting states' ability to ban the practice. Author Garrick Conley, whose memoir *Boy Erased* chronicled his own abusive experience, described the...
TippingPoint Raises $4.5M Seed to Drug Hidden Epigenetic Targets in Deadly Pediatric Brain Cancer
TippingPoint Biosciences announced a $4.5 million seed round led by SOSV and LKS Fund to advance its epigenetic drug discovery platform. The company targets protein‑protein interfaces within disease‑specific chromatin environments, aiming at sites traditionally deemed undruggable. Its inaugural program focuses on...
Haag-Streit Launches Metis 3D Digital Heads-Up Module Worldwide
Haag‑Streit has launched its Metis 3D Digital Heads‑Up Module worldwide, extending the Metis 900 microscope line with a 4K, 3‑D visualization platform. The system places a high‑resolution screen in the surgeon’s line of sight, allowing a more upright posture and reducing neck...
Detect Polyps Early, Prevent Cancer Decades Later
March has been colorectal cancer awareness month. A reminder of the work of Bert Vogelstein, one of the most cited cancer researchers in history. He showed that colorectal cancer is a slow, stepwise process (often over 20–25 years): normal tissue ➡️...
Turning Muscles Into Motors Gives Static Organs New Life
MIT researchers unveiled a myoneural actuator (MNA) that rewires sensory nerves to transform existing muscle into a fatigue‑resistant, computer‑controlled motor for paralyzed organs. In rodent models the MNA restored intestinal squeezing and mimicked residual calf muscle function while sending sensory...
Team Discovers Brainstem Pathway that Controls Human Hands
Researchers have identified a brainstem‑spinal network that coordinates hand and arm movements, revealing two medulla regions and cervical spinal segments C3‑C4 act as relays between the cortex and hand muscles. Functional MRI in mice and humans showed this pathway is...
Experts Call for Lung-RADS Updates Amid Concern About Certain Incidental Findings
Researchers at Brown University analyzed over 75,000 low‑dose CT scans from the National Lung Screening Trial, covering more than 26,000 participants. They found that about 7% of exams contained significant incidental findings (SIFs) that were cancerous, and roughly 3% of...
Repeated Crackdowns Notwithstanding, Unsafe Blood Banks Thrive in Lucknow
Around 60 blood banks, including 29 charitable ones, operate in Lucknow despite repeated Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) inspections that uncovered critical safety lapses. Inspections have repeatedly flagged missing testing equipment, absent qualified doctors, and poor record‑keeping, yet many...
BREAKING: Doctors Warn About Plot to Euthanize MILLIONS OF MENTALLY ILL
Canadian psychiatrists testified before a parliamentary committee that expanding Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) to include mental illness alone is premature. They highlighted unreliable data, inadequate screening for suicide risk, and a surge in Track 2 MAiD use among vulnerable groups....
Turn CMS-0057-F Into a Competitive Advantage
CMS‑0057‑F, a new regulatory mandate, is prompting health plans to shift from viewing it as a compliance burden to a strategic advantage. Payers are aligning the rule’s four required APIs with business goals, automating prior‑authorization, and improving data sharing. By...
MicroShunt Offers Sustained Reduction in IOP in Patients With Glaucoma
A six‑year, single‑center study of 1,001 eyes shows the PreserFlo MicroShunt dramatically lowers intraocular pressure (IOP) and medication use in glaucoma patients. IOP fell from a baseline 24.8 mmHg to 9.6 mmHg one day after surgery and remained around 13.7 mmHg through four...
Yuvezzi for Presbyopia Now Available in US
Tenpoint Therapeutics announced that Yuvezzi, the first FDA‑approved eye‑drop for presbyopia, is now commercially available in the United States. The formulation combines carbachol 2.75 % and brimonidine tartrate 0.1 % to induce pupil constriction within 30 minutes, providing up to ten hours...
