Today's Healthcare Pulse
Abridge teams with Eli Lilly and Nvidia to expand AI scribe platform
Abridge announced a strategic investment from Eli Lilly and a partnership with Nvidia to build a foundation model for clinical conversations. The collaboration aims to broaden Abridge’s AI‑scribe services across more health systems and integrate with payers. The company already supports over 300 health systems.
Also developing:
Salubris Biotherapeutics Announces Updated Phase 1/2 Data for JK06, a 5T4-Targeted Antibody Drug Conjugate, at the 2026 American Society of...
Salubris Biotherapeutics presented updated Phase 1/2 data for JK06, a 5T4‑targeted antibody‑drug conjugate, at the 2026 ASCO meeting. The study treated 173 patients across dose‑escalation and expansion cohorts, reporting a 50% objective response rate (ORR) in squamous non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at the 4.5 mg/kg dose and an overall 35% ORR with a 94% disease‑control rate in that subgroup. JK06 demonstrated a largely low‑grade, manageable safety profile with no grade 4 or 5 treatment‑related adverse events. The results justify further monotherapy expansion and combination‑therapy investigations.
Tobevibart + Elebs
Vir’s tobevibart + elebsiran hit 65.9% undetectable HDV RNA at week 24 in the SOLSTICE trial. Big step toward a potential accelerated approval for hepatitis D. HepatitisD
The Brain's Broken Plumbing: Why Diminishing Blood Flow Drives Dementia
A new review from University College London argues that declining cerebral blood flow, not amyloid or tau, is the primary driver of Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia. The authors show blood flow falls 0.3‑0.5% per year, reaching a 45‑50% deficit in...
New Analysis Finds Geographical Differences in Access to Donor Lungs, Transplants
A new study by Cleveland Clinic and Case Western Reserve University, published in *CHEST*, shows that geographic location still heavily influences access to donor lungs in the United States despite recent reforms to the lung Composite Allocation Score (CAS). Analyzing...
Predicting Drug Side Effects via LLM Pharmacology
A new study published in Scientific Reports introduces PromptSE, a framework that uses large language models (LLMs) to predict drug side effects from textual pharmacological descriptions. By converting chemical and mechanistic data into prompts, PromptSE outperforms traditional classification models in...
AI-Guided Training Lets Novices Capture Diagnostic-Quality Cardiac Ultrasound in 97.7% of Cases
UltraSight announced that nine novice clinicians achieved diagnostic-quality cardiac ultrasound images in 97.7% of 159 scans after just eight hours of AI‑guided training. The multicenter trial, published in European Heart Journal – Digital Health, suggests AI can compress the traditional...
Russia Unveils 24‑Nanometer Quantum‑Dot Platform for Early Cancer Detection
Russian scientists at Sirius University of Science and Technology announced a nanoplatform that uses 24‑nanometer quantum‑dot particles to illuminate tumors in the infrared spectrum, enabling earlier cancer detection. The device also triggers necrotic cell death, opening a pathway toward novel...
Labcorp Teams with Alliance for Clinical Trials to Boost Genetic Testing in Colorectal Cancer
Labcorp Holdings announced a collaboration with the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology to launch a national, multicenter trial focused on expanding germline and multigene panel testing for newly diagnosed colorectal cancer patients. The study, sponsored by the National Cancer...
Eikon Therapeutics Presents Data on Clinical-Stage Programs at the 2026 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
Eikon Therapeutics presented six ASCO 2026 abstracts highlighting late‑stage data for its lead candidates. In the Phase 2 TeLuRide‑005 trial, the TLR7/8 dual agonist EIK1001 combined with pembrolizumab and chemotherapy achieved a 63.1% objective response rate and a 90.8% disease‑control rate...
Global Data for BioNTech and Bristol Myers Squibb’s PD-L1xVEGF-A Bispecific Pumitamig Shows Encouraging Efficacy in Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung...
BioNTech and Bristol Myers Squibb reported interim Phase 2 data from the global ROSETTA Lung‑02 trial of their bispecific PD‑L1×VEGF‑A immunomodulator pumitamig combined with chemotherapy in treatment‑naïve advanced NSCLC. Among 40 evaluable patients, the regimen yielded a confirmed objective response rate...
Trial of Early Cancer Detection Test Misses Primary Endpoint
The NHS‑Galleri randomized trial evaluated a multicancer early detection (MCED) blood test in 142,942 adults aged 50‑77. After three annual screens, the study failed to meet its primary endpoint of reducing combined stage III/IV diagnoses for 12 prespecified cancers. However, secondary...
Exelixis Announces Results From Subgroup Analysis of Phase 3 CABINET Pivotal Trial Evaluating CABOMETYX® (Cabozantinib) in Non-Functional and Functional Neuroendocrine...
