1. The FDA approved Eli Lilly’s Portrazza (necitumumab) as a therapy for patients with advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer who haven’t previously been treated. A clinical trial found that patients taking Portrazza and chemotherapy lived 11.5 months, compared to the 9.9 months lived by patients receiving chemotherapy. (WSJ)

2. An FDA advisory committee voted against approving a Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug developed by BioMarin Pharmaceutical, citing inconsistencies in clinical trials. The drug had been expected to be the first FDA-approved therapy to treat the genetic disease. The FDA decision is scheduled for Dec. 27. (Bloomberg Business)

3. Pfizer’s proposed merger with Allergan is “nothing short of a disgrace,” says The New Yorker. Drug companies benefit from taxpayer-funded research and tax-inversion deals allow them to sidestep paying taxes on their profits. (The New Yorker)

4. Turing Pharmaceuticals will not lower the list price of Daraprim, the antiparasitic drug it markets, as promised. Instead it will offer discounts up to 50% to hospitals and develop financial assistance programs, such as reducing patient co-pays to $10 and providing the drug for free to certain patients. (NYT)

5. The number of young women who underwent treatment for early-stage cervical cancer increased after the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. The researchers said the increase is likely due to the insurance expansion. (USA Today)