Each week, our Regional Roundup delivers the most important and timely life sciences news from around the region. From groundbreaking research to fundraising, new development projects, and who’s hiring — we bring you the top stories that matter most. Stay informed with a curated selection of the latest news, delivered directly to your inbox weekly.
Greater Philadelphia’s life sciences ecosystem is turning momentum into action. Capital is backing new approaches to cancer diagnostics, companies are advancing therapies into pivotal clinical stages, and leaders are stepping into roles timed to those exact moments, arriving right as trials launch or products head to market.
At the same time, companies joining the latest round of federal drug-pricing deals, a new Delaware startup grant, and a wave of Director-level hiring across Big Pharma are strengthening the infrastructure needed to support that growth.
Financial
Tracking the capital moving through Greater Philadelphia— funding rounds, M&A activity, and investment trends shaping Philadelphia, Southern New Jersey, and Delaware’s life sciences companies.
Globus Medical Acquires a New Pillar to Its Musculoskeletal Empire to Transform Healthcare Experience Through AI-Driven Digital Solutions
Globus Medical has acquired Higgs Boson Health, a Duke University spinout behind CareConvoy, a patient engagement platform tracking surgical recovery outside the operating room. Analysts call it more of an acqui-hire, with the real value in deepening hospital relationships around Globus’s implant and surgical tech ecosystem. Read More >
Philadelphia’s Biotech Just Raised $7M to Bet on an Overlooked Cell Type
Senticell has closed a nearly $7 million oversubscribed seed round to advance its red blood cell-based liquid biopsy platform, built on Penn Medicine research showing RBCs bind and retain disease-associated DNA far longer than conventional plasma-based tests capture. Two prospective Penn studies covering roughly 300 cancer patients are already underway, with results expected between Q4 2026 and Q1 2027. Read More >
Early-Stage Growth Grant (EGG) Funding
With Applications closing this September 15, the Innovation Space’s Early-Stage Growth Grant offers early-stage life sciences and advanced materials startups up to two years of private lab space in Wilmington, Delaware, plus mentorship, equipment access, and business-building support through its Spark Factory and Science Inc. programs. Apply Now >
People
Who we’re buzzing about this week — the leadership moves, board appointments, and rising names shaping the region’s life sciences community.
Polaryx Therapeutics Names Will Charlton CMO Ahead of Phase 2 SOTERIA Trial
Polaryx Therapeutics has named Dr. Will Charlton Chief Medical Officer, bringing nearly two decades of rare disease and pediatric endocrinology leadership from Tyra Biosciences and Spruce Biosciences as the company prepares to launch its SOTERIA Phase 2 basket trial for PLX-200 in Q4 2026. Read More >
Leo Russo, PhD, Joins Life Science Cares Philadelphia Board of Advisors
Life Science Cares Philadelphia has welcomed Leo Russo, PhD, to its Board of Advisors, bringing over 25 years of pharmaceutical epidemiology experience from Pfizer, Shire, J&J, and GSK. Russo most recently led Pfizer’s Real-World Evidence & Epidemiology department, and now brings that expertise to the organization’s mission of connecting talented students with industry opportunity. Read More >
Persevere Therapeutics Announces Appointment of James Barlow to Board of Directors
Persevere Therapeutics has appointed James Barlow, President and CEO of ImmunoGenesis, to its Board of Directors as the company initiates its Phase 2a trial for misetionamide, a first-in-class MYC inhibitor, in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. Barlow brings oncology commercial and business development experience from Inovio, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Merck. Read More >
Outlook Therapeutics Appoints Kevin Lundquist as Chief Financial Officer as It Prepares for U.S. Commercial Launch of LYTENAVA™
Outlook Therapeutics has appointed Kevin Lundquist Chief Financial Officer as the company prepares for the U.S. commercial launch of LYTENAVA, the only FDA-approved ophthalmic bevacizumab formulation for wet AMD. Lundquist brings finance leadership from CapsoVision, Abzena Biologics, and Genentech/Roche, including experience taking CapsoVision through its 2025 IPO. Read More >
Workforce
The hiring activity, team expansions, and talent trends driving growth across Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Delaware life sciences and biotech employers.
