Former Ignyta executive Zachary Hornby wasn't wowed by immuno-oncology pitches when looking for his next cancer drug development company, but was intrigued by ecDNA research at UCSD, which also could generate a tumor agnostic approach.

Brazil has established an accelerated pathway for approval of drugs for ultra-rare diseases, encouraging development activity – but the definition of qualifying drugs is narrow. Expansion to include more treatments could boost clinical trials activity and companies’ overall development presence.

A better understanding of heme trafficking could lead to drug targets in metabolic diseases, anemias, porphyrias, hemolytic diseases such as sickle cell disease – even parasitic infections.