Timmerman Report Turns 10

Timmerman Report is 10 years old today.

On Feb. 2, 2015, I rode my bike to the office on a wet Seattle morning and turned on the lights. I thought there was a need for clear, probing, contextual — and fiercely independent — biotech journalism.

The past 10 years of biotech have been remarkable. I’ve had a front-row seat.

It’s been a privilege to report on lifesaving CAR-T cell therapies for cancer and autoimmunity, a CRISPR gene editing cure for sickle cell disease, transformative medicines for hepatitis C, HIV and cystic fibrosis and more. A wide range of emerging treatment modalities are here today and arriving by the bushel tomorrow. I’m talking about antibody-drug conjugates for cancer, targeted radiopharmaceuticals, bispecific and multi-specific antibodies, targeted small molecule protein degraders, mRNA vaccines and therapies, small molecules that bind at allosteric sites, and RNA-based medicines. The underlying biology is being better elucidated, and the tools to intervene with disease targets are getting better.

The core challenge remains: How to bring these medical marvels closer to more patients, at a price that we can afford and that rewards the scientists and entrepreneurs who create them.

Thank you to all of the loyal subscribers who have made it possible for me to cover these seismic events. Special thanks to my advisory board: Vicki Sato, Bob More, Julie Sunderland, Rob Perez, Katrine Bosley and Roger Longman.

I’m grateful to have this platform for independent biotech journalism, and to steward it as a trusted source. TR seeks to understand, to inform, to enlighten, and to challenge readers to think. It’s about exploring the frontiers of science and drug discovery and thinking through the implications of it for society.

That’s not necessarily the formula for going viral. Yet the business is thriving, with more than 1,300 active, paid subscribers. The Long Run podcast has received 1.5 million plays since it began in 2017.

Timmerman Report is a platform for covering biotech without fear or favor. It is the beating heart of everything I do. TR has opened up avenues for me to give back, mobilizing the biotech community around worthy causes. Since 2017, my mountaineering campaigns have catalyzed the biotech community to give back more than $12 million to alleviate suffering from cancer, poverty, and sickle cell disease.

Those trips have been deeply meaningful. Friendships have been formed. Companies and collaborations have been born. I’m proud that we, together, have catalyzed so much good work. This will continue. The impact will grow.

Sometimes we all need to stop and think about what we’re doing, where we’ve come from, and where we’re going. I’m not taking anything for granted.

Thank you. For reading. For listening. For supporting quality independent journalism. And for doing the day-to-day, bit-by-bit work of improving human health and creating a better world.

Come celebrate the TR 10^th anniversary with fellow readers and listeners.

TR10 East Coast Party / Cambridge, Mass. / Mar. 6

TR10 West Coast Party / Seattle / Mar. 13

Interested in joining HSBC Innovation Banking as a sponsor of these free and fun community events? Write to luke@timmermanreport.com.

Let’s imagine an even more vibrant biotech future for the next 10.