The Top Line
The Top Line is a weekly podcast from Fierce Life Sciences that explains the biopharma and medtech industries. Journalists from Fierce Biotech, Fierce Medtech, and Fierce Pharma discuss the latest trends and why they matter. Each episode breaks down the week's biggest business news, covering mergers, marketing, drug R&D, and device development. New episodes are released every Friday morning.
Episodes
How AI could improve clinical trial decision-making (Sponsored)
What if clinical development teams could evaluate potential trial outcomes before a study reaches patients? In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Irena Luo speaks with Raja Shankar, vice president for machine learning within AI and technology solutions at IQVIA, about a foundation model designed specifically for life sciences. Shankar explains why general-purpose models may overlook impo
How we picked the Fierce 15
What does it mean to be a Fierce 15 biotech in 2026? With this year’s list unveiled, the Fierce Biotech team gets together to discuss what the winners tell us about the state of the sector.In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," the Fierce Biotech editorial team reflects on the process of distilling more than 150 high-quality entries into the final Fierce 15 list. The team discusses
Locking in on pharma’s consumerization trend
With GLP-1s paving the way, a consumer shift is happening across markets for certain branded pharmaceuticals. Now, the CEO of a buzzy pattern-hair-loss biotech is eyeing opportunities in an evolving market that could expand well beyond his own company. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce’s Fraiser Kansteiner chats with Reid Waldman, co-founder and CEO of hair loss-focused
Fierce Pharma Week: A look at the biggest trends, campaigns and conversations
Fierce Pharma Week brought thousands of people to Philadelphia for four days of conversations about pharma marketing, commercialization, medical affairs and communications. In this episode of "The Top Line," Fierce editors share the conversations, trends and moments that stood out from the event. Topics include Genentech’s use of humor and celebrity storytelling to raise awareness of diabeti
Inside the growing world of biopharma prediction markets
Prediction markets are opening up new ways to bet on biopharma events, from clinical trial readouts to FDA approvals. But they also create a new set of risks for an industry where employees, researchers, contractors and others may have access to confidential information that could give them an edge. In this episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Biotech’s Will Maddox talks with David
Clinical trials reach a new automation inflection point (Sponsored)
Clinical development organizations are facing mounting pressure to do more with increasingly complex protocols, larger data sets and tighter timelines. While automation has improved individual processes, many of the industry's most persistent delays continue to occur between tasks, systems and teams. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Lauren Ledger sits down with Greg Lever, director
The future of RAS inhibitors
Revolution Medicines recently made history with the approval of its RAS inhibitor Rasonque for advanced pancreatic cancer. But behind RevMed is an entire field of biotechs working to broaden the reach of RAS-targeting drugs. In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Biotech’s Darren Incorvaia sits down with Verastem Oncology CEO Dan Paterson and Chief Scientific Offi
The people who stayed with the problem
The 2026 Fierce 50 includes people and organizations working on very different problems across biopharma and healthcare, from designing new proteins and developing cancer medicines to protecting vaccine science, improving health literacy and expanding representation in medicine. In this episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Editor-in-Chief Ayla Ellison looks at the stories behind several o
Why Diagnostic-Driven Therapies Still Miss Eligible Patients (Sponsored)
The promise of precision medicine depends on more than scientific innovation. It also depends on whether eligible patients can be identified, tested and connected to the most appropriate treatment. In this episode of The Top Line, host Kelly Hogan is joined by Susanne Munksted, chief growth officer at Diaceutics, and Jordan Clark, chief customer officer, to discuss why many diagnostic-driven thera
MrBeast, Snapchat, AI and more: Pharma marketing’s pulse check
As Fierce Pharma Week approaches, the Fierce Pharma Marketing team is taking stock of some of the biggest trends reshaping how drugmakers and healthcare agencies reach audiences. In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce’s Ben Adams and Zoey Becker discuss how pharma marketing is evolving across social media, creative work and agency strategy. They dig into the chang
What did we learn from Big Pharma’s Q2 results?
