Drug approvals went from crawl to sprint in 2025 episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 16, 2026 · 13 MIN

Drug approvals went from crawl to sprint in 2025

from The Top Line · host Fierce Life Sciences

In early 2025, the FDA was rocked by sweeping layoffs and leadership turnover, raising questions about whether the agency could maintain its pace in reviewing new drug applications. By the end of the year, the approval picture told a more complicated story, with momentum building after a slow start. This week on "The Top Line," we dig into what the numbers really show, which companies and therapies came out on top, and what the FDA’s performance over the course of 2025 signals for the drug review process going forward. To learn more about the topics in this episode:  2025 drug approvals: Despite FDA tumult and macro uncertainty, biopharma scored with 55 new products 2024 drug approvals: Small companies loom large with several key FDA nods 2023 drug approvals: After a down year, FDA signs off on a bounty of new meds, including 7 from Pfizer See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Drug approvals went from crawl to sprint in 2025

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This episode was published on January 16, 2026.

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In early 2025, the FDA was rocked by sweeping layoffs and leadership turnover, raising questions about whether the agency could maintain its pace in reviewing new drug applications. By the end of the year, the approval picture told a more...

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