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Back Bay Life Science Report

Medical

Back Bay Life Science Advisors brings you expert insights from our advisors and investment bankers in the world of BioPharma & MedTech. On this podcast, you’ll hear from our experts in life science development, commercialization, and investment banking, scientific investigators, biotech and medtech executives, physicians, and strategists who excel at guiding global life sciences companies and their investors through complex decisions. Join us for insights generated from in-depth scientific, strategic, and financial analysis at the intersection of science and business.

Location:

United States

Description:

Back Bay Life Science Advisors brings you expert insights from our advisors and investment bankers in the world of BioPharma & MedTech. On this podcast, you’ll hear from our experts in life science development, commercialization, and investment banking, scientific investigators, biotech and medtech executives, physicians, and strategists who excel at guiding global life sciences companies and their investors through complex decisions. Join us for insights generated from in-depth scientific, strategic, and financial analysis at the intersection of science and business.

Language:

English


Episodes
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A Capital Markets Outlook for 2025: 2024, A Year in Review

2/7/2025
In this DNB//Back Bay Healthcare Capital Markets podcast episode, Jim Cirenza, Head of Fixed Income and Equities at DNB, Kristoffer Braaten, Director and Head of Equity Capital Markets at DNB, and Vasilios Kofitsas, Partner and Managing Director of Investment Banking at Back Bay Life Science Advisors, review the performance of the healthcare markets in 2024, offering insights into what 2025 could bring. With a detailed analysis of market trends, IPO activities, and investor behaviors, they evaluate the past year's challenges and the cautious optimism prevailing in the sector as the new year unfolds. As well, there's an emphasis on the importance of European investor engagement for companies looking to list in the U.S. market. Learn more about the DNB//Back Bay Partnership and read our disclosures here.

Duration:00:15:58

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The Optimism of Bispecific Antibodies

11/8/2024
The topic of bispecific antibodies has been an area of interest in the pharma space for a long time now. The recent news of the notable late-stage data from Akeso and Summit’s PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody ivonescimab to treat non-small cell lung cancer that has captured the industry writ large encouraged us to revisit the topic. To date, there have been ten bispecific antibody approvals in oncology, seven of which are for hematological malignancies. Recently, there has been more traction in development pipelines for solid tumors. Most bispecific antibody approvals are currently or projected to be above the $1M annual revenue threshold. Podcast topics include: • The biologics of a bispecific antibody • The benefits of a bispecific antibody compared to autologous therapies • The buzz around Akeso and Summit’s PD-1 VEGF bispecific antibody asset • The broad state of bispecifics in approved products and development pipelines • The potential of trispecifics, bispecific conjugates and beyond

Duration:00:26:39

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Dynamics in Healthcare Focused Markets

9/30/2024
In this DNB//Back Bay Healthcare Capital Markets Episode, Vasilios Kofitsas, Partner and Managing Director at Back Bay Life Science Advisors speaks with Jim Cirenza and Kristoffer Braaten of DNB Bank in New York. They focus on key drivers affecting markets this year and discuss the recent news of the Fed’s decision to cut interest rates by 50-basis points. Topics in the podcast include: We welcome listener questions and/or topics you’d like to learn more about. You can listen to previous episodes here or submit your inquiries here. Learn more about the DNB//Back Bay Partnership and read our disclaimers at https://www.bblsa.com/dnb-back-bay-partnership.

Duration:00:20:49

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From NASH to MASH: Current Market Dynamics in Hepatology

9/16/2024
After a summer away from podcasting, Back Bay Life Science Advisors’ Dr. Pete Bak and Christian Thienel are back on the mic to discuss current market dynamics in liver disease with a focus on one of the most closely watched space in hepatology, MASH. The big news includes a rebrand from NASH (non-alcohol related steatohepatitis) to MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis), the FDA approval of Madrigal Pharmaceutical’s Rezdiffra and real-time court rulings in Europe that may affect the rate of play for Ocaliva, a drug used to treat adults with primary biliary cholangitis here in the US. As Christian mentions in this episode, “The path to success is not always a straight line.” Other topics in this podcast include: Thank you for listening. You can find previous episodes of the podcast here. We’d love to hear from you. Ask questions and submit your feedback.