Earnings calls are a chance to catch up with the latest developments across Big Pharma and beyond, and last quarter was no different. From the rollout of AI to the oral GLP-1 battle between Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly and new leadership at Sarepta and Sanofi, it feels like the opportunities and challenges for biopharma have never been greater. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce
How consumerization is reshaping pharma marketing (Sponsored)
Consumerization is changing how patients engage with healthcare, and pharma companies may need to rethink how they approach awareness, diagnosis and commercialization. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Irena Luo is joined by Rachel Stoll, Managing Partner, Growth & Innovation at Princeton10, and Kevin Nalty, Vice President of Strategy at Princeton10, to discuss how evolving patie
A genomics library for the AI era
Having spent 14 years building out its capacity, Regeneron Genetics Center—the genomic research branch of the Tarrytown, New York-based pharma—is a pro when it comes to the sort of target validation work central to the field today. Now, as RGC continues the massive expansion of its genetic database, the center’s unique ability to interpret that trove of data could give it an edge
The next frontier in patient support: Connected data, AI and personalized engagement (Sponsored)
The future of patient support may depend less on how much data organizations collect and more on how effectively they connect, govern and activate it. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Stephanie Butler speaks with ZS principals Asheesh Shukla and Kirti Prakash about the changing role of patient data in life sciences and what it will take to support more personalized engagement at sca
Novo Nordisk’s CFO on the oral Wegovy rollout and beyond
Novo Nordisk’s second-quarter earnings results this week were closely watched by analysts and investors eager to see whether the rollout of oral Wegovy could neutralize concerns about the pharma’s pipeline. Fierce spoke to Novo’s chief financial officer, Karsten Munk Knudsen, to dig into the figures, including the reasons behind the company’s decision to raise its full-year
Inside Noble’s connected approach to patient support (Sponsored)
The continued shift toward self-administered therapies is changing how pharmaceutical companies think about patient support. While access and affordability remain priorities, a growing share of industry attention is focused on the patient experience itself, particularly during the critical transition from prescription to successful treatment initiation. In this episode of The Top Line, Adam Shain,
Psychedelics, peptides and GLP-1s
Is biotech taking a trip to the world of psychedelic drugs? Why is Novo Nordisk going after Eli Lilly’s Zepbound ads? And what are peptides? This week on "The Top Line," Fierce's Zoey Becker, Will Maddox and Kevin Dunleavy chat about some of the biggest recent stories. From a psychedelics acquisition that could spark more movement in the emerging field to an advisory committee meeting
GSK’s first lung cancer approval, a new IPO path and more
This week on "The Top Line," Fierce Healthcare and Life Sciences' editor-in-chief steps behind the microphone for a solo episode highlighting several of the biggest stories in biopharma. The episode covers GSK’s first lung cancer approval following its acquisition of Nuvalent, Axiom Biosciences’ unusual plan to list first in Hong Kong before pursuing a Nasdaq co-listing amid a resurgen
Why modern clinical trials need a finance-first strategy (Sponsored)
Clinical trial success depends on more than scientific rigor and operational execution. It also depends on the financial systems that support every stage of a study. In this episode of The Top Line, Zahiah “Zee Zee” Gueddar, senior director of commercial strategy for the Clinical Trial Financial Suite at IQVIA Technologies, discusses why modernizing clinical trial finance has become a
5 emerging biotech hubs
Boston. San Francisco. Beijing? The global biotech industry has long been concentrated in a handful of cities. But which emerging hubs could become dominant forces in biotech in the decades ahead? In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Biotech’s Darren Incorvaia and Will Maddox discuss a new Fierce special report identifying five cities with the potential to becom
Operating at the speed of science: The new medical affairs playbook (Sponsored)
Medical affairs is at an inflection point. As science advances and healthcare professionals gain access to information in real time, medical teams face a mandate to deliver insight with greater speed, relevance and impact. In this episode of The Top Line, Josh Schwartz, Vice President of Medical Affairs, North America at BeOne Medicines, and Jalpa Shah, who leads the medical and evidence practice
Decision readiness is the next AI advantage (Sponsored)
AI is reshaping how organizations compete, but more data and more tools do not automatically lead to better decisions. In this episode of The Top Line, Justin Masterson, senior vice president of human sciences at The Directions Group, challenges leaders to look beyond AI adoption and focus on the discipline required to act on intelligence. Masterson argues that the defining issue for many organiza
