Jonah Comstock
@jonahcomstock.bsky.social
Editor in Chief, pharmaphorum. Digital health and pharma journalist. One half of Pirate Not Included. Posts are my own.
The Oncology 2025 issue of Deep Dive is out! This one is packed with ASCO content, a fascinating story from @elmerphante.bsky.social about the intersection of animal intelligence and artificial intelligence in early cancer detection 🐶 , an interview with MIT's Andrew Lo by yours truly, and more!
Deep-Dive
As barriers rise for women’s birth control research, could men’s options finally take off?
pharmaphorum.com
July 9, 2025 at 1:43 PM
The Oncology 2025 issue of Deep Dive is out! This one is packed with ASCO content, a fascinating story from @elmerphante.bsky.social about the intersection of animal intelligence and artificial intelligence in early cancer detection 🐶 , an interview with MIT's Andrew Lo by yours truly, and more!
pharmaphorum recently made the transition from Twitter to BlueSky for our regular news updates. We're now building up our following on this new platform. I would sincerely appreciate if my followers could @pharmaphorum.bsky.social & add us to any relevant lists and starter packs about pharma news.
June 25, 2025 at 6:32 PM
pharmaphorum recently made the transition from Twitter to BlueSky for our regular news updates. We're now building up our following on this new platform. I would sincerely appreciate if my followers could @pharmaphorum.bsky.social & add us to any relevant lists and starter packs about pharma news.
I'm at FT Pharma and Biotech Summit today and I'll be liveblogging on pharmaphorum here:
If you can't make it in person or virtually to this great event, tune in here throughout the day for the highlights.
If you can't make it in person or virtually to this great event, tune in here throughout the day for the highlights.
FT US Pharma and Biotech Summit 2025: Live coverage
Live coverage and reporting by Jonah Comstock at the FT US Pharma and Biotech Summit 2025. Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.
pharmaphorum.com
May 15, 2025 at 1:05 PM
I'm at FT Pharma and Biotech Summit today and I'll be liveblogging on pharmaphorum here:
If you can't make it in person or virtually to this great event, tune in here throughout the day for the highlights.
If you can't make it in person or virtually to this great event, tune in here throughout the day for the highlights.
Reposted by Jonah Comstock
BREAKING: FDA announces a successfully completed generative AI pilot for speeding up drug review -- and rapid rollout plans.
FDA announces generative AI pilot and rapid rollout plans
pharmaphorum.com
May 8, 2025 at 4:29 PM
BREAKING: FDA announces a successfully completed generative AI pilot for speeding up drug review -- and rapid rollout plans.
Reposted by Jonah Comstock
Don't forget to join our webinar, developed in partnership with
@altmetric.com to learn how digital insights and real-world data are being integrated into #medicalaffairs strategy www.brighttalk.com/webcast/9977...
We're going to start soon!
#PPwebinar
@altmetric.com to learn how digital insights and real-world data are being integrated into #medicalaffairs strategy www.brighttalk.com/webcast/9977...
We're going to start soon!
#PPwebinar
April 29, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Don't forget to join our webinar, developed in partnership with
@altmetric.com to learn how digital insights and real-world data are being integrated into #medicalaffairs strategy www.brighttalk.com/webcast/9977...
We're going to start soon!
#PPwebinar
@altmetric.com to learn how digital insights and real-world data are being integrated into #medicalaffairs strategy www.brighttalk.com/webcast/9977...
We're going to start soon!
#PPwebinar
I wrote an op-ed about the importance of pharma standing up for public health in this unprecedented moment.
pharmaphorum.com/patients/op-...
pharmaphorum.com/patients/op-...
Op-ed: Pharma must show courage, leadership on public health
Pharma companies can't claim to care about global patient wellbeing unless they stand up to Trump's public health cuts.
pharmaphorum.com
April 28, 2025 at 6:32 PM
I wrote an op-ed about the importance of pharma standing up for public health in this unprecedented moment.
pharmaphorum.com/patients/op-...
pharmaphorum.com/patients/op-...
