394: Eli Lilly's deal man, Allogene's off-the-shelf CAR-T, and Merck's Terns buy

About this episode

The episode discusses Eli Lilly's busy deal-making, Merck's acquisition of Terns, and the ongoing relevance of off-the-shelf CAR-T therapies.

On this week’s episode of "The Readout LOUD": Allison DeAngelis is still away, leaving Elaine Chen and Adam Feuerstein to mind the podcasting store. You've been warned. Eli Lilly’s deal man Jake van Naarden is very, very busy, so what does that mean for biotech and pharma? Speaking of deals, Merck is buying Terns for nearly $7 billion. Why are some people mad about it? You might be surprised to hear this, but off-the-shelf CAR-T therapies for cancer are still a thing. We preview an interesting data readout coming soon from Allogene Therapeutics. And finally, someone forgot to tell Wave Life Sciences that weight loss drugs are supposed to help people lose weight.

People in this episode

Hosts: Elaine Chen, Adam Feuerstein

Topics covered

• biotech
• pharma
• deals
• CAR-T therapies
• cancer treatment
• Eli Lilly
• Merck acquisition

Keywords

• Eli Lilly
• Merck
• Terns
• Allogene Therapeutics
• CAR-T
• biotech deals
• cancer therapies
• Wave Life Sciences

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Eli Lilly, Merck, Terns, Allogene Therapeutics, Wave Life Sciences

More episodes of The Readout Loud

• 405: An obesity drug deep-dive, and peptides move mainstream · June 11, 2026 · 36 min
• 404: What RevMed's pancreatic cancer drug meant for one patient · June 4, 2026 · 38 min
• 403: Biotech exec Jeremy Levin on the industry's strategic turning point · May 28, 2026 · 47 min
• 402: Guarding biotech from China and big bets in longevity · May 21, 2026 · 44 min
• 401: Makary’s departure and Cassidy’s tenuous Senate seat · May 14, 2026 · 41 min
• 400: Seaport's IPO adventure, obesity pill battles, and Makary's troubles · May 7, 2026 · 33 min