Researching Biotechs to find a cure for recession

Well the biotech sector is starting to get renewed attention. No real surprise as it’s one of the bastions that stock market investors go to when a recession hits. It’s part of the group that gets a boost every time the R-word is mentioned, along with Gold (which is already on a tear).

But recently there has been a few pot shots taken at a few of the industry standards. The big boys are not looking so good, according to some, and that leaves the question of where to go. Some think that the biotech’s that got a boost from the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference this year are where to go. Others are just trying to see what is next.

One place not to go may well be Pfizer. As noted on Motley Fool there are many reasons. One of the most important I feel is the question of the drug pipeline. In the case of Pfizer there really isn’t one. In fact they are running into the problem that is deadly to many successful biotech stocks, patent expiration. Without the protection of a patent, sales inevitably fall precipitously, no matter how big your company is or the nature of the drug.

For Pfizer they will be losing 2 of the biggest drugs in the last 15 years. In fact the most explosive and popular drug in perhaps 2 decades or more will be opening up to generic competition, namely Viagra [the other drug is Lipitor]. If anyone thinks that won’t kick the company in the seat of the pants, then you probably think gold is a sell right now.

Of course Pfizer is not alone, as Genentech is in a similar situation. Though they do have a few new innovations on their aging pipeline that may give them a small boost, or at least cushion the patent exiration blow. So where do you look instead.

Well Adam Feuerstein over at TheStreet.com (I read a lot of the information there too) posed a new outlook that may catch on, if it hasn’t already. His theory basically is that many feel the top names at the JPMorgan conference are the top picks for the year. To that end he is following them.

He’s selected a list of 10 names, some well known others not, that he will watch throughout the year. They are:

Pharmasset
Idenix Pharmaceuticals
Intermune
Allos Therapeutics
Incyte
Isis Pharmaceuticals
Nektar Therapeutics
Viropharma
Seattle Genetics
Biogen Idec

It’s an interesting group. Again the key is always the pipeline. To me that is the beginning and end of any choice of biotech stocks. Strong, growing pipelines are of interest. Lagging pipelines are not.

Will this list prove to be true? Are they a one shot deal? We will see, but the short term of one year is never enough to know. I will tell you one thing though; no matter which biotech’s lead the industry, and whether the industry leads the stock market, as fear of recession and the impact of the mortgage crisis continues to unfold, this will not be the last you hear about this.

Talking about Cancer Part 2 - 6.10.2007.2

Continued from Talking about Cancer - 6.10.2007.1 Part 1...

Why is early detection so critical?

African American women, who have much lower ovarian cancer incidence rates than Caucasian women, are less likely than their Caucasian counterparts to survive five or more years with this disease, regardless of the stage at diagnosis.

African American women are more commonly diagnosed with widespread and therefore advanced stage, ovarian masses than Caucasian women.

African American, Hawaiian, and Alaskan native women have overall cancer mortality rates that are at least 40% higher than other minority populations.

Also:

Despite an overall decline in cancer deaths for all Americans regardless of race, 36% more black men and 17% more black women are dying from cancer than their white counterparts, finds a new study by Pfizer Inc and the National Medical Association. The study covered the period of 1990 to 2003.

For all five cancers examined – cancers of the prostate, colon and rectum, lung and bronchus, breast and uterine cervix – Racial Differences in Cancer found that blacks have higher death rates, as well as lower five-year survival rates. From 1990 to 2002, the gap between the races in deaths from breast cancer and colorectal cancer has grown, from a 14% greater rate of deaths from breast cancer for black women in 1990 to a 36% greater rate of deaths in 2002. For colorectal cancer, in 1990, blacks had a 24% higher death rate compared to a 40% higher death rate in 2002.

And in a previous post on Breast Cancer I noted:

Also of note is that Black/African American women are more likely to die from breast cancer without regard to age.

I think this says why without any need for further explanation from me.

Early and consistent diagnosis is important. Knowing the risk factors is vital. Yet, without doctors and medical institutions doing their part in identifying early stages of these diseases people will suffer and die for no reason. Not doing their job is not a reason for anyone to be inflicted with the trauma these diseases bring.
I am angered by the lack of attention I have been made aware of. The ‘sudden’ discovery of tumors of such sizes is insulting. The fact that African Americans may have lower incidence rates is not a reason to fail to pay attention to the exams being done.

I can say that I know a bit more about colon cancer in African Americans than my current doctor. When I had my last physical in February, we discussed the subject and he had to do research on the subject to get up to date. Not very inspiring I must say. It’s also odd since I had a previous doctor that was hyper-sensitive on the subject. Both work for the same hospital and are in the same area with similar client bases.

Suffice to say that just relying on your doctor or medical institution is not enough. Don’t wait to find out when the problem is advanced. Ask questions. Force your doctor to give you exams that you should get, based on age and risk. Make sure they know what they are talking about. Give yourself a fighting chance.

Concluded in Part 3...