The Merck & Co vaccine for human papillomavirus Gardasil, along with Johnson & Johnson’s Darzalex for multiple myeloma, entered the ranks of the top 10 best-selling drugs globally in the second quarter. There was no product for COVID-19 in the line-up for the first time since 2020.

Ampersand Biomedicines has emerged from stealth mode with a new CEO, and aims to shake up oncology and immunology with a new tissue-specific approach to targeting medicines.

CDC’s universal recommendation for XBB COVID vaccines means that Novavax’s protein-based vaccine can enter the market immediately upon FDA authorization, but some final questions from the agency are keeping the review going.

Public Company Edition: Neumora grossed $250m and RayzeBio raised $311m in the first initial public offerings since early August. Also, ImmunityBio completes $470m in equity and debt financings, Bausch + Lomb sells $1.4bn worth of notes and Arbutus is among firms making cuts to conserve cash.