A $10B deal, China trial scrutiny and highlights from ADA 2026
This week on "The Top Line," we’re covering some of the biggest stories across biopharma before turning to one of the industry’s major scientific meetings of the summer. First, we discuss Vertex’s $10 billion acquisition of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, the company’s largest deal to date, and what it says about Vertex’s push beyond its historic strength in cystic fibrosi
The deal before the deal
Big Pharma dealmaking has picked up, but the biotech path to a signed agreement is still anything but simple. In this episode, recorded at Fierce Biotech Week, Senior Editor James Waldron leads a discussion on the evolving BD&L landscape across pharma and biotech. He is joined by Kaleem Chowdhury, Ph.D., CEO of Haiku Biosciences; Liz Leveille, who leads the Boston Innovation Hub and discovery
FDA Breakthrough Therapy and RMAT: Strategic Decisions That Can Accelerate Oncology Development (Sponsored)
In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Stephanie Butler is joined by Sheila Plant, vice president of regulatory affairs at Allucent, to examine how FDA Breakthrough Therapy and RMAT designations can support more strategic oncology development. Although both pathways are intended to speed development, they are not interchangeable. Plant outlines the key distinctions, n
Ipsen R&D chief on pipeline discipline, partnerships and 2026 milestones
In this episode of “The Top Line,” recorded on site at Fierce Biotech Week in Boston, Fierce’s Ayla Ellison sits down with Christelle Huguet, Ph.D., executive vice president and head of R&D at Ipsen, to discuss how the company is building its pipeline through external innovation while maintaining internal scientific accountability. Huguet explains Ipsen’s approach to pa
Why MRD is becoming central to oncology drug development (Sponsored)
In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, experts from Myriad Genetics join host Stephanie Butler to examine how tumor-informed molecular residual disease, or MRD, testing is beginning to redefine what early insight can mean in oncology drug development. As biomarker-driven therapies become more precise, the ability to understand response earlier and more clearly is increasingly being viewed as f
Behind the headlines of ASCO 2026
Each year, the global oncology community flocks to Chicago to convene at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting for a weekend of buzzy data drops, practice-changing posters and insightful sessions. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce Biotech and Fierce Pharma’s Darren Incorvaia, Zoey Becker and Angus Liu break down the biggest takeaway
Mesutoclax points to possible shift in high-risk MDS and AML (Sponsored)
High‑risk MDS and AML continue to challenge clinicians, with limited durable responses and few options for older or treatment‑refractory patients. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Stephanie Butler is joined by Dr. Amer Zeidan, Professor of Internal Medicine at Yale School of Medicine, to unpack new ASCO 2026 data that are drawing attention across the myeloid malignancies field.The d
Boston, China and the future of biotech
Boston remains biotech's most influential hub, but the questions facing the region are increasingly global. Recorded live at Fierce Biotech Week in Boston, this panel discussion brings together Uli Stilz, senior advisor at Flagship Pioneering; Bruce Beutel, CEO and co-founder of PassKey; and Ben Bradford, head of external affairs at MassBio, for a conversation about the future of biotech innovatio
Why direct-to-patient is the future of pharma access (Sponsored)
Direct-to-patient models are no longer an experiment - they're becoming a critical part of the modern prescription journey. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Kelly Hogan talks with Jeremy Richardson, chief commercial officer at GiftHealth, about how DTP is redefining access, transparency and speed in pharma commercialization. Richardson shares insights from more than a decade in spec
BioAge CEO talks NLRP3 and ‘pipeline in a pill’ ambitions
Recorded last week at Fierce Biotech Week in Boston, this episode of “The Top Line” features a conversation with Kristen Fortney, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of BioAge Labs. In a conversation with Ayla Ellison, editor-in-chief of Fierce Healthcare and Life Sciences, Fortney discusses the company’s decade-long effort to use human aging data to identify drug targets tied to longevity
Designing an agentic, future‑ready tech roadmap for emerging pharma (Sponsored)
Emerging pharma organizations face unique technology challenges as they prepare for launch. Expectations for AI-enabled decision-making continue to rise, even as teams remain small and operate in highly regulated environments. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, Fierce Biotech host Kelly Hogan speaks with JR Raelin, executive director of analytics and insight at SynOx Therapeutics and Krish