Exelixis presented a subgroup analysis of the phase 3 CABINET trial at ASCO 2026, showing that CABOMETYX (cabozantinib) significantly extends progression‑free survival (PFS) in advanced neuroendocrine tumors (NET) regardless of functional status. In non‑functional NET, median PFS was 9.4 months versus 3.1 months on...
Massive Bio Announces Next-Generation Reticulum Nexus™ Product Suite at ASCO 2026
Massive Bio unveiled the next‑generation Reticulum Nexus™ suite at ASCO 2026, integrating six AI‑driven agents—Patient Connect™, TrialRelay™, NexusPulse™ calculators, Sentinel Agents™, DrArturo AI™ and Phoebe AI™—into a real‑time orchestration layer for precision oncology. The platform moves patients from fragmented trial...
Ozempic May Be Reshaping the Brain, Scientists Say
GLP‑1 drugs such as Ozempic have become a global weight‑loss and diabetes solution, with tens of millions of users worldwide. A new brain‑imaging study of 13 young women on these medications found a rapid increase in connections within the salience...
AI-Powered Blood Test Could Transform Dementia Diagnosis
Researchers at Washington University have created an AI‑driven blood test that distinguishes Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, frontotemporal dementia, Lewy‑body dementia and normal aging with over 90% accuracy. The classifier analyzes 15 protein biomarkers from a simple blood draw and can detect mixed‑pathology...
Trump Signs Order to Slash U.S. Childhood Vaccine Schedule to 11 Shots
President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the CDC to align with a HHS assessment that trims the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule from 17 to 11 immunizations. The move, championed by the White House as “gold‑standard science,” has ignited...
AI Chatbot Kai Cuts Anxiety and Depression in Israeli Student Trial
Researchers at Reich Man University found that Kai, an AI‑driven conversational platform, lowered anxiety and depression symptoms in nearly 1,000 Israeli university students. The AI arm outperformed traditional group therapy on anxiety scores and kept 61% of participants engaged for the...
GSK’s Bepirovirsen Achieves Functional Cure in 19% of Hepatitis B Patients in Phase III Trials
GSK and Ionis reported that bepirovirsen produced a functional cure in 19% of participants across two Phase III studies of chronic hepatitis B. The antisense oligonucleotide cleared viral DNA for at least six months after treatment stopped, marking the first such result...
Tempus AI Shows Zero‑Shot Predictive Power in Oncology with Multimodal Foundation Model
Tempus AI announced early results from its multimodal foundation model at the 2026 ASCO meeting, showing zero‑shot stratification of overall and progression‑free survival in EGFR‑mutant lung cancer. The model, trained on 2.5 million patient records, outperformed traditional Cox‑PH approaches and could...
Clearmind Medicine Shares Surge 47% After Japan Patent Filing for Depression Drug
Clearmind Medicine Inc. announced a Japanese patent application covering its 5‑Methoxy‑2‑aminoindan (MEAI) depression treatment, sending the Nasdaq‑listed stock up 46.72% to $3.59. The filing strengthens the company's non‑hallucinogenic neuroplastogen IP portfolio and positions it for future market entry in Japan.
Tile-Based Radiation Improves Outcomes for Brain Metastases
A phase‑3 randomized trial presented at ASCO showed that cesium‑131 tile‑based brachytherapy, placed immediately after surgical resection of brain metastases, slashed local recurrence by 93% and boosted overall survival by 41% compared with standard postoperative stereotactic radiation. The study enrolled...
Omitting Axillary Dissection Can Benefit Women with Breast Cancer
The SENOMAC randomized trial, the largest to date with 2,540 clinically node‑negative breast cancer patients, found that omitting completion axillary lymph node dissection (cALND) after a sentinel node biopsy showing up to two metastases does not compromise five‑year overall survival...
Tempus Introduces ‘Preview’: Bridging the Critical Time Gap Between Diagnostic Order and Definitive Results
Tempus AI has launched Tempus Preview, an application that delivers preliminary, clinically relevant biomarker predictions within roughly 24 hours of tissue receipt. The tool focuses initially on high‑impact markers such as MSI‑H, EGFR mutations in NSCLC, and FGFR fusions in hepatobiliary and...
Immunome Announces Detailed Phase 3 RINGSIDE Data for Varegacestat in Adults with Progressing Desmoid Tumors at the 2026 ASCO Annual...
Immunome presented detailed Phase 3 RINGSIDE data for its gamma secretase inhibitor varegacestat at the 2026 ASCO meeting. The trial met its primary endpoint, showing an 84% reduction in progression‑free survival risk and a 56% objective response rate versus 9% with...