Duration:00:28:19

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Key Considerations for a US Healthcare IPO

5/22/2024
In this DNB//Back Bay Healthcare Capital Markets podcast episode, learn about the key considerations, mechanics and timelines of going public on a US exchange. Topics in this podcast include: You can listen to previous episodes here or submit your inquiries here. About our guests: DNB//Back Bay is a committed partner throughout the healthcare development journey, addressing positioning, partnering, financing, M&A strategies, and listing support and execution on US and Nordic exchanges. Our team of more than 100 healthcare strategy and financial specialists spans the globe. Learn more about the DNB//Back Bay Partnership and read our disclaimers at https://www.bblsa.com/dnb-back-bay-partnership. Cooley is among the top law firms for healthcare, tech and life science IPOs on both the issuer-side and underwriter-side. Their team of 1,300 lawyers is spread across 19 offices worldwide.

Duration:00:35:03

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Drug Development in Obesity

4/30/2024
Guests: Pete Bak and Christian Thienel Length: 27 minutes In this episode of The Life Science Report, Dr. Pete Bak and Back Bay Director, Christian Thienel catch up on the area attracting the most industry interest over the past couple of years: the anti-obesity space. From big players looking to capitalize on the renewed interest in the obesity space to the staggering success of Novo Nordisk’s and Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 agonists (Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound) for glycemic control and weight loss, there’s a lot to cover. Topics in this podcast include: As always, thank you for joining us. Did you know we welcome listener questions? If there any areas you’d like us to explore further in metabolic disease and obesity, please let us know. Submit your questions here. Our Nordic-American Healthcare Conference 2025 will feature metabolic track. Learn more: https://nordicamericanhealthcareconference.com/ You can find previous episodes of the podcast here.

Duration:00:26:56

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The Current Dynamics in Capital Markets

4/15/2024
Welcome to another episode with the DNB//Back Bay Partnership for Healthcare. In this episode Jonathan Gertler, Back Bay CEO and Managing Partner, is once again joined by James Cirenza, Head of Fixed Income and Equities at DNB, Kristoffer Braaten, Director of US Equity Capital Markets at DNB, and Vasilios Kofitsas, Managing Director of Investment Banking at Back Bay Life Science Advisors, to talk about current market dynamics and the 2024 IPO outlook in the US and in Europe. Topics in this podcast include: As always we welcome listener questions and/or topics you’d like to learn more about. You can listen to previous episodes here or submit your inquiries to info@bblsa.com. Learn more about the DNB//Back Bay Partnership and read our disclaimers at https://www.bblsa.com/dnb-back-bay-partnership.

Duration:00:22:25

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Vaccine Developments 2024: A Podcast Discussion on Latest Vaccine Technology and Ongoing Clinical Developments

3/18/2024
Guests: Pete Bak and Christian Thienel Length: 37 minutes With the advent of COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021, we saw a tremendous amount of interest in not only COVID vaccines, but other companies riding the tailwind and developing vaccine therapies that span across viral illness, maternal infections and bacterial infections. In this episode resident immunologist Dr. Pete Bak and Christian Thienel discuss vaccine technology, up-and-coming areas of interest, such as RSV, and the vaccines currently in late-stage clinical development. Topics in this podcast include: As always, we welcome listener questions and/or topics you’d like to learn more about. You can listen to previous episodes here or submit your inquiries here.

Duration:00:37:34

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Trends and Investment Activity in Radiopharmaceuticals and Psychedelics

2/14/2024
A Podcast Discussion on the Trends and Investment Activity in Radiopharmaceuticals and Psychedelics Guests: Pete Bak and Christian Thienel Length: 25 minutes Here at Back Bay we’ve seen a number of notable trends in the radiopharmaceutical and psychedelic spaces playing out over the past couple of years. Increasingly, investors have been asking our opinions and perspectives on these topics. Our team has written these whitepapers to address industry interest: The Radiopharmaceutical Renaissance: Radiating Hope in Medicine Vision of Commercial Success: Investment and Partnering Landscape for Psychedelics In this episode, Dr. Pete Bak and Christian Thienel talk through the uptick of activity in these focus areas and discuss where the future of radiopharmaceuticals and psychedelics might be heading. Topics in this podcast include: Listen to the full episode here.

Duration:00:25:52

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Vertex’s Exa-cel to Biogen and Sage’s Zurzuvae: Notable Product Approvals of 2023

1/2/2024
As we move into 2024, Back Bay’s strategic advisors summarize key product approvals from three classes and indications over this past year, including the December CRISPR and Vertex approval of Exa-cel, Biogen and Sage’s August approval of an oral treatment for women with postpartum depression and Genmab and Roche’s May approval in oncology. In this episode: In 2023, on The Life Science Report, Back Bay covered a wide range of topics featuring stories from the frontline of healthcare development to the rising trends in cardiology to the transactional landscape of antibody drug conjugates. We always welcome listener questions or topics you’d like to learn more about. You can listen to previous episodes or submit your inquiries here. Back Bay provides a snapshot of the healthcare markets every Monday. For IPO, Follow-On and M&A updates, subscribe to our healthcare updates.

