Alex Kesin's Pharmacopoeia
@alexkesin.skystack.xyz
Ruminations about biotech and drug development - one overly earnest blog post at a time.
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This is an automated Substack Account of https://alexkesin.substack.com
Discover more/Create at: @skystack.xyz
Would Walter White Still Cook Meth in 2025? • Or: How Modern Oncology and Employer Insurance Would Have Ruined the Entire Premise
Would Walter White Still Cook Meth in 2025?
Or: How Modern Oncology and Employer Insurance Would Have Ruined the Entire Premise
www.alexkesin.com
December 5, 2025 at 12:34 AM
Would Walter White Still Cook Meth in 2025? • Or: How Modern Oncology and Employer Insurance Would Have Ruined the Entire Premise
The three-thousand-year journey of colchicine • For centuries it was a poison. Then colchicine rewrote treatment for gout, heart disease, and later, the debate over drug exclusivity.
The three-thousand-year journey of colchicine
For centuries it was a poison. Then colchicine rewrote treatment for gout, heart disease, and later, the debate over drug exclusivity.
www.worksinprogress.news
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The three-thousand-year journey of colchicine • For centuries it was a poison. Then colchicine rewrote treatment for gout, heart disease, and later, the debate over drug exclusivity.
Fun with FGF21 • ...Did everyone just panic-buy an FGF21?
Fun with FGF21
...Did everyone just panic-buy an FGF21?
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Fun with FGF21 • ...Did everyone just panic-buy an FGF21?
How Amgen Lost The PCSK9 Patent War • In 2014, Amgen sued Sanofi and Regeneron to claim ownership of an entire class of cholesterol drugs. Nine years later, the Supreme Court ruled against them - but they won where it mattered most.
How Amgen Lost The PCSK9 Patent War
In 2014, Amgen sued Sanofi and Regeneron to claim ownership of an entire class of cholesterol drugs. Nine years later, the Supreme Court ruled against them - but they won where it mattered most.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
How Amgen Lost The PCSK9 Patent War • In 2014, Amgen sued Sanofi and Regeneron to claim ownership of an entire class of cholesterol drugs. Nine years later, the Supreme Court ruled against them - but they won where it mattered most.
The Cowboy Of Generic Drugs • A review of Yossi Goldstein's "Eli Hurvitz and the Creation of Teva Pharmaceuticals"
The Cowboy Of Generic Drugs
A review of Yossi Goldstein's "Eli Hurvitz and the Creation of Teva Pharmaceuticals"
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Cowboy Of Generic Drugs • A review of Yossi Goldstein's "Eli Hurvitz and the Creation of Teva Pharmaceuticals"
The Day Novartis Chose Discovery • How a Swiss pharma giant built the last great corporate research skunkworks - and why that model may never work again.
The Day Novartis Chose Discovery
How a Swiss pharma giant built the last great corporate research skunkworks - and why that model may never work again.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Day Novartis Chose Discovery • How a Swiss pharma giant built the last great corporate research skunkworks - and why that model may never work again.
The Hollow Men of Hims • An admittedly partial–but deeply troubling–case against America's most brazen medical grift, involving Chinese knockoffs, subscription traps, and prescription gas station sex pills.
The Hollow Men of Hims
An admittedly partial–but deeply troubling–case against America's most brazen medical grift, involving Chinese knockoffs, subscription traps, and prescription gas station sex pills.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Hollow Men of Hims • An admittedly partial–but deeply troubling–case against America's most brazen medical grift, involving Chinese knockoffs, subscription traps, and prescription gas station sex pills.
Against "Against Life Extension" • A response to Francis Fukuyama's case against longevity research
Against "Against Life Extension"
A response to Francis Fukuyama's case against longevity research
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Against "Against Life Extension" • A response to Francis Fukuyama's case against longevity research
Biotech Life in the Software City • What it's like living as someone working in biotech in San Francisco.
Biotech Life in the Software City
What it's like living as someone working in biotech in San Francisco.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Biotech Life in the Software City • What it's like living as someone working in biotech in San Francisco.
Still Here, Still Jewish
Still Here, Still Jewish
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Still Here, Still Jewish
Mr. Secretary, Reclassify the Statin • One regulatory stroke could save more American lives than a decade of health campaigns. You have the pen.
Mr. Secretary, Reclassify the Statin
One regulatory stroke could save more American lives than a decade of health campaigns. You have the pen.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Mr. Secretary, Reclassify the Statin • One regulatory stroke could save more American lives than a decade of health campaigns. You have the pen.
Playing Poker With Marty Makary • Populism, policy, and poker: Makary’s volatile hand at the FDA
Playing Poker With Marty Makary
Populism, policy, and poker: Makary’s volatile hand at the FDA
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Playing Poker With Marty Makary • Populism, policy, and poker: Makary’s volatile hand at the FDA
The Pageant of Responsible Longevity • On the quiet horror of healthspan science and its desperate decorum
The Pageant of Responsible Longevity
On the quiet horror of healthspan science and its desperate decorum
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Pageant of Responsible Longevity • On the quiet horror of healthspan science and its desperate decorum
Monologues for Molecules • A not-so-casual reminder that your molecule isn’t a molecule—it’s a movie pitch.
Monologues for Molecules
A not-so-casual reminder that your molecule isn’t a molecule—it’s a movie pitch.
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Monologues for Molecules • A not-so-casual reminder that your molecule isn’t a molecule—it’s a movie pitch.
Charles River Is In Trouble • Their moat is made of dead animals – but now the rats are leaving. Can Charles River take the hit?
Charles River Is In Trouble
Their moat is made of dead animals – but now the rats are leaving. Can Charles River take the hit?
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Charles River Is In Trouble • Their moat is made of dead animals – but now the rats are leaving. Can Charles River take the hit?
What Skiing Really Means in San Francisco
What Skiing Really Means in San Francisco
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
What Skiing Really Means in San Francisco
The Mice Will See You Now: FDA’s Roadmap to Stop Requiring Animal Testing Eventually If You Ask Nicely and Say Please • (Kind of, eventually, maybe)
The Mice Will See You Now: FDA’s Roadmap to Stop Requiring Animal Testing Eventually If You Ask Nicely and Say Please
(Kind of, eventually, maybe)
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The Mice Will See You Now: FDA’s Roadmap to Stop Requiring Animal Testing Eventually If You Ask Nicely and Say Please • (Kind of, eventually, maybe)
Does the NIH Still Work? • Legacy, lethargy, and the urgent case for reinvention
Does the NIH Still Work?
Legacy, lethargy, and the urgent case for reinvention
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Does the NIH Still Work? • Legacy, lethargy, and the urgent case for reinvention
China’s leap in pharma: slow and fast trends behind its rise
China’s leap in pharma: slow and fast trends behind its rise
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
China’s leap in pharma: slow and fast trends behind its rise
6 ways the new FDA can turbocharge drug development
6 ways the new FDA can turbocharge drug development
www.alexkesin.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:32 PM
6 ways the new FDA can turbocharge drug development