Beyond Biotech - the podcast from Labiotech

Tackling pulmonary fibrosis: Boehringer Ingelheim’s new drug + AI approach

In this episode we sit down with Martin Beck, Senior Vice President and Head of the Inflammation Business Unit at Boehringer Ingelheim [https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/fr]. Martin grew up just down the road from the company’s headquarters in Germany, joined as a scholarship student more than 20 years ago, and never really left – and you’ll hear why he still loves it. We spend most of the episode focused on a disease that doesn’t get nearly enough attention: idiopathic and progressive pulmonary fibrosis [https://patient.boehringer-ingelheim.com/lwpf/]. These are rare, fatal lung-scarring conditions that kill faster than many cancers, yet patients often shrug off the first symptoms as “just aging.”  Martin walks us through why half the people on today’s treatments stop taking them, how BI just brought the first new medicine in over a decade to the U.S. market, and why an AI tool that spots microscopic changes on lung scans might finally help doctors diagnose and treat these patients’ years earlier.  01:24   Meet Martin Beck 04:21   About Boehringer Ingelheim 07:12   Understanding idiopathic & progressive pulmonary fibrosis 10:16   Current treatments & high discontinuation rates 12:25   BI’s long-term investment in PF 16:02   eLung AI tool for earlier diagnosis 22:16   A new oral PDE4B inhibitor 28:13   Key data highlights from the recent ERS congress 30:31   FDA approval & global rollout plans Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! [https://www.labiotech.eu/advertise/?utm_campaign=lead_generation&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast]  Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter [https://www.labiotech.eu/newsletter/?utm_campaign=newsletter_promotion&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast] To dive deeper into the topic:  * Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: Refoxy, Boehringer, Insilico, and more on the hunt for curative treatments [https://www.labiotech.eu/in-depth/idiopathic-pulmonary-fibrosis-promising-drugs/] * Eight respiratory disease companies advancing innovative therapies in 2025 [https://www.labiotech.eu/best-biotech/respiratory-disease-companies/] * BI: Life with pulmonary fibrosis  [https://patient.boehringer-ingelheim.com/lwpf/]

Cracking Cancer’s Code: Transforming Research with Novel Cancer Models

Cancer is one of the biggest health challenges worldwide. While progress has been made, millions of patients are still in need of new treatment options that better address the complexities of their disease. BeOne Medicines is creating the world’s next-generation cancer treatments with relentless innovation, aiming to deliver therapies to more people around the globe. This week, I'm sitting down with Mark Lanasa, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Solid Tumors, at BeOne Medicines, [https://beonemedicines.com] to learn more about how their novel cancer models and unique in-house R&D approach is pushing them closer to cracking the cancer code. This episode is sponsored by BeOne Medicines. 01:06              Meet Mark Lanasa 04:56              Cancer as a differentiated and adaptative disease 07:35              BeOne’s approach to cancer research and development 10:30              Accelerating cancer research by bringing it all in-house 15:24              Making progress and signs of success 17:41              Exciting investigational stage programs 23:51              The advantage of hierarchical thinking in R&D 28:13              Keep up with new research from BeOne Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! [https://www.labiotech.eu/advertise/] Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter [https://www.labiotech.eu/newsletter/]. To dive deeper into the topic: * How can treatment strategies evolve to address the challenges in chronic lymphocytic leukemia? [https://www.labiotech.eu/partner/treatment-strategies-evolution-cll/]

Curing cancer: Daiichi Sankyo's ambitious ADC approach

Daiichi Sankyo has been pioneering ADCs since 2010, with a pipeline targeting over 30 indications and potentially reaching 400,000 patients. In today’s episode I’m joined by Dr. Markus Kosch, Head of the EU Oncology Business Division at Daiichi Sankyo. A physician by training with a deep academic background in oncology, Markus has spent over two decades advancing cancer care, from clinical practice to leadership roles shaping strategy across Europe and Canada. Since joining Daiichi Sankyo in 2021, he has been at the forefront of one of the industry’s most ambitious ADC pipelines, overseeing more than 60 clinical trials across 24 countries and driving landmark approvals that are redefining treatment in breast, lung, and gastric cancers. This week's episode is brought to you with the support of Kadans [https://www.kadans.com].  Looking for the perfect space to grow your Life Sciences company? Kadans Science Partner is Europe’s leading provider of cutting-edge lab and offices spaces, tailored to your needs. Kadans puts you at the centre of innovation, giving you the chance to connect with top researchers, universities, and investors through its international network. Here, you’ll join a vibrant community of innovators driving real change. Are you ready to take your research to the next level? Learn more at kadans.com [https://www.kadans.com] – where innovation thrives.  01:45.         Meet Markus Kosch 03:12.         Clinical background shaping an industry role 04:46.         Daiichi Sankyo’s 40-year oncology legacy 06:19.         European investments and Munich hub 10:34.         ADC platform strengths explained 14:20.         Key ESMO 2025 trial data Clarification: The reference to ‘TB01’ at 16:24 refers to the TROPION-Breast02 clinical trial, not TB01. 19:43.         Managing risks and partnerships 23:35.         Patient advocacy in trial design 33:59.         Future of oncology and ADCs Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! [https://www.labiotech.eu/advertise/?utm_campaign=lead_generation&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast]  Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter [https://www.labiotech.eu/newsletter/?utm_campaign=newsletter_promotion&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast] To dive deeper into the topic:  * 10 oncology deals in 2025 spotlight where industry leaders are betting big [https://www.labiotech.eu/best-biotech/oncology-deals-2025/] * AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo’s Enhertu recommended for approval [https://www.labiotech.eu/trends-news/astrazeneca-and-daiichi-sankyos-enhertu-recommended/] * Ten drugs to watch in 2025: will these therapies become blockbusters? [https://www.labiotech.eu/best-biotech/drugs-to-watch-2025-blockbusters/]

