What was missing at ASH

Annual clinical meetings often are showcases for new breakthrough compounds. But while one early-stage small molecule made a splash at this year's American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting in New Orleans, the biologics highlighted at the meeting were more mature products, suggesting a gap in the pipeline for products to treat hematologic malignancies.

"I didn't really see anything that was striking," said Antonio Grillo-López, chief medical officer at Idec Pharmaceuticals Corp. (IDPH, San Diego, Calif.). "Most of what we showed there we knew already. The focus for everyone right now is how to apply Rituxan in a variety of ways." ...