Health execs persevere in new policy landscape
Despite a prolonged period of policy uncertainty in the U.S.—and the ripple effects across the global life sciences and healthcare industries—executives at health companies are still seeing opportunities amid the tumult. In many cases, they’re finding that the resilient business models they built through disruptions like the pandemic have positioned their companies not just to su
Revisiting Pharma’s tariff reality
After months of mixed messaging from the White House, the pharmaceutical industry has gained more clarity on the second Trump administration’s import tariff policy for drugs. While many of the industry’s biggest firms have navigated the trade threat through investment pledges and drug pricing deals, the current landscape remains murkier for small- and mid-sized drugmakers. In this epis
Setting a new standard in prefillable syringe systems (Sponsored)
In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Kelly Hogan speaks with Dr. Bettine Boltres, director of scientific affairs, integrated systems at West Pharmaceutical Services, about the development of the West Synchrony prefillable syringe system. As drug pipelines grow and regulatory expectations increase, pharma and biotech companies face mounting pressure to reduce complexity while a
Scaling theranostics through access, safety and trust (Sponsored)
Theranostics is transforming cancer care, but scaling these treatments requires overcoming operational and workforce challenges. In this episode of The Top Line, Curium’s Mike Patterson discusses how access, safety and trust are shaping the next phase of growth for targeted radiopharmaceutical therapies. Patterson explains why strong coordination across ordering, manufacturing and dis
A pivotal time for an RNA pioneer
It’s a pivotal year for RNA therapeutics pioneer Ionis Pharmaceuticals. After transitioning from a partnering model to a full-ownership strategy following the 2024 approval of Tryngolza, the company is expecting an FDA decision to expand the drug into severe hypertriglyceridemia as its first non-rare-disease indication for a wholly owned product. Meanwhile, potentially game-changing ph
Accelerating clinical trials with precision logistics (Sponsored)
Speed, precision, and visibility are critical to clinical trial success, and logistics plays a central role in delivering all three. In this interview, Manishaa O’Brien, director of commercial operations at Marken UPS Healthcare Precision Logistics, shares how the Laboratory Advantage service line is helping central labs and sponsors accelerate timelines while maintaining sample integrity an
Can Trump’s deal with the UK become a model for similar drug price agreements?
President Donald Trump has struck a deal with the UK that exempts prescription drugs imported to the United States from tariffs for three years. In exchange, Britain’s National Health Service will pay 25% more for new drugs. The question now is: Can the U.S. negotiate similar deals with other countries? In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," we examine the drug pricing agreement bet
Biomarkers are reshaping oncology trial design (Sponsored)
Biomarkers are playing an increasingly critical role in shaping the future of oncology trials—and the pace of innovation is accelerating. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Stephanie Butler sits down with Dr. Danielly Vicente, Associate Medical Director of Oncology and Hematology at Allucent, to explore how advanced biomarker strategies are transforming clinical development. Fro
Fixing failed spray-dried formulations faster (Sponsored)
Spray-dried dispersions are widely used, but they do not always deliver expected results. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Stephanie Butler speaks with AustinPx Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Dave Miller about how drug developers can recover from suboptimal formulations and manufacturing challenges. Miller outlines common issues, including poor bioperformance, inefficient scale-up, in
AI brings precision to pharma content decisions (Sponsored)
Artificial intelligence is increasingly shaping how pharma companies approach content strategy and decision-making. In this episode of The Top Line, Kristen Pilkiewicz, EVP and executive creative director at Sound Healthcare Communications, examines how AI is being applied in real-world marketing workflows. Rather than positioning AI as a standalone solution, Sound has integrated it into core proc
Roivant’s CEO thinks China is a ‘red herring’
China’s biotech rise has been a persistent concern for federal health leaders, Congress, and many biopharma executives. But to Roivant CEO Matt Gline, the country is nothing more than a red herring. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce Biotech’s Darren Incorvaia chats with Gline about China, artificial intelligence and the exciting year ahead for Roivant’s
The top 10 pharma R&D budgets of 2025
The wait is over. Fierce Biotech has released its annual ranking of the top 10 pharma R&D budgets of 2025—offering a clear look at which companies are spending the most on innovation and how those investments are shifting year over year. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Darren Incorvaia and Eric Sagonowsky break down the new report, digging into who claimed the top spot, w