How to succeed at BIO-Europe: DISCO Pharma takes us behind the scenes

Two weeks ago, the biopharma industry gathered in Vienna, Austria, for BIO-Europe. Tens of thousands of one-on-one meetings were organized between innovators and out-licensors with top pharma companies and venture capitalists eager to partner and invest.  For the large pharma firms, it’s a chance to learn about new science and keep tabs on evolving assets. For smaller biotechs, though, it can be three-days of high-pressure networking where a lot is riding on making the right pitch to the right company at just the right time. Get it right, and you walk away with a clear path forward and the cash to fund it. But get unlucky and you might find yourself with few options in the New Year. This year, we decided to follow one biotech heading into their first BIO-Europe partnering conference. We met with DISCO Pharma [https://discopharma.de] three times over the last month to follow their BIO-Europe journey: * Before the event to learn about the science behind DISCO and understand what their goals were heading into BIO-Europe.  * At the event itself to talk about how the partnering meetings had been going and how the event had shaped up for DISCO.  * A week after BIO-Europe had closed, diving into the follow-up activities and learning about the next steps for this German biotech. I hope you enjoy my conversations with Ajla Hrle, Chief Business Officer at DISCO, and this behind the scenes look at BIO-Europe from an innovator’s perspective. 02:25          Preparing for BIO-Europe 16:51           On the floor at BIO-Europe 22:23          Following up from BIO-Europe Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! [https://www.labiotech.eu/advertise/?utm_campaign=lead_generation&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast]  Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter [https://www.labiotech.eu/newsletter/?utm_campaign=newsletter_promotion&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast] To dive deeper into the topic:  * BIO-Europe partnering: Australian biotech companies share their experiences [https://www.labiotech.eu/trends-news/bio-europe-partnering-australian-biotech-lessons/] * Practical partnering at BIOSPAIN: on the ground with biotech innovators ready to take the next step [https://www.labiotech.eu/trends-news/biotech-partnering-conferences-importance/] * Biotech in Vienna: a budding life science hub  [https://www.labiotech.eu/in-depth/vienna-biotech-boom/]

Meet Fusix Biotech: 2025 BIO-Europe Startup Spotlight champion revolutionizing oncology

Last week saw more than 5,900 people from 3,200 companies gather in Vienna, Austria, for the continent’s largest biopharma partnering conference, BIO-Europe [https://informaconnect.com/bioeurope/]. Over three days the world’s top pharma companies, most innovative biotechs, and life science professionals from 60 countries took more than 32,000 one-on-one meetings, made the connections, and sealed deals that will drive the industry forward into 2026 and beyond. Among the highlights of BIO-Europe this year was the Startup Spotlight [https://informaconnect.com/bioeurope/startup-spotlight/] contest. This exciting competition offers biotech entrepreneurs an affordable opportunity to engage with top-tier investors and other important players in the biotech industry and to take their business to the next level. Eight finalists made their pitches at BIO Europe and one, Fusix Biotech [https://fusixbiotech.de] from Germany, came out on top. This week on Beyond Biotech I’m joined by Fusix Biotech’s Managing Director and co-founder, Jennifer Altomonte, who tells me about her journey through the industry, Fusix’s InFUSE platform, and what it’s like to pitch – and win – one of the most important biopharma startup competitions of the year. 01:34               Meet Jennifer Altomonte 05:12               Co-founding Fusix Biotech 10:37               Fusix Biotech and the InFUSE platform 18:50               Intellectual property for a young company 20:04               The BIO-Europe Startup Spotlight 23:47               The impact of the competition win 29:05               The milestones ahead 30:33               What does a successful 2026 look like for Fusix Biotech? 31:56               Learn more about Fusix Biotech This episode is supported by EBD Group [https://www.ebdgroup.com/]. Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! [https://www.labiotech.eu/advertise/?utm_campaign=lead_generation&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast]  Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter [https://www.labiotech.eu/newsletter/?utm_campaign=newsletter_promotion&utm_medium=podcast_description&utm_source=podcast] To dive deeper into the topic:  * BIO-Europe partnering: Australian biotech companies share their experiences [https://www.labiotech.eu/trends-news/bio-europe-partnering-australian-biotech-lessons/] * Four New Technologies That Will Change Cancer Treatment [https://www.labiotech.eu/in-depth/cancer-treatments-immuno-oncology/] * Why is the immunology and inflammation market suddenly attracting a wave of investment? [https://www.labiotech.eu/in-depth/immunology-and-inflammation-market/]