The Oncology Bet Is Already Paying Off For Pfizer

With the downfall of Covid-19, pharmaceutical companies turned to oncology in search for their next growth story. Earlier in October, Pfizer Inc PFE reported its third quarter revenue grew 14% on an operational basis due to approved cancer products from Seagen it acquired last December. On the other hand, Moderna Inc MRNA posted a surprise profit and higher than expected revenue following the launch of its updated Covid-19 vaccine earlier this year as focused on slashing costs. But, even with Covid-19 still lingering in the air, Moderna has also focused on harnessing the power of mRNA to make biotech history by revolutionizing cancer treatment. However, there is also a significant advancement in early screening and even possible prevention when it comes to the cancer front. For example, their much smaller peer, Mainz Biomed MYNZ just announced a new collaboration agreement aimed at developing and potentially commercializing its next generation colorectal cancer screening product.

Mainz Biomed’s next generation CRC screening product is coming to redefine standards.

Mainz Biomed is a molecular genetics diagnostic company specialized in the early detection of cancer. This week, it announced it entered into a collaborative agreement with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. TMO, through its subsidiary Life Technologies Corporation, a leading provider of life sciences solutions and services.

With the power of Thermo Fisher’s powerful technologies, instrumentation and information translation systems, Mainz Biomed will be empowered to develop the proprietary assays for its mRNA-based next-generation CRC screening tests which are raising the bar when it comes to early cancer detection. With U.S. and European clinical trials of its flagship non-invasive test, Mainz Biomed promises to redefine standards in cancer screening. With ColoAlert, Mainz Biomed not only offers the early detection of colorectal cancer but also detects advanced adenomas which are a known cancer precursor, therefore, opening the doors its peers didn’t dare to tackle, the ones of cancer prevention. 

Pfizer topped estimates and hiked its full year guidance. 

Cancer drugs brought in $854 million to Pfizer’s revenue table, including $409 million from a targeted treatment for bladder cancer called Padcev and $268 million from lymphoma-targeting Adectris. Good results provided some much-needed good news for Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, who is facing new pressure from activist investor Starboard Value.

For the third quarter, Pfizer reported overall revenue of  $17.7 billion.

Moderna continues to focus on developing cancer treatment along with lowering costs.

Back in September, Moderna revealed its plan to cut its research and development budget by $1.1 billion over the next three years while it aims to get FDA approval for 10 products like cancer treatments and vaccines. During the latest earnings call, Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel was pleased with the cost efficiency achieved during the quarter, with the progress being even better than planned. For the third quarter, Moderna reported revenue of $1.86 billion, smashing LSEG’s consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. While Pfizer already counts on oncology for boosting sales, Moderna’s sales are still made by the Covid shot, along with RSV one that brought  $10 million in U.S. sales after gaining approval in May. However, with 45 products in development powered by its messenger RNA platform, Moderna expects to bring 10 of them to the market over the next three years.

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