Encouraging Global Phase II Ivonescimab Data in First-Line Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Presented at ASCO 2026
Summit Therapeutics presented interim Phase II data from the AK112‑206 trial at ASCO 2026, evaluating ivonescimab combined with mFOLFOX6 in treatment‑naïve, microsatellite‑stable metastatic colorectal cancer. In 49 patients, the regimen achieved a 70.8% objective response rate and a disease control...
ENZAMET Trial Shows Veracyte’s Decipher Prostate Test Identifies Which Patients Benefit From Adding Chemotherapy in Metastatic Prostate Cancer
Veracyte’s Decipher Prostate genomic test was shown in the ENZAMET Phase III trial to predict which men with metastatic prostate cancer benefit from adding docetaxel to standard ADT + enzalutamide therapy. Patients with high Decipher scores (>0.85) and high‑volume disease experienced significantly better...
Tune Therapeutics Presents Positive Phase 1b/2a Proof of Concept Data on TUNE-401: A First-in-Class Epigenetic Silencer for Patients with Hepatitis...
Tune Therapeutics reported Phase 1b/2a data for TUNE‑401, an IV‑delivered LNP‑RNA epigenetic silencer, at the EASL 2026 Congress. The study showed dose‑dependent, durable repression of all key HBV biomarkers, including direct loss of cccDNA‑derived pgRNA and HBeAg in a subset of...
Melanoma's Progress, Persistent Gaps, and the Toxicity Criteria That Needed to Change: Igor Puzanov, MD
Immunotherapy has cut U.S. melanoma deaths roughly in half, dropping from about 15,000 to 7,700 annually, according to Roswell Park’s Igor Puzanov. He warns that a subset of tumors undergo epithelial‑mesenchymal transition (EMT), shedding immune‑visible markers and escaping checkpoint inhibitors. To...
Regimen May Become ‘a Standard’ for Aggressive Lymphomas
A phase‑3 frontMIND trial showed that adding tafasitamab and lenalidomide to standard R‑CHOP cuts the risk of progression or death by 25% in newly diagnosed high‑risk diffuse large B‑cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and high‑grade B‑cell lymphoma. The experimental arm achieved 71%...
KAIST Creates Gallium Needle that Softens for Safer Injections
KAIST Develops Gallium Needle That Softens at Body Temperature for Safer Injections by @tweetciiiim #MedTech #HealthTech #Tech #TechForGood https://t.co/IFKhOZhvWc
FDA Eyes PR Win with Rapid RVMD Approval
The FDA desperately needs a publicity win. Expect the $RVMD drug to be approved in record time.
Perform Cataract Surgery Midway Between Anti-VEGF Injections
Ophthalmologist Steve Charles advises that cataract surgery be scheduled at the midpoint of a patient’s anti‑VEGF injection cycle, regardless of whether injections occur every 4, 6 or 8 weeks. He argues that stabilizing wet AMD or diabetic macular edema before surgery...
STAT+: Revolution Medicines Starts Shipping Experimental Pancreatic Cancer Drug
Revolution Medicines has begun shipping its experimental pancreatic cancer therapy, daraxonrasib, to physicians through an FDA‑authorized early‑access program. The rollout follows Phase 3 data released in mid‑April showing patients lived nearly twice as long as those on standard chemotherapy—the longest survival...
Sirona Pill Cuts 400 Calories Daily, Shows 4% Weight Loss in Early Trial
Oxford Medical Products' Sirona capsule, which swells in the stomach to create a feeling of fullness, cut participants' daily calorie intake by about 400 kcal and delivered an average 4.4% body‑weight loss over 24 weeks. The early‑stage trial suggests a...
AD109 Sleep Apnea Pill Shows >50% Reduction in Episodes in Late‑Stage Trials
Biopharma firm Apnimed reported that its oral drug AD109 cut obstructive sleep apnea episodes by more than 50% in late‑stage trials. The result positions the pill as a potential first‑in‑class, non‑CPAP treatment for the roughly 80 million Americans with the disorder.
Cognizant Makes TriZetto Unify Agent‑Ready to Cut Prior Authorization Delays
Cognizant announced that its TriZetto Unify platform now supports AI agents as first‑tier consumers, debuting an electronic prior‑authorization API. The move targets the 95% of physicians who say prior authorization slows care, aiming to automate routine tasks while keeping clinical...
MD Hyperbaric Opens New HBOT Centers in Texas, Nevada and New York
MD Hyperbaric, the nation’s leading provider of medical‑grade hyperbaric oxygen therapy, announced the opening of new centers in San Antonio, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Rochester, New York. The expansion follows recent launches in Boulder, Colorado and Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, and...