FastFinance: Hospital Non-Patient Revenue; ACA Plan Changes
HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter has launched a podcast, offering finance leaders a new audio format for industry updates. A recent HFMA analysis reveals that non‑patient‑care services now generate the majority of hospital revenue, with patient‑care share varying widely by hospital type....
AI Identifies Multiple Dementias From One Blood Sample
Researchers at Lund University have unveiled a deep joint‑learning AI model that can simultaneously identify five neurodegenerative conditions—including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, frontotemporal dementia, and prior stroke—from a single blood sample. Trained on the Global Neurodegenerative Proteomics Consortium’s database of over...
Misinformation Spreads Before April Fools, Targeting Vaccines, GLP‑1
It’s not even April fools yet and people are still making posts against vaccines and GLP-1 meds.
HIMSSCast: Nurturing National Standards for AI in Patient Care
The Nursing and Artificial Intelligence Innovation Consortium, led by FSU Dean Jing Wang, is tackling the gap between laboratory‑tested AI tools and real‑world nursing workflows. It aims to create national standards that embed nurses in AI‑enhanced clinical processes, ensuring predictions...
Using Persuasive Technologies in Value-Based Health Care
Persuasive technologies are emerging as essential tools for value‑based health care, turning policy goals into daily patient actions. By providing feedback loops, personalized recommendations, and habit‑forming reminders, they improve medication adherence, chronic disease self‑management, and post‑surgical recovery. Remote monitoring and...
Vanda’s Tradipitant Has Phase II Success but a Court Setback
Vanda Pharmaceuticals reported that its NK1‑receptor antagonist tradipitant achieved its primary endpoint in a Phase II trial for gastroparesis, showing a roughly 30% improvement in nausea scores versus placebo. The data suggest the drug could address a sizable unmet need in...
New Bipartisan Bill And Physician Pay Cuts: What Patients Need To Know
A bipartisan Provider Reimbursement Stability Act of 2025 aims to halt the erosion of Medicare physician payments by capping annual cuts at 2.5 % and raising the budget‑neutrality threshold to $54.3 million, indexed to medical inflation. The bill also mandates five‑year reviews...
AI-Built Intrabodies Target Alzheimer’s Within
University of Essex researchers used artificial intelligence to redesign antibody fragments, creating "intrabodies" that remain stable inside human cells. By adjusting electrical charge, they converted 672 antibodies into intracellularly functional molecules that bind disease‑causing proteins linked to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s...
Subtle Antiaging Injectables Become Allergan’s Next Bet
At AMWC 2026, Allergan Aesthetics announced a strategic pivot toward “undetectable” hyaluronic‑acid injectables, emphasizing subtle, personalized maintenance rather than dramatic transformation. The company released a consumer study of 12,000 respondents showing over 70% prefer natural‑looking, reversible results. Allergan frames this...
Wireless Medical Device Compliance: Free White Paper
Wireless functionality is now standard in medical devices, but it adds a parallel set of regulatory hurdles across global markets. Manufacturers must secure CE RED, UKCA, FCC, and ISED approvals in addition to traditional device clearances, even when using pre‑certified...
Diabetes Eye Damage Linked to Higher Dementia Risk
New research published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology tracked nearly 770,000 older adults and found that type 2 diabetes patients with worsening diabetic retinopathy face a markedly higher risk of dementia. Those with the most severe retinal disease had...
Time‑Restricted Eating Lowers Testosterone and Improves A1C in Women with PCOS
University of Illinois Chicago nutrition professor Krista Varady reported that a six‑hour time‑restricted eating protocol reduced testosterone, lowered free androgen index and improved A1C in a six‑month trial of 76 women with PCOS, while participants lost an average of 10 pounds....
Series Highlights Lifestyle Medicine for Diabetes
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine unveiled “Project Remission,” a digital film series highlighting how lifestyle‑medicine interventions can lead to type 2 diabetes remission. The series features real‑world case studies, expert interviews, and implementation models such as group visits and dedicated...
