Author: Jonathan Block

Jonathan Block

Jonathan Block is a freelance writer and former MedShadow content editor. He has been an editor and writer for multiple pharmaceutical, health and medical publications, including BioCentury, The Pink Sheet, Modern Healthcare, Health Plan Week and Psychiatry Advisor. He holds a BA from Tufts University and is earning an MPH with a focus on health policy from the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy.

FDA

The FDA has approved the first ever treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, going against the recommendation of a panel of independent advisors who months earlier said eteplirsen did not demonstrate clear efficacy in treating the rare muscle-wasting disease. Eteplirsen, which will be marketed under the brand name Exondys 51, won accelerated approval despite the fact that the pivotal clinical trial used by the manufacturer enrolled just 12 boys with Duchenne and did not include a placebo arm. An unusually high number of patient advocates and boys with the disease attended and spoke in favor of the drug’s approval during an…

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