Friday scoop from me.
SCOOP: A man who went blind after taking #Ozempic is suing #NovoNordisk -- the first lawsuit to come out of the emerging link between GLP-1s and NAION.
Ozempic patient blinded by NAION sues Novo Nordisk
pharmaphorum.com
April 25, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Friday scoop from me.
Seth Ginsberg of the Global Healthy Living Foundation giving a great talk on fighting misinformation:
"We cannot let some TikTok influencer with a ring light and an opinion control the patient narrative." #REpharmaUSA
"We cannot let some TikTok influencer with a ring light and an opinion control the patient narrative." #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Seth Ginsberg of the Global Healthy Living Foundation giving a great talk on fighting misinformation:
"We cannot let some TikTok influencer with a ring light and an opinion control the patient narrative." #REpharmaUSA
"We cannot let some TikTok influencer with a ring light and an opinion control the patient narrative." #REpharmaUSA
Today -- where I have been parked in a session largely about health equity -- has been much better about speakers speaking out about the current political situation. I appreciate the speakers who are bravely speaking the truth. #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Today -- where I have been parked in a session largely about health equity -- has been much better about speakers speaking out about the current political situation. I appreciate the speakers who are bravely speaking the truth. #REpharmaUSA
Really striking graphic shared by Gilead's Kesha O'Reilly showing how much access different parts of the country have to clinical trials. The darker blocks have better access and lighter areas have worse access. #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Really striking graphic shared by Gilead's Kesha O'Reilly showing how much access different parts of the country have to clinical trials. The darker blocks have better access and lighter areas have worse access. #REpharmaUSA
"We want as many patients as possible to have access to our drugs. ... But the thing is, that's the scariest thing in the world for a payer," Restivo says. "Who is the right patient? That's what we want to communicate. And has the data really set us up for that?" #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 2:14 PM
"We want as many patients as possible to have access to our drugs. ... But the thing is, that's the scariest thing in the world for a payer," Restivo says. "Who is the right patient? That's what we want to communicate. And has the data really set us up for that?" #REpharmaUSA
A good insight from Bayer's Jennifer Rustivo about PBMs. While HEOR researchers focus on total cost of care, PBMs, who control 80% of covered lives in the US, are really only interested in pharmacy costs. #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 1:59 PM
A good insight from Bayer's Jennifer Rustivo about PBMs. While HEOR researchers focus on total cost of care, PBMs, who control 80% of covered lives in the US, are really only interested in pharmacy costs. #REpharmaUSA
"It is kind of difficult for people who have worked in pharma their entire career to understand what really happens in a payer environment or a health system," Sanjay Unni says. "...People in our industry lack understanding about how payers are uniquely interested in their populations." #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 1:40 PM
"It is kind of difficult for people who have worked in pharma their entire career to understand what really happens in a payer environment or a health system," Sanjay Unni says. "...People in our industry lack understanding about how payers are uniquely interested in their populations." #REpharmaUSA
Boehringer Ingelheim's Paul Petraro and Sanjay Unni are discussing the concept of "holistic real-world evidence". The be-all and end-all of data collection is no longer the clinical trial, Petraro says. The data lifecycle is much longer and has to be considered in full from the start. #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Boehringer Ingelheim's Paul Petraro and Sanjay Unni are discussing the concept of "holistic real-world evidence". The be-all and end-all of data collection is no longer the clinical trial, Petraro says. The data lifecycle is much longer and has to be considered in full from the start. #REpharmaUSA
"There's a growing recognition of health equity concerns and the importance of social drivers of health," Grossman says. "And I don't think this is going away. I think there is still importance in looking at this." #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 1:27 PM
"There's a growing recognition of health equity concerns and the importance of social drivers of health," Grossman says. "And I don't think this is going away. I think there is still importance in looking at this." #REpharmaUSA
Today I'm in the "Value-Driven" session and it's starting off with a great talk by Bayer's Jamie Grossman about health equity in oncology -- a topic that's never been more important. #REpharmaUSA
March 19, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Today I'm in the "Value-Driven" session and it's starting off with a great talk by Bayer's Jamie Grossman about health equity in oncology -- a topic that's never been more important. #REpharmaUSA
It was a good session but my brain is totally fried so you might have to wait for my piece on it to hear my thoughts/takeaways. I'll be back with more Reuters coverage tomorrow.