Poop Tests and Blood Tests Join Colonoscopy as Options for Colorectal Cancer Screening
The American Cancer Society’s 2026 colorectal‑cancer screening update adds two non‑invasive options—a stool‑based test every three years and a blood‑based test for patients who decline colonoscopy or stool testing. The guidelines keep colonoscopy as the preferred method for high‑risk or...
Replimune Shares Jump 82% After FDA Aligns on RP1 Melanoma Filing
Replimune Group, Inc. saw its shares climb 82.34% to $8.54 after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration signaled an urgent, prioritized review of the company’s RP1 (vusolimogene oderparepvec) melanoma therapy combined with nivolumab. The alignment clears the way for a...
Day 1 ASCO26 Trials: Real Findings, Gaps, Future Directions
Beyond the hype: some reflections on half a dozen key trials presented on Day 1 at #ASCO26... what the data actually shows, where it falls short, and what comes next: https://t.co/gCjrLDwtYp https://t.co/BRjJULU29d
Six ASCO Trials Decoded: Data, Gaps, and Implications
ASCO’s opening day was filled with superlatives, yet the real insight lies in a deeper look at six highlighted trials. Those trials deliver promising efficacy signals but expose gaps such as limited safety follow‑up, short‑term endpoints, and weak control arms....
Online GLP‑1 Prescriptions Lead to Overdose Hospitalizations, Raising Safety Alarm
A telehealth company prescribed a semaglutide dose nearly nine times the standard first‑dose amount to a Tennessee woman, who was later hospitalized with overdose symptoms. The case underscores growing public‑health worries as GLP‑1 weight‑loss drugs become widely available online, often...
GammaTile Improves Metastatic Brain Tumor Outcomes Without Added Toxicity: Jeffrey Weinberg, MD
The phase 3 ROADS trial showed that intraoperative GammaTile cesium‑131 brachytherapy markedly improves local control, surgical‑bed recurrence‑free survival, and overall survival for patients with newly diagnosed metastatic brain tumors, while matching the safety profile of post‑operative stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT). In the...
Innovative Microneedle Patches for Psoriasis Treatment: A Dual Approach With Methotrexate‐Zinc and Difelikefalin for Enhanced Therapeutic Outcomes
Researchers have engineered a dual‑layer microneedle patch that co‑delivers methotrexate‑zinc (MTX‑Zn) and difelikefalin (DFK) for psoriasis. The MTX‑Zn component provides sustained anti‑inflammatory and antibacterial action, while DFK offers immediate antipruritic relief. In an imiquimod‑induced mouse model, the combined patch markedly...
FDA Clears Eli Lilly's Foundayo Pill, First Oral GLP‑1 Weight‑Loss Drug Since Novo Nordisk
The U.S. FDA has approved Eli Lilly’s once‑daily oral weight‑loss pill, Foundayo, marking the second oral GLP‑1 therapy on the market. Priced between $149 and $349 per month, the drug offers a pill‑based regimen with comparable 12% average weight loss over...
Verve Therapeutics’ One‑Dose Gene Edit Cuts LDL 62% for Six Months
Verve Therapeutics announced that a single intravenous infusion of its base‑editing drug reduced LDL cholesterol by an average 62% in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, with the effect persisting for at least six months. The result, from a small phase...
Double Burden of Malnutrition Among Children Under Five Years in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study of Prevalence and Determinants
A cross‑sectional study of 482 preschoolers in Taif, Saudi Arabia, found a striking double burden of malnutrition. Stunting affected 29.5% of children, while wasting, underweight, overweight and obesity were present in 13.5%, 11.8%, 7.7% and 11.6% respectively. Logistic regression linked...
Kenyan Court Blocks US Ebola Quarantine Facility Amid Regional Outbreak
Kenya's high court has suspended a U.S. plan to construct a quarantine facility for American travelers in Nairobi, citing legal and public‑health concerns. The decision comes as the Democratic Republic of the Congo reports over 1,000 suspected Ebola cases, prompting...
By September, Nearly a Third of Americans Will Live in States With Legal Aid in Dying
New York enacted a medical aid in dying (MAID) law that will become effective on August 5, 2025 after a decade‑long advocacy campaign led by groups such as Compassion & Choices. The legislation joins a growing national trend, and analysts project that by September...
Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns of Bacterial Isolates From Urine Samples in Selected Tertiary Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
A retrospective study of 586 urine cultures from three tertiary hospitals in Addis Ababa found that 32.3% yielded bacterial growth, dominated by Escherichia coli (35.4%) and Klebsiella spp. (20.1%). Resistance was alarmingly high to amoxicillin (83.5%), tetracycline (70.4%), ceftriaxone (72.1%)...