TELA Bio Announces COO / CFO Resign and Strategic Cost Reduction Initiative
Malvern-based TELA Bio is cutting annual operating expenses by roughly $17 million, or 18%, including a ~20% headcount reduction, alongside the departure of longtime COO/CFO Roberto Cuca after five years with the company. CEO Heather Getz says the initiative, expected to stretch TELA Bio’s cash runway into 2028, follows a comprehensive review aimed at building a more disciplined, efficient organization. Read More >
Participate in Penn I-Corps
Penn’s I-Corps program, an NSF-funded initiative that helps faculty, students, and researchers test their startup ideas with real customers, has opened applications for its Fall 2026 cohort, with a priority deadline of September 20. The program has trained more than 250 research-based teams to date, building a pipeline of founders, feeding directly into the region’s growing life sciences workforce. Apply Now >
Who’s hiring?!
Top Employer
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Audubon, Pennsylvania, Globus Medical has grown from a small startup into a leading global musculoskeletal technology company, with over 6,000 employees and a presence in 65 countries. The company designs, develops, and manufactures instruments and implants for spine surgery, orthopedic trauma, joint reconstruction, and regenerative biologics.
With a strong emphasis on providing exceptional response, innovation, advancing patient care, Globus Medical extends that mission through its Musculoskeletal Education and Research Center, partnering with surgeons and hospitals on training and clinical research. Globus Medical is a major driver of medtech talent right here in the Greater Philadelphia region, with roles spanning engineering, manufacturing, clinical development, quality and compliance, and commercial operations.
They are currently hiring across 140+ roles in the Greater Philadelphia region. Apply Now >
Other employers and available roles we’re paying attention to this week:
- Jazz Pharmaceuticals (Philadelphia, PA) is hiring a Director, Corporate Counsel – Corporate and Securities | Apply Now >
- Johnson & Johnson ( Spring House, PA) is hiring a Director, New Products & Business Development, Solid Tumors | Apply Now >
- Immunocore (Radnor, PA) is hiring a Director of Regulatory Affairs, Tactical and Implementation | Apply Now >
- AstraZeneca (Wilmington, DE) is hiring a Director, Bio-Pharma Medical US Evidence – Medical Informatics | Apply Now >
- GSK (Collegeville, PA) is hiring a Sr. Director Global RWE and Health Outcomes Oncology | Apply Now >
- Merck (North Wales, PA) is hiring an Associate Director, Payer Marketing | Apply Now >
Clinical + Commercial
The latest clinical trial progress, regulatory milestones, and commercial launches from companies advancing science from the lab to the market across Greater Philadelphia.
This Phase 3 Trial Could Change How Geographic Atrophy Gets Treated
Malvern-based Ocugen has dosed the first patient in ArMaDa3, the first pivotal Phase 3 gene therapy trial for geographic atrophy, enrolling 237 patients globally to test OCU410, a one-time subretinal treatment that addresses multiple disease pathways rather than requiring ongoing injections. The FDA has granted OCU410 RMAT designation, and Ocugen anticipates filing a BLA in 2028. Read More >
Common Warts, Suffered by 22 M People, Just Got One Step Closer to Having an Approved Treatment
West Chester-based Verrica Pharmaceuticals has completed enrollment in COVE-2, the first of two pivotal Phase 3 trials testing whether YCANTH® can become the first FDA-approved prescription treatment for common warts, a condition affecting roughly 22 million people in the U.S. with no approved options today. Partner Torii Pharmaceutical is funding the first $40 million of trial costs, with topline COVE-2 data expected in Q1 2027. Read More >
The First Human Trial of ConformalFLASH Proton Therapy Just Started, Here in Philadelphia
Penn Medicine has launched the first U.S. human clinical trial testing ConformalFLASH® proton therapy, delivering a cancer-killing radiation dose in under one second per session, compressing a typical six-week, 25-35 session treatment course into just five sessions over 10 days. The Phase I trial will enroll 10 patients with recurrent, unresectable head and neck cancer, building on Penn’s earlier FLASH research and positioning it as the only U.S. site testing this precision version of the technology in human patients. Read More >
Molecular Targeting Technologies Receives Pharma Tech Outlook’s 2026 “Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Solution of the Year” Award for EvaThera™
Molecular Targeting Technologies, based in West Chester, has been named Pharma Tech Outlook’s 2026 Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Solution of the Year for EvaThera™, a platform that extends how long targeted radiation stays in tumors using reversible albumin binding. Read More >
Ecosystem
The partnerships, programs, and policy moves building Greater Philadelphia’s life sciences infrastructure — and the organizations driving it forward.