Duration:00:25:26

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Monthly Roundup of News from Healthcare Development

11/7/2023
In our latest podcast, Back Bay Life Science Advisors focused on the chronic and rare disease development of kidney disease. Recently, there have been some changes in treatment, some recent commercial launches and certainly some interest from pharma consolidators, as M&A activity picks up in this area. In this next installment of The Life Science Report, Dr. Pete Bak and Christian Thienel of Back Bay Life Science Advisors talk about kidney disease and the various aspects of the renal disease landscape. Topics in this podcast include:

Duration:00:30:04

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The Current and Future Landscape of Healthcare IPO Markets

10/27/2023
With the DNB//Back Bay Partnership for Healthcare In the current markets, Healthcare continues to rally as the second-largest industry behind technology in the stock market, and in the US markets there’s been roughly $2.5B raised from an IPO standpoint YTD. In Europe, the markets have been more challenging, with IPOs for five companies going public this year, including Schott Pharma, Germany’s largest IPO earlier this year. In the first podcast episode with the DNB//Back Bay Partnership for Healthcare, Jonathan Gertler, Back Bay CEO and Managing Partner is joined by Jim Cirenza, Head of Fixed Income and Equities at DNB, Kristoffer Braaten, Director and Head of Equity Capital Markets at DNB, and Vasilios Kofitsas, Partner and Managing Director of Investment Banking at Back Bay Life Science Advisors, to discuss the current landscape of IPO and capital markets, optimal preparation strategies for companies hoping to go public and why it ultimately matters who you spend your time with. Topics in this episode include:

Duration:00:23:41

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The Heart of the Matter: Behind the Renewed Interest in Cardiovascular Disease

10/12/2023
A conversation on the rising trends in the cardiology space Cardiology has historically been a cornerstone of large pharmaceutical portfolios. The late 2000s and 2010s saw many pharmaceutical companies and investors abandon or severely deprioritize cardiology research and development in favor of oncology, immunology, and neurology. During this episode of The Life Science Report, Dr. Pete Bak and Christian Thienel of Back Bay Life Science Advisors discuss the major players in the industry and novel approaches to future cardiology applications. Episode topics include: This is the 20th episode of Back Bay’s podcast, covering all facets of healthcare development and transactions. For questions, be in touch: www.bblsa.com

Duration:00:24:43

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The Transactional Landscape Of ADCs: The Powerhouse of Antibody Drug Conjugates

8/29/2023
In this episode, Dr. Peter Bak is joined by Trent Gordon and Dr. Mavra Nasir as they discuss their Bioprocess Online article published earlier this year, “The Transactional Landscape of ADCs: A Payday for Payloads.” This conversation explores the dynamics and data within the emerging ADC field, including: Read and connect with our authors: The Transactional Landscape Of ADCs: A Payday for Payloads

Duration:00:25:54

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Investing in Health Tech & Digital Medicine: Expert Talk with Mikaela Odlander & Edward Kliphuis

4/14/2023
The world of health tech has changed dramatically since decades ago when physicians had to endure 11 keystrokes to prescribe a single aspirin. These days, AI-based radiology and AI-based pathology are transforming patient lives through machine learning and data analytics, in some cases offering early disease warning systems and improving quality of care while reducing healthcare costs. In this episode of Back Bay’s industry podcast, the Life Science Report, Jonathan Gertler speaks with Mikaela Odlander, Director of Digital Therapeutics at Orexo, and Edward Kliphuis, Partner at Sofinnova Partners, about the opportunities and challenges ahead in the realm of health tech and digital medicine. Topics in this episode include: - The misperceptions around digital therapeutics and digital medicine - The impact health tech has on care, fostering adoption, hurdles to reimbursement - The stark difference between the European and Nordic vs. US healthcare markets - Examples of AI machine learning and how digital medicine is providing personalized, efficient and effective healthcare - The major challenge of replication and scale for a company

Duration:00:29:03

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Contingencies for Biopharma, Medtech Deal Planning in a Down Market

