Last week, the BIO International Convention 2026 brought the global biotech ecosystem together to have some of its most important conversations.
As part of hashtag#BIO2026, the European Innovation Council hosted a dedicated pavilion, featuring 15 innovative European startups and a series of expert panel discussions.
Petri Bono, our Chief Medical Officer, joined the First-in-Class Therapeutics panel to discuss what it takes to turn novel biology into meaningful therapies.
During the discussion, Petri highlighted that the greatest opportunity for true first-in-class therapies lies where biology remains underexploited and where existing treatment approaches continue to fall short.
That’s why, at Faron, we choose to focus on immune dysfunction and macrophage reprogramming. It’s the science where the potential to transform patient outcomes is greatest.
We are proud to contribute to conversations that help shape the future of oncology
One perspective is also the wide-scale expiration of Big Pharma patents in 2030. While waiting reduces clinical risk, it simultaneously increases the risk of losing interesting programs or having to pay more for them later.
If bexmarilimab is seen as attractive, early partnering is in the interest of both parties; Faron would get the resources for broader development, and the partner would have the opportunity to build the program before competitors.
(There was some lump sum mentioned here, but the point remains the same)
Could it be that they’ve decided to proceed with the near-minimum disclosure required by the Limited Liability Companies Act? We can thank the investors for this—the ones who get offended by every sentence that can even remotely be interpreted as a “promise” if it doesn’t then materialize. They demand the CEO’s resignation for “broken promises.” If, on the other hand, Juho decides to remain silent, they’re again calling for his head because he isn’t explaining what’s going on. Perhaps this is a result of the company being owned by a large number of retail investors who might not fully understand what they’ve invested in. That uncertainty is then vented at Juho whenever he opens his mouth.
In a similar situation, I would also be very careful about what is communicated publicly. When you can’t win, it’s better to stay quiet.
In your opinion, how could these questions be answered without “promising” anything?
Playing with percentages:
If T Syrjälä has reduced his holding by about 5% (that famous bathroom renovation, perhaps?), another professional investor (?) Kaloniemi has increased theirs by about 70%.
Increases were in the majority among the top 100 holders.
Spatial transcriptomics in cancer research: insights into tumorigenesis, diagnosis and therapeutics
The Chinese are clearly interested in Bex’s logic of operation. In a new article in the Cell Death Discovery journal, they study the RNA expression of genes in tissue sections while preserving the spatial location of the cells.
They directly mention bexmarilimab as an example of how spatial transcriptomics can guide the understanding of cancer treatments. According to the paper, in the MATINS study, Bex activated macrophages and the IFNγ/TCR signal only in responding patients across several solid tumors, such as gastric, hepatocellular, breast, biliary tract cancers, and melanoma.
The effect of Bex treatment is not just a theoretical M2→M1 claim, but can be observed at the tissue level using spatial transcriptomics.
As someone unfamiliar with the pharmaceutical market: the USA is obviously the most significant market area, but if getting a drug approved for sale there is very difficult, what is the situation regarding China and Europe?
Would it be (or have been) easier to get the drug to market first in Europe and, say, China, and then use that cash flow to provide more time to deal with the FDA’s complexities? Or is it exactly the opposite—meaning it’s easiest with the FDA, and their approval almost automatically opens doors for sales permits elsewhere in the world?
I don’t know the reason, but since the FDA leadership has changed twice during the Trump era—meaning within a single year—one wonders if it has also turned into mere deal-making; in practice, extorting money in exchange for permits. Who knows.