An update on the pharma industry’s reshoring effort
After a wave of high-profile pledges to bring pharmaceutical manufacturing back to the United States, a clearer picture of what reshoring actually looks like is starting to emerge. Tens of billions of dollars have been committed to new U.S. plants, but those investments are unlikely to translate into immediate gains in domestic production. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce&rsq
Pulse check on Lilly's GLP-1 fortunes
While Lilly’s position in the obesity market and wider GLP-1 space has remained largely unshakeable in recent months, a crack in the company’s armor may be forming, according to at least one analyst. As that assessment dealt a blow to the company’s stock price in recent weeks, Lilly is plowing forward all the same with more details on its next wave of potential incretin drugs.&nb
Avoiding 11th hour surprises in clinical trials (Sponsored)
In this episode of The Top Line, host Chris Hayden speaks with Olive McCormick, Head of Quality and Qualified Person at Almac Clinical Services about why late‑breaking issues in clinical trials pose such significant risk — and what teams can do to prevent them. McCormick explains that operational misalignment, delayed communication, overlooked regulatory steps or misinterpretation of require
What Xaira is building after its $1B fundraise
Since Xaira’s eye-popping $1 billion fundraise in 2024, the company has said relatively little in public. That’s made it one of biotech’s more closely watched black boxes: a company with enormous backing, enormous ambition and, until recently, few clues about what it has actually been building. In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Biotech’s Gab
Patent expirations push biopharma industry toward a tougher 2026
In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” we take a deep dive into the fourth-quarter performance of the biopharma industry and how the sector fared in 2025 overall. As the world’s 25 largest biopharma companies reported earnings, attention quickly shifted to their outlook for 2026. Only five drugmakers expect faster growth than in 2025, and some are projecting sales declin
As AI evolves, the modern R&D lab is changing
The design of the modern R&D lab may be due for a rethink. Artificial intelligence and automation are reshaping how science gets done, yet many of the physical spaces where research happens were built around assumptions that date back decades. In this episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce Life Sciences & Healthcare Editor-in-Chief Ayla Ellison speaks with Gensler Global Sciences Pr
How physiology powers biotech innovation (Sponsored)
Physiology connects genes and molecules to whole-body function, shaping every stage of drug discovery and development. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, Sue Bodine, president-elect of the American Physiological Society and a professor at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, explains why physiology remains central to biomedical innovation. Bodine details how physiology strengthens bio
Autoimmune CAR-T: Navigating the FDA’s new regulatory playbook
For more than a decade, CAR-T therapy has been the miracle of oncology, turning end-stage blood cancers into curable diseases. But the application of these engineered cell therapies is expanding to reset the immune system for patients living with lupus, stiff person syndrome and other autoimmune conditions. And with new frontiers come new rules. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fier
Inside the sterile fill capacity crunch (Sponsored)
What does the future hold for sterile fill-finish CDMOs in a rapidly evolving market? In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, Denis Johnson, CEO of Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing, discusses the capacity crunch facing U.S. sterile manufacturing and what it means for healthcare stakeholders. As acquisitions reduce available capacity, Annex 1 drives preference for isolator technology, and compa
Trump's tariff threats, measured by manufacturing
Though uncertainty still surrounds the Trump administration’s pharmaceutical import tariffs, the trade rhetoric set off a clear response across the industry in 2025. Drugmakers accelerated U.S. manufacturing plans, pushing production higher as companies looked to insulate their supply chains. Now, with many of those moves already underway, that breakneck pace is expected to level off through
Why patient access must keep pace with drug innovation (Sponsored)
Biopharmaceutical innovation is advancing at an unprecedented pace, yet many patients still face barriers to accessing new medicines. In this episode of Health Matters, John O’Brien, president and CEO of the National Pharmaceutical Council, speaks with Kristin Cahill about why policy, pricing and benefit design are increasingly shaping whether innovation reaches patients. O’Brien share
What were the biggest clinical trial flops of 2025?