2/9/2023
For biopharma and medtech companies developing new treatments, capital for advancement and growth is invariably dependent on strategic preparation, differentiation, and persistence. Good preparation can mean funding or famine in a retracted market—and ultimately can impact the trajectory of a company and whether treatment reaches people in the clinical setting. In a down market, there are creative and thoughtful approaches companies can take to stand out as capital becomes more closely guarded and the competition becomes fierce. In this episode of Back Bay’s industry podcast, the Life Science Report, Jonathan Gertler speaks with Goodwin Procter life science partner Kristopher Brown about the current market landscape and how life science companies can recalibrate and prepare for capital raises—no matter the market outlook. This episode focuses on discussion of deal management in the current market, including: The current deal scape—difficult times ahead or par for the course in the life science sector?Approaches to deal preparation in a challenging environmentTentative M&A, licensing, partnering activity and public markets necessitate preparation and strategic focus ahead of capital raise, particularly:Thorough knowledge of asset differentiation - positioning, competitive intensity, pricing, milestone development/definition and valuation, among other activitiesCreative deal financing models – royalty monetization, tranced investments, debt financing, preferred stock, liquidation preferencesStructure and valuation disciplinePortfolio and selection management toward a deal, including the use of AI in population identification Find the video podcast and contribute to the conversation on Back Bay’s website: www.bblsa.com/podcasts

Duration:00:28:35

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Gene Editing to Cross-Species Transplantation: The Most Compelling Healthcare Stories of 2022

1/23/2023
In our first podcast episode of 2023, Back Bay’s strategic advisors summarize some of the most compelling healthcare development stories from 2022. From CRISPR and gene editing advancement to cross-species organ transplantation and the latest in the evolving regulatory and reimbursement landscape, these stories captivated us and continue to herald progress in health and human care. Podcast experts include Brendan Wang, Christian Thienel and Peter Bak, with special thanks to Micheka Fenelon.

Duration:00:37:16

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Preparing BioPharma and Medtech Companies for Public Listing - Back Bay Life Science Advisors and Nasdaq Nordic

9/19/2022
For biopharma and medtech companies, the decision to go public is predicated on many business decisions—what kind of capital can be raised? Is our investor base strong and interested? Is now the right time? The Nordic Markets offer some distinct advantages at the earlier stage, and also offer new possibilities for US companies to list abroad. And although the specific logistical and mechanical aspects are exceedingly important, at the end of the day, the decision to do something like this is predicated on an amalgam of strategic decisions. In this episode Back Bay Life Science Advisors and Nasdaq outline best practices for companies considering a public listing, including: Jonathan Gertler is CEO of Back Bay Life Science Advisors and Managing Partner at Bioventures Medtech Funds. Maria Groschopp Dellwik is Nasdaq’s Head of Strategy and Business Development for Global Listing Services in the Nordics, where she manages new offerings and key strategic change initiatives to improve listing offerings and the Swedish capital market. Download “Preparing for a Public Listing: Best Practices for Biopharma, Medtech and Healthtech Companies” from Back Bay Life Science Advisors and Nasdaq https://bblsa.com/investment-banking-1

Duration:00:28:02

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The Promising Field of Targeted Protein Degraders (TPDs)

7/30/2022
with Back Bay Life Science Advisors’ Dr. Peter Bak and Dr. Mavra Nasir Dr. Mavra Nasir recently published a thought piece in Biopharma Dealmakers outlining the current state of play in the promising field of protein degradation. In this episode, Dr. Nasir sits down with Peter Bak to discuss the recent surge of venture funding and partnerships surrounding TPDs. Read Dr. Nasir's article "From drug target inhibition to degradation: a TACtical strategy" here. Topics in this podcast include: If you have a question about life sciences development, submit it here. We may feature it on an upcoming episode. Thanks for joining us! * Mavra Nasir, PhD is a senior consultant at Back Bay Life Science Advisors where she supports strategic engagements across a range of therapeutic areas including rare diseases, hematology/oncology and metabolic diseases for biopharma and MedTech. Dr. Nasir joined Back Bay after receiving her PhD in Quantitative Biomedical Sciences from Dartmouth College.

Duration:00:23:10

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Early Market Access and Pricing with Pete Bak, Christian Thieniel and Brendan Wang

7/6/2022
This is the first episode in our podcast series of Q&As on biopharma and medtech development—directly from active developers. Our podcast listeners, including Back Bay clients, have submitted timely and relevant questions about life science development and the daily challenges they face. Christian Thieniel and Brendan Wang, two senior members of the Back Bay Life Science Advisors team with a tremendous amount of experience in the life sciences, especially as it relates to scientific, clinical and commercial issues, offer guidance on issues related to pricing and early market access. Topics include: Would you like us to include your life sciences development question in an upcoming episode? Please submit it here. Make sure to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite podcast platforms and follow Back Bay Life Science Advisors on LinkedIn. Thank you for joining us.

Duration:00:29:43