clinical trials

Novartis, Bristol Myers halt CAR-T autoimmune trials over safety concerns

Novartis and Bristol Myers Squibb have temporarily halted multiple clinical trials testing CAR-T cell therapies in autoimmune diseases after observing serious inflammatory side effects, the companies confirmed Monday.

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CAR T-cell therapy drives severe arthritis into remission in first trial

Researchers at Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin have demonstrated for the first time that CAR T-cell therapy can drive severe rheumatoid arthritis into sustained remission, according to results from the COMPARE trial published in Nature Medicine on August 27, 2026. Disease activity decreased…

BioNTech halts mRNA colorectal cancer vaccine trial

BioNTech shares fell sharply on Friday after the German biotech company announced it would terminate its Phase 2 clinical trial of autogene cevumeran, an individualized mRNA cancer vaccine developed with Roche's Genentech unit, in patients with high-risk colorectal cancer. The…

CEPI awards $16.5M to advance Ebola vaccine into human trials

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations announced Thursday it will provide up to $16.5 million to Egypt-based Minapharm Group to advance an experimental Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine into human trials, as the deadliest Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo history…

Novo Nordisk begins Phase I trial for secret obesity drug

Novo Nordisk has quietly registered a first-in-human Phase I clinical trial for a previously undisclosed obesity candidate, NNC0721-8060, marking the first public emergence of the experimental program. The company has revealed no details about the drug's molecular target, mechanism of…

WHO recommends testing existing Ebola vaccine against Bundibugyo strain in DRC

Moderna has launched the first human clinical trial of an mRNA vaccine targeting Bundibugyo ebolavirus, the strain driving a deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that has now killed more than 2,100 people and for which no…

Second child’s death in China gene-editing trial disclosed after months of silence

The deaths of two children in separate gene-editing clinical trials in China have come to light in rapid succession, intensifying scrutiny over the country's regulatory framework for cutting-edge medical research and the transparency of investigator-led studies.

Moderna begins first human trial of Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine

Moderna announced Tuesday that it has begun dosing volunteers in the first human trial of mRNA-1469, an experimental vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus — a pathogen with no approved vaccine that is fueling the second-largest Ebola outbreak…

Novo Nordisk shares tumble after key heart drug fails late-stage trial

Novo Nordisk announced on Friday that its experimental anti-inflammatory drug ziltivekimab failed to reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in the Phase 3 ZEUS trial, sending shares of the Danish drugmaker down 10% in premarket trading.

Child’s death in China gene-editing trial sparks ethics scandal

A six-year-old Chinese girl died in March 2025 after receiving an experimental gene-editing therapy at Xinhua Hospital in Shanghai, a death that was concealed from a subsequent paper published in Nature Springer Nature Group and is now prompting widespread calls…

First experimental Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine given to human volunteer

A 37-year-old man from Oxford, England, became the first person in the world to receive an experimental vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola on Friday, as the deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo surpassed 1,000 deaths.

Girl’s death in China gene-editing trial was concealed, investigation finds

A 6-year-old girl died after receiving the world's first brain gene-editing treatment in China, and her death was never publicly reported, according to an investigation published on Wednesday by Science and Retraction Watch.

Lilly plans Q1 2027 FDA filing for obesity drug retatrutide

Eli Lilly announced Thursday that it will submit a Biologics License Application for its next-generation obesity drug retatrutide to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the first quarter of 2027, after reporting positive results from two additional Phase 3…

Africa CDC prepares Ervebo vaccine trial against Bundibugyo Ebola in DRC

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and international partners are organizing a clinical trial to test whether Merck's licensed Ervebo vaccine can protect frontline health workers against the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo,…

Roche unveils trial to prevent Alzheimer’s before symptoms appear

Roche has revealed the design of PrevenTRON, a Phase III trial that will test whether its experimental drug trontinemab can prevent Alzheimer's disease in people who show no cognitive symptoms but carry biological markers of the illness. The study design…

First trial of Ebola antiviral begins in DRC outbreak

Researchers in the Democratic Republic of Congo began enrolling participants on July 14 in the EBO-PEP trial, the first clinical study testing Gilead Sciences' experimental antiviral obeldesivir as post-exposure prophylaxis against the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, according to ALIMA, one of…

Stem cell trial shows positive results for Parkinson’s

A first-of-its-kind clinical trial has demonstrated that transplanting stem cell-derived dopamine-producing cells into the brains of people with Parkinson's disease is safe and feasible, with early signs that the grafted cells survived at least 12 months after surgery. The results,…

WHO opens first clinical trial for Bundibugyo Ebola treatments in DRC

The WHO-sponsored PARTNERS clinical trial opened enrollment on Wednesday for patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo, marking the first effort to identify effective treatments for Bundibugyo virus disease amid an outbreak that has now killed more than 400 people…

Nature Medicine retracts lung cancer study on morning immunotherapy

Nature Medicine Springer Nature Group on Tuesday retracted a phase 3 clinical trial that reported patients with advanced lung cancer who received immunotherapy before 3 p.m. lived nearly a year longer than those treated later in the day — removing…

Gilead, Merck once-weekly HIV pill succeeds in Phase 3

Gilead Sciences and Merck announced on Sunday that their investigational once-weekly combination pill of islatravir and lenacapavir met its primary efficacy endpoint in two Phase 3 trials, marking a potential milestone in HIV treatment as the first long-acting oral therapy…

AstraZeneca obesity pill moves to Phase III after nearly 12% weight loss in mid-stage trials

AstraZeneca unveiled full results from two mid-stage trials of its experimental oral obesity drug elecoglipron on Monday at the American Diabetes Association's 2026 Scientific Sessions in New Orleans, revealing that the once-daily pill produced an average body weight reduction of…