Every clinical setback carries lessons. That’s why Fierce revisits major trial failures each year: not to dwell on disappointment, but to understand what went wrong and what it signals for the road ahead. The 2025 edition of Fierce Biotech’s clinical trial flops report highlights a familiar pattern. Large drugmakers account for a disproportionate share of high-profile misses, reflectin
Community oncology’s growing role in the future of cancer care (Sponsored)
Community oncology is playing an increasingly important role in how cancer care is delivered across the United States, with a growing share of patients treated outside large academic medical centers. In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, host Chris Hayden sits down with Kirk Kaminsky, executive vice president and group president of North American Pharmaceutical Services for McKesson, to exami
The biggest potential drug launches of 2026
The leaders of this year’s list of the most anticipated drug launches will likely come as no surprise: Fierce’s annual report on the biggest potential launches of 2026 details how the next obesity meds from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are expected to rake in a respective $17.2 billion and $11.8 billion in annual sales by 2032, so long as they score their expected approvals this year. El
How Mirum is Advancing Rare Disease Care Through Strategic M&A (Sponsored)
Please see the following USPI, US ISI, EU SmPC and Canadian Product Monograph for complete LIVMARLI product information: US Important Safety Information (https://livmarli.com/important-safety-information/) US Prescribing Information (https://files.mirumpharma.com/livmarli/livmarli-prescribinginformation.pdf?_ga=2.264585739.54248471… EU SmPC (https://ec.europa.eu/health/documents/community-r
Why human expertise still matters in AI-driven med comms (Sponsored)
Artificial intelligence is reshaping medical communications, but it is not a substitute for human judgment. In this episode of The Top Line, experts from RTI Health Solutions explore how AI is being used across scientific writing, editing and information discovery—and why guardrails are essential. The conversation examines practical applications of AI, including literature screening, early-s
Biopharma's rebound keeping pace so far
In this week’s episode of “The Top Line,” Fierce checks in with professional services juggernaut KPMG on the biopharma rebound many industry watchers predicted in the closing months of 2025. Fierce Pharma’s Fraiser Kansteiner sits down with Kristin Cirello Pothier, principal and U.S. and Americas region life sciences sector leader, as well as global deal advisory and strate
JPM26: Sunshine, AI and the deals that weren't
With this year’s iteration of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in the rearview mirror, the biopharma industry has officially closed the door on 2025 as it heads into what is sure to be another eventful year. In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," Fierce Pharma's Zoey Becker sits down with Angus Liu and Fierce Biotech's Gabrielle Masson to unpack the key topics and trends that s
From approval to value: Why evidence storytelling now matters (Sponsored)
As payers focus on long-term outcomes and real-world performance, value matters more than ever. RTI Health Solutions experts discuss how clear evidence storytelling drives access decisions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Drug approvals went from crawl to sprint in 2025
In early 2025, the FDA was rocked by sweeping layoffs and leadership turnover, raising questions about whether the agency could maintain its pace in reviewing new drug applications. By the end of the year, the approval picture told a more complicated story, with momentum building after a slow start. This week on "The Top Line," we dig into what the numbers really show, which companies and therapie
Putting patients first: from buzzword to business imperative (Sponsored)
What does it really mean to put patients first in today’s life sciences landscape? In this sponsored episode of The Top Line, leaders from RTI Health Solutions explore how patient voices are transforming evidence generation, market access and medical communication. From patient-reported outcomes and advisory boards to inclusive value storytelling and trust-building across diverse communities
Beyond the AI hype: How life sciences can turn agents into a competitive advantage (Sponsored)
As artificial intelligence continues to dominate conversations across life sciences, many companies are reaching an inflection point between experimentation and real-world impact. In a recent episode of The Top Line, Mark Sullivan, president of regulated industries at Salesforce, said the industry is moving past broad promises toward a clearer divide between organizations that have laid the ground
China’s biotech moment goes global, Zai Lab exec says (Sponsored)
China has moved from a fast-following biotech market to a source of globally competitive innovation, according to Josh Smiley, president and chief operating officer of Zai Lab. Speaking on The Top Line podcast, Smiley traces the country’s evolution over the past two decades, pointing to regulatory harmonization, expanded national insurance coverage and deepening R&D capabilities as key d
Biopharma CEOs assess the road ahead in 2026