Cencora’s New Service Isn’t About the Drugs, It’s About the Systems Delivering Them
Conshohocken-based Cencora has launched Cell and Gene Therapy Enablement, a new service under its Accelerate Pharmacy Solutions portfolio designed to help health systems build and scale CGT programs, addressing a stark gap where just 4% of pharmacy leaders report. The offering spans financial planning, operational readiness, and scalable growth models meant to coordinate strategy, clinical operations, and patient access as health systems expand into new therapies and sites. Read More >
The White House Just Announced More Drug-Pricing Deals, with 1 Greater Philadelphia Tie
CSL, headquartered in King of Prussia, PA, is one of nine pharmaceutical manufacturers that has reached an agreement with the Trump administration as part of its most-favored-nation (MFN) drug-pricing initiative. The deal calls for CSL to provide state Medicaid programs access to its current medicines at prices comparable to those paid in other developed nations, while also supporting a major expansion of its U.S. manufacturing footprint. Read More >
Doylestown’s Aprea Therapeutics Expands Patent Portfolio Protecting Its Two Lead Cancer Drugs
Doylestown-based Aprea Therapeutics has expanded the patent portfolios protecting its two lead cancer drugs, APR-1051 (a WEE1 kinase inhibitor) and ATRN-119 (an ATR inhibitor), both currently in Phase 1 trials for advanced solid tumors. The WEE1 program alone now spans pending U.S. and international applications that, if granted, could provide protection into the 2040s, reinforcing Aprea’s IP position years ahead of any potential approval. Read More >
Celularity and MuseCell Innovations® Announce U.S. Manufacturing Collaboration for the Dezawa MuseCell® Platform
Celularity has struck a U.S. manufacturing collaboration with Singapore-based MuseCell Innovations to produce Dezawa MuseCells at its 147,215-square-foot Florham Park, New Jersey facility, a deal projected to generate more than $300 million in purchases and over 200 new jobs over the next five years. Read More >
Other [Good] Reads
Editor’s picks from across the web — the stories, videos, and podcasts shaping the conversation in PHL biotech and life sciences this week.
Novel Approach To Cancer Explores Severing Its Genetic Supply Line
Eric B. Kmiec, Ph.D., executive director of ChristianaCare’s Gene Editing Institute in Delaware and Chief Scientific Officer of Newark, DE-based Corrixr Therapeutics, explains a new way to fight cancer: instead of targeting the mutation that starts a tumor, his team is using CRISPR to cut off the internal machinery that keeps tumor cells alive and resistant to treatment. The approach could offer a new option for the roughly 90% of solid tumors that eventually stop responding to existing therapies. Read More >
The Clinical Validation Gap: Why Promising Medtech Companies Stall Before Health System Adoption
University City Science Center’s Dr. Kevin Baumlin explains why the cheapest clinical advisor is often the costliest mistake medtech founders make, arguing that real value comes from advisors who’ve navigated how health systems actually approve and adopt new tools, not just clinicians with a title. The piece points to the Science Center’s CHESS program as a case study in how the right clinical connections helped one startup, BioCurie, land $9.3 million in non-dilutive ARPA-H funding. Read More >
On the Calendar
A few of the upcoming events, conferences, and networking opportunities across Greater Philadelphia’s life sciences ecosystem that you don’t want to miss.
LSC Emerging Leaders: Walk the Wissahickon
Thursday, September 3 • 6 – 8 PM • Philadelphia, PA
Hosted by Life Science Cares Philadelphia | Register Now >
Philly Life Sciences Job Seeker Series – Beyond the Bench
Friday, September 11 • 10 AM – 1 PM • Philadelphia, PA
Hosted by Keystone Life Science Collaborative | Register Now >
PharmaXcelerate | Biopharma Manufacturing, Scale-Up & Commercial Readiness
Tuesday–Wednesday, September 15–16 • 8 AM – 5 PM • Philadelphia, PA
Hosted by TBM Group | Register Now >
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