FLAV-27 Reverses Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer Mice, Study Shows
Scientists at the University of Barcelona Institute of Neurosciences have demonstrated that the novel compound FLAV-27 can reverse cognitive decline in mice engineered to develop Alzheimer's disease. The breakthrough, which targets the brain enzyme EHMT2 to reprogram neuronal epigenetics, offers...
EB-2 NIW Case Study: Neurologist From Colombia Approved to Expand Alzheimer’s Care in Underserved Rural Communities
Colombo & Hurd secured an EB‑2 National Interest Waiver for a Colombian neurologist specializing in Alzheimer’s disease, enabling him to expand affordable, non‑pharmacologic care in underserved rural U.S. communities. The petition was approved in just three days with premium processing...
Modified Immune Cells Target Cancer’s Metabolic Signature
Stanford researchers engineered natural killer (NK) and cytotoxic T cells to overexpress metabolite‑sensing G protein‑coupled receptors, most notably GPR183, enabling the cells to home toward tumor‑derived metabolic cues. In mouse models of triple‑negative breast and ovarian cancer, GPR183‑enhanced NK‑92 cells...
Alamar Biosciences Files Nasdaq IPO After $128M Series C and 100‑Hire Surge
Alamar Biosciences, the Fremont‑based proteomics company, filed to go public on Nasdaq after raising $128 million in a Series C round and adding almost 100 employees in two years. The move marks the firm’s transition from research‑focused labs to commercial sales of...
AI-Enabled Digital Health Startups Pull $14.2B in 2025, Outpacing Peers by 19% Premium
Digital health startups raised $14.2 billion in 2025, a 35% increase from the prior year, with AI‑enabled companies capturing 54% of the capital and enjoying a 19% premium on deal size. The surge is reshaping venture strategies as investors chase AI‑driven...
Childhood Trauma Linked to Elevated Risk of Simultaneous Physical and Mental Illness in Old Age
A new longitudinal study of 4,015 Chinese adults aged 45 and older shows that adverse childhood experiences dramatically increase the likelihood of developing both clinical depression and a chronic physical disease later in life. Participants with four or more childhood...
Perimenopause: A Cardiovascular Turning Point, Not Just Gynecologic
Perimenopause is not a gynecologic problem. It’s a cardiovascular turning point, and we’ve been treating it like a nuisance symptom. In fact, I’ve been teaching this in a deeper way lately, and the response has been eye-opening. The most dangerous...
Most Cancer Treatment Posts Spread Harmful Misinformation Online
Since I'm teaching misinformation today, here are some "fun" facts from a 2021 research article published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In a review of 200 widely shared cancer treatment articles on social media (Facebook, X, Reddit, etc),...
Killer Cells Eradicate Superbugs in a Single Day
Forget Antibiotics: These Killer Cells Wipe Out Deadly Superbugs in a Day by @ShellyFan https://t.co/KVAaK61555 https://t.co/cXP8loNRHn
Irregular Bedtimes Double Your Heart Disease Risk
Irregular Bedtime Doubles Cardiac Risk - https://t.co/zh3GeyBz0n via @neurosciencenew #sleep #lifestylemedicine #health #pavingwellness #CardioTwitter #hearthealth
Healthcare Embraces AI Twice Faster Than Other Sectors
Healthcare is adopting AI at 2x the rate of other industries. Lenovo’s Healthcare CTO calls it “assistive intelligence.” What that means for the hospital of the future. 👉 https://t.co/eGplzkBn4T @Lenovo @DukeHealth #CES2026 #HITSM
Is Healthcare Tech True Software? AI Safety Debate
Has healthcare tech ever really been software? And therefore is it more safe in an era of AI? I debate this topic with: Equities research Stephanie Davis & Omada Health's Sean Duffy #OMDA 👇 https://t.co/O7smcV1gkX
First Humanoid Robot Gets FDA Clearance for Spine Surgery
World’s First Surgical Humanoid #Robot Achieves FDA-Cleared Precision in Spine Surgery by @StarSnap_1 #MedTech #Healthcare #HealthTech #Tech #TechForGood https://t.co/aks0DC51ns