March 18, 2025 at 10:02 PM
It was a good session but my brain is totally fried so you might have to wait for my piece on it to hear my thoughts/takeaways. I'll be back with more Reuters coverage tomorrow.
Last panel of the day is a panel sponsored by pharmaphorum's parent company EVERSANA. It's focused on direct-to-patient access models, a topic I'm genuinely very excited for. #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Last panel of the day is a panel sponsored by pharmaphorum's parent company EVERSANA. It's focused on direct-to-patient access models, a topic I'm genuinely very excited for. #REpharmaUSA
Chema Avila from Sanofi is up now in the AI track at #REpharmaUSA. He says that Netflix has primed us all to expect a seamless experience from an algorithm that just gets us. Omnichannel marketing is not cutting it when patients and HCPs have that expectation.
March 18, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Chema Avila from Sanofi is up now in the AI track at #REpharmaUSA. He says that Netflix has primed us all to expect a seamless experience from an algorithm that just gets us. Omnichannel marketing is not cutting it when patients and HCPs have that expectation.
Two years covering pharma and this is the first time I've attended a session about drug naming. Who knew there was so much to it!? #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Two years covering pharma and this is the first time I've attended a session about drug naming. Who knew there was so much to it!? #REpharmaUSA
My question is “waiting for review”. Several others have been approved since I sent it. Disappointing. #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 4:57 PM
My question is “waiting for review”. Several others have been approved since I sent it. Disappointing. #REpharmaUSA
Interesting insight from PhRMA's Michael Ybarra about PBM reform. I have often wondered "if there's such a broad consensus PBM reform is needed, why hasn't it happened?". Ybarra says different stakeholders have different grievances with PBMs, so reform efforts aren't always unified. #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Interesting insight from PhRMA's Michael Ybarra about PBM reform. I have often wondered "if there's such a broad consensus PBM reform is needed, why hasn't it happened?". Ybarra says different stakeholders have different grievances with PBMs, so reform efforts aren't always unified. #REpharmaUSA
This is kind of a surreal experience at #REpharmaUSA. This panel is all about preventative medicine & panelists are talking about vaccination and food as medicine, but no one is talking about the fact that there's a famous vaccine denier heading up HHS and the Trump administration just killed USAID.
March 18, 2025 at 4:33 PM
This is kind of a surreal experience at #REpharmaUSA. This panel is all about preventative medicine & panelists are talking about vaccination and food as medicine, but no one is talking about the fact that there's a famous vaccine denier heading up HHS and the Trump administration just killed USAID.
" If you want to be truly competitive, you have to constantly think about what could go wrong and react to it -- and the reaction can't take three or four months. ... Being competitive means having a plan in place that we can use immediately." -- Kavya Gopal, Head of US Oncology, GSK #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 3:18 PM
" If you want to be truly competitive, you have to constantly think about what could go wrong and react to it -- and the reaction can't take three or four months. ... Being competitive means having a plan in place that we can use immediately." -- Kavya Gopal, Head of US Oncology, GSK #REpharmaUSA
Can pharma really call itself "agile" when it takes a year to make a TV ad and 12 years to develop a drug? GSK's Kavya Gopal asks. Yes! pharma's digital transformation during COVID-19 proves it. #REpharmaUSA
March 18, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Can pharma really call itself "agile" when it takes a year to make a TV ad and 12 years to develop a drug? GSK's Kavya Gopal asks. Yes! pharma's digital transformation during COVID-19 proves it. #REpharmaUSA