Health News Roundup: BioNTech challenges AstraZeneca with breast cancer precision drug trial; Countries risk missing deadline for pandemic accord, says WHO chief and more

COVID-19 vaccine maker BioNTech, which is renewing its focus on its traditional roots in oncology, said in a joint statement with China's Duality that their drug would be tested on women with a certain type of advanced breast cancer with low levels of a cell surface receptor known as HER2. Countries risk missing deadline for pandemic accord, says WHO chief Countries risk missing a May deadline for agreeing a legally binding treaty on fighting pandemics and this would be a big blow for future generations, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

BioNTech challenges AstraZeneca with breast cancer precision drug trial

BioNTech and its partner Duality Biologics said on Monday they initiated a late-stage trial testing their precision drug against a certain type of breast cancer, taking on a rival partnership between AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo. COVID-19 vaccine maker BioNTech, which is renewing its focus on its traditional roots in oncology, said in a joint statement with China's Duality that their drug would be tested on women with a certain type of advanced breast cancer with low levels of a cell surface receptor known as HER2.

Countries risk missing deadline for pandemic accord, says WHO chief

Countries risk missing a May deadline for agreeing a legally binding treaty on fighting pandemics and this would be a big blow for future generations, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. The new pact and a series of updates to existing rules on dealing with pandemics are intended to shore up the world's defences against new pathogens after the COVID-19 pandemic killed more than 7 million people, according to WHO data.

Sagimet's fatty liver disease drug shows promise in trial

Sagimet Biosciences said on Monday its experimental drug was statistically significant in reducing symptoms of a fatty liver disease in a mid-stage study. However, the company said that nearly 20% of patients dropped out of the study due to adverse events that emerged during treatment with the drug, versus 5.4% for the patients treated with a placebo.

Ionis Pharma's genetic disease drug succeeds in late-stage study

Ionis Pharmaceuticals said on Monday its drug for the treatment of a rare genetic disease met the main goal of a late-stage trial. The drug, donidalorsen, was more successful than placebo in reducing the rate of attacks in patients with hereditary angioedema. They were treated with an 80 milligram dose through subcutaneous injection every four weeks or every eight weeks.

EU drug watchdog to consider wider use of Wegovy weight-loss drug

The European Union's drug regulator will this week consider wider use of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy to include reducing the risk of strokes and heart attacks. Approval could help the Danish drugmaker better argue its case for making the drug available via public sector health systems in Europe.