After a turbulent 2025, the biopharma industry is heading into the new year with major questions still unresolved. A tough biotech investing environment, aggressive direct-to-consumer drug marketing and sweeping U.S. policy changes reshaped the landscape last year. Many of those pressures are expected to persist into 2026, even as early signs point to a thaw in venture capital. At the same time, t
A year in review and what 2026 holds for biopharma and healthcare
As 2025 closes, biopharma and healthcare are learning to live on shifting ground. In this special year-end episode of "The Top Line," Fierce reporters take stock of a year defined by federal research cuts, vaccine policy fights and leadership churn at the FDA, then push the conversation forward into the questions that will shape 2026. The through line is that uncertainty has become an operating en
From data to decisions: how Walgreens is powering smarter pharma strategies (Sponsored)
Walgreens is emerging as a real-world evidence partner for the biopharma industry, according to a new episode of The Top Line, sponsored by Walgreens. In the conversation, Deepak Kuletha, who leads data management and analytics for the company’s biopharma services division, explains how Walgreens’ 9 million daily interactions and nationwide footprint generate rich insights into patient
The biopharma dealmaking landscape and what to expect in 2026
Uncertainty reigned early this year with the inauguration of President Donald Trump and his threats to impose tariffs and slash prescription drug prices. But as players in the biopharma industry have gotten a better handle on the impact of these measures and the overall investment landscape, valuations have become more predictable and dealmakers have focused on larger, lower-risk acquisitions. The
Advocacy, access and the future of cancer care take center stage in new Health Matters episode (Sponsored)
In this episode of Health Matters, GCI Health’s Ryan Kuresman and Health@WPP’s Wendy Lund explore the fast-shifting landscape of cancer care with Pam Traxel of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. Traxel outlines the growing complexity facing patients—from navigating an expanding range of treatment options to managing rising costs. The conversation also examines the
2025’s Fiercest Women in Life Sciences are changing the game
Research shows that women remain woefully underrepresented at the highest levels of leadership in the life sciences industry. Those who have broken through that glass ceiling, however, are not only doing groundbreaking work in pharma, biotech, medtech and beyond but also reframing what it means to be a leader in the sector—as evidenced by the often-unconventional career paths and management
Bayer’s collaborative model: Breaking silos to accelerate impact (Sponsored)
Bayer is reshaping its pharmaceutical business with a new operating model designed to enhance collaboration and bring research & development and commercialization closer together. In a recent episode of The Top Line podcast, Bayer executives Christine Roth, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Product Strategy and Commercialization, and Dr. Yesmean Wahdan, Head of Medical Affairs for th
Inside Foresight’s mission to redefine cancer monitoring (Sponsored)
In this episode of The Top Line, Fierce’s Chris Hayden speaks with Foresight Diagnostics co-founders Dr. Jake Chabon and Dr. Max Diehn about how their company is delivering the next generation of minimal residual disease (MRD) detection in cancer care. Born from research at Stanford University, Foresight’s PhasED-Seq technology delivers ultra-sensitive detection—down to parts per
Biopharma industry gathers momentum in Q3
In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," we take a deep dive into the top-line performance of the biopharma industry in the third quarter. After a slow start to the year, U.S. drugmakers in particular have recovered, led by Eli Lilly. We examine which companies are hot and which are not. We also look at trends that emerged in the third quarter, such as the shortfall in vaccine sales,
PreCheck pulse check: What the industry is saying about FDA’s production initiative
As the prospect of import tariffs and drug price reform marshals billions of biopharma investment dollars into the U.S., the feasibility of rapid domestic manufacturing buildouts could hinge on a new program cooking at the FDA. How that program, dubbed PreCheck, will work in practice—and on what timeline—are key questions as the U.S. looks to bolster its local pharmaceutical production
How Pharma Can Build Trust and Reach Patients in Health Marketplaces (Sponsored)
The healthcare marketing landscape is evolving fast — shaped by regulatory shifts, patient empowerment, and the rise of digital health marketplaces. In this episode of The Top Line, sponsored by Havas Media Network, host Chris Hayden sits down with Holly Dunn, Managing Partner of Performance at Havas Media Network, to explore how pharma brands can redefine patient engagement for a more conne
Biotech Graveyard
Welcome to the Fierce Biotech Graveyard, our annual ritual remembering the biotechs we lost in 2025 and those on the brink. In this episode, Fierce Biotech’s Darren Incorvaia and Gabrielle Masson came together to chat about themes from this year’s graveyard, including a cell therapy mausoleum, some mad science, and Darren’s incredibly dated reference to a novelty song from 1958.&
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