Biotech sector: Cancer vaccines, PD-1 inhibitors hold promise

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) will hold its annual meeting in Chicago this week. Researchers and industry experts will speak about cutting-edge cancer technology and treatments.

Jefferies Biotechnology Managing Director Michael Yee joins Market Domination to give insight into what the conference means for the biotech sector and what investors should expect from the meeting.

AI is already having a moderate impact on the field of oncology, Yee explains: “There’s only a couple of sort of pure-play, software platform AI-related companies: Schrodinger, ticker SDGR, and Recursion, RXRX, which actually has a deal with Nvidia (NVDA). So check that out. But a lot of the early investments have been going into a bunch of private companies. As you can imagine, the drug discovery process can take ten years. And there is a wealth of discovery and work being done early on for new targets using AI and attempts at looking at large language models to discover new targets.”

For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Market Domination.

This post was written by Nicholas Jacobino

Video Transcript

As thousands of oncology professionals from around the world are set to gather in Chicago for the Asco annual meeting, the American Society of Clinical Oncologists.

There.

A grid of sessions will reveal research treatments and visionary insights on cancer treatment.

For what more on what this means for the biotech sector.

Let’s get to Jeffrey’s by analyst Michael Michael.

It is always great to talk to you and I can think of no one better to talk to about this meeting.

A number of companies have already released abstracts in advance of the ASCO meeting as they tend to.

So tell us, do you have a top one that you’re gonna be watching as we get more information at the conference?

Oh, well, it’s great to be here.

Thank you.

Good to see you Julian and Josh uh obviously uh the biggest uh cancer conference of the year uh in a week and a half will be there and it is true that much of the cat is out of the bag.

Um Maris in one of those big movers this week and all eyes are focused on some of the updated data at the presentation and there and a couple of others were focused on like immuno Tim uh cr and Moderna MRN A uh with an update on their phase three cancer vaccine or phase two cancer vaccine data already in phase three with Merc.

So there are a couple of the ones happy to talk about others, but of course, a big cancer conference of the year and biotech is moving and shaking as it always is.

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And Michael quick question for, you know, early in the show, I was talking to Julie about um all things A I and of course, we talk a lot of the show about how, you know A I obviously early days Michael, but there is this real interest about how this technology could kind of upend and disrupt a lot of industries.

Now, I have been reading some reports, there’s already some talk about how, how A I could maybe shape the field of oncology as well.

Michael.

Any thoughts on that?

Well, look, um first of all, there’s only a couple of sort of pure play software platform A I related companies, uh Schrodinger ticker, SDGR and uh Recursion, RXRX, which actually has a deal with NVIDIA.

Um uh So check that out.

Uh But a lot of the early investment have been going into a bunch of private companies, as you can imagine, the drug discovery uh process can take 10 years and there is a wealth of discovery and work being done early on for new targets using A I and attempts at looking at large language models to discover new targets.

But those are pretty early.

Uh, and, uh, certainly a risky, but most of them are private.

And before we dig into some of these names that you’re talking about, and, um, I’m interested in Maris in particular, which you mentioned.

Um, I, I guess for people who are not as steeped in this as you are Michael, um, going into this meeting kind of, I know this is a big question, where are we in terms of cancer treatment and research?

Right?

Kind of where are we on the curve of being able to treat most types of cancers?

And uh is there anything sort of revelatory that you’re expecting?

Well, you know, you’re asking uh an important question and I think it depends on the time horizon of, you know, maybe 10 years ago, it was all about chemotherapy and maybe new antibodies uh from Genetech like a vastin over the next 5 to 7 years, we now have been on the immuno oncology, IO wave, certainly with PD ones and new developments across PD one and other immuno oncology drugs, which has been fantastic.

And now you’re on the brink of also new uh no modalities like car T uh and other attempts at cancer vaccines uh holistically like the moderna cancer vaccine and others.

And I think we’re still looking for the next generation.

I think the answer is that you’re not going to have a one product, one pill, cancer cure anytime soon.

But we are making great strides over years to make big steps in cancer.

And I think that when you, uh, perhaps has been spoiled and look at something just five or seven years ago when we did not PD one.

And now you look at the types of efficacy that PD one has brought for us.

I think we’d all be pleased.

Uh Sometimes maybe our hurdles are just uh uh a little bit too high and we’re trying to find a cure but it takes time.

But we have been making great strides and that’s why Julie, that people are all focused on the thousands of cancer drugs at the Asco conference and investing in biotech and why all these IP S are going out is because there are great promise of the next.

So let’s get to Maris then and this company specifically came out with the results of a study in head and neck cancer.

Mr Us is the ticker and that one for people who are not with it.

Now, the stock surged.

It has since come back down a little bit.

It hasn’t retraced all of it.

Like how should people think about trading a stock like Marris around an event like this when it, you know, because it already came out with the abstract from its study?

Yeah.

Um Well, look, I think that uh in many respects, we try to think about buying stocks in advance of all of that.

And Jeffries has been vated and been bullish on that going into it, the data played out in the abstract and then in the uh early presentation that they hosted this morning, uh with more data and the stock obviously has gone up over that time period.

And now we’re at a new step where uh obviously we are going to start phase three.

I think most people would think about trading this as we have great data as they move forward into phase three, whether it’s a potential uh take out target or obviously one of the more promising drugs that had a cancer.

I don’t think we’d be trying to day trade that but rather say that this is a very promising cancer company going to phase three could be a take out target.

Hey, Michael, can I squeeze one last one in?

Because I’m curious to get your take on this besides A I Michael, I’m not sure there’s another trend we talk about more than G LP ones, in your opinion, Michael still a mega trend hot as ever.

And if so are there ways to play it besides Eli Lilly and NOVO nodes?

Sure, great.

So we have said specifically that these types of waves come once in a decade or two.

Uh We believe that the G LP one wave is still relatively early in the multiyear cycle, we believe obviously, that uh Lillian Noble as you’ve talked about, specifically Lily uh is obviously attractive and they’ll be a major player.

We have said Amgen is one of the most important larger cap companies that we have been very bullish on and they too will go to phase three with a monthly GOP one.

And we think the data is gonna be great at the end of the year.

There’s also smaller companies uh like Rock, uh SRRK or COR that also have new modalities um that are interesting.

And so a lot of these smaller cap companies I think are promising because the upside potential for that data in $100 billion T A is great and the M and A potential for these is great and we still think we’re relatively early in the cycle.

Michael Terrific to have you on the show.

Thanks so much for joining us.

Thank you guys.