Faith-Driven Biotech Investing
By Colin Craig, MBA, CSRIC®
Cancer. If you have not had the disease personally, chances are that you know someone who had, has, or will have a diagnosis at some point. Cancer can affect any of us – no matter our age, race, gender, or health record. Like other diseases, cancer is evidence that something in this world is broken.
For those of us who have been affected by cancer (as either patients or loved ones of patients), we rejoice when we hear news of a breakthrough treatment in the fight against the disease. And as Christian investors, we likewise can rejoice knowing that our investment capital makes us part owners of those very companies discovering life-saving treatments. Today, I am excited to introduce you to one such Shining Light company: Amgen Inc.
Amgen in the News
If you follow financial news, you may have recently seen headlines that Amgen, a biotechnology company based in Thousand Oaks, California, received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a targeted immunotherapy for adults with advanced stages of small cell lung cancer. The drug, known as Imdelltra (with a generic name of tarlatamab), was approved for use as a second line of treatment, meaning that the cancer patient already received another form of treatment – typically chemotherapy – with little progress in fighting the disease. This is certainly good news for the 330,000 people worldwide who are diagnosed with small cell lung cancer each year, and we praise God for the advancement in treating a notoriously difficult-to-beat disease!1
Amgen’s Imdelltra uses bispecific antibodies that are designed to bring a cancer cell and an immune cell together, so that the body’s immune system can kill the cancer cell. In other words, the drug trains the immune system’s T-cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells. In clinical trials, not only was the drug proven to reduce tumor growth in 40 percent of people who were given the regimen (a step in the right direction), but it also helped small-cell cancer patients live significantly longer.2 According to one source, “the median time that people lived after starting 10-milligram doses of Amgen’s drug was 14.3 months. That compares to around six to 12 months with current treatments, according to the National Cancer Institute.” 1 While increasing a patient’s life span by a few months may not seem like a lot, it is actually very good news because it indicates that researchers are learning how to treat the disease better.
From an Idea to a Reality
Good news aside, it is also important to point out that drugs like Amgen’s Imdelltra do not magically appear. In addition to coming up with ideas worth testing, a specific research and approval process has to be followed. On its website, the FDA explains that drugs are developed using a five-step process:
1) Discovery and Development,
2) Preclinical Research,
3) Clinical Research,
4) FDA Review, and
5) FDA Post-Market Safety Monitoring.3
While we do not have time to discuss each step in detail, the basic idea of this framework is to ensure that “the drug is determined to provide benefits that outweigh its known and potential risks for the intended population.”4 On average, this process takes ten years and hundreds of millions of dollars for a drug to be approved by the FDA. In addition, only approximately ten percent of potential drugs eventually pass the FDA’s rigorous approval process.5
The reality is that it is people – namely owners and employees – that drive companies like Amgen. Likewise, it is people at the FDA who thoroughly review and approve drugs for use in treatments of diseases.
A significant amount of scientific rigor, business acumen, analytical insight, and innovation are all necessary to bring pharmaceutical drugs like Amgen’s Imdelltra to market for the masses. At Amgen, approximately 27,000 staff members work cohesively to make the company’s mission “to fight the world’s toughest diseases, and make people’s lives easier, fuller and longer” a reality.6,7
In addition to function-specific leadership development programs, peer mentoring networks, and employee resource groups, Amgen invests in its most valuable asset – its people – with quality benefits, a flexible working environment, onsite childcare at some locations, and resources to assist employees who have elder care responsibilities.8 Given the fact that Amgen’s business model only succeeds when it attracts and retains highly capable employees, it makes sense that it would invest in its employees’ overall well-being.
Shining Light Company: Amgen
Christian investors have an opportunity to invest in companies that reflect Kingdom priorities. Rather than merely avoiding investments in tobacco manufacturers whose products are linked to diseases like lung-cancer, we like to take a redemptive approach and intentionally invest in companies (like Amgen) who are striving to create solutions to chronic health conditions. As faith-driven investors with a call to let our light shine before others (Matthew 5:16), we aim to glorify Christ as we reflect His priorities through our investments. This is what we are all about here at Beacon Wealth! If you would learn more about our investment philosophy, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us today.
Colin Craig, MBA, CSRIC® is a Portfolio Analyst at Beacon Wealth Consultants where he serves as a member of the investment management team.
Sources
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/16/fda-approves-amgen-small-cell-lung-cancer-treatment.html
- https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-fda-approves-amgen-drug-small-cell-lung-cancer-bloomberg-reports-2024-05-16/
- https://www.fda.gov/patients/learn-about-drug-and-device-approvals/drug-development-process
- https://www.fda.gov/drugs/development-approval-process-drugs
- https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/700childrens/2018/03/what-does-it-take-to-get-a-drug-approved-through-the-fda
- https://www.amgen.com/stories/2024/04/2023-letter-to-shareholders
- https://www.amgen.com/about#:~:text=Amgen%20harnesses%20the%20best%20of,to%20help%20millions%20of%20patients.
- https://www.amgen.com/responsibility/healthy-society/human-capital-management