S12 E02: Rethinking multiple sclerosis care: Challenging old frameworks

This content has been funded by Angelini Pharma. In this episode, Isabel sits down with Rafal Kaminski, Chief Scientific Officer, Angelini Pharma, to explore how new science is reshaping brain health and what that means for patients. In the episode, Rafal reflects on his path into neuroscience and explains how Angelini is building its brain health pipeline, with a focus on epilepsy. He discusses the promise of new treatment approaches, the role of partnerships in driving progress and why better care depends on more than medicine alone. Guest bio Rafal Kaminski is Chief Scientific Officer at Angelini Pharma, where he leads the company's research and development strategy across small molecules, biologics and RNA-based therapies. He joined Angelini Pharma in 2022 after more than 20 years in senior R&D roles at UCB Pharma, Roche and Molecure Therapeutics, leading drug discovery programmes from early research into clinical development. A medical doctor with a PhD in Neuropharmacology, Rafal has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and is an inventor on several patents. Outside of work, he is an avid music listener and vinyl collector and is married with one adult son.

In the final episode, the focus turns to prevention. Rachel Buckley examines whether Alzheimer's strategies should be sex-specific, the timing of interventions, and how lifestyle factors like physical activity contribute to brain resilience. The discussion also highlights gaps in research and the need for better integration of women's health data. Timestamps: 00:00:45:13 – Sex-disaggregated data for prevention 00:03:26:15 – Sex-specific timing for therapeutics 00:05:07:20 – Non-pharmacological interventions 00:07:58:02 – Gaps in reproductive data

This episode explores how reproductive ageing and biological sex influence Alzheimer's disease risk. Rachel Buckley discusses menopause, hormonal changes, genetic factors such as the X chromosome, and emerging evidence showing differences in tau accumulation between women and men. Timestamps: 00:00:55:03 – Menopause and Alzheimer's disease 00:04:51:11 – X chromosome in Alzheimer's disease 00:08:29:01 – Tau accumulation in women 00:10:43:09 – Hormone replacement therapy 00:14:22:24 – The sweet spot with hormone therapy

In Part 3, Hideki Garren, Roche, shares a hopeful vision for slowing, stopping and ultimately preventing multiple sclerosis. Guest bio Hideki Garren is Senior Vice President and Global Head of Clinical Development, Neurology, Roche, appointed in September 2024. He brings extensive leadership experience across biotech and pharma, including senior roles at Roche, where he led global neuroimmunology development. Prior to this, Hideki served as Chief Medical Officer at Prothena Biosciences and held board and leadership roles at Coya Therapeutics, Novartis, and Bayhill Therapeutics, which he co-founded. He completed his neurology residency and postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University, where he also served as an adjunct clinical professor. Hideki holds a bachelor's degree from Caltech and an MD and PhD from UCLA.

In Part 2, Hideki Garren, Roche, discusses the challenge of measuring MS progression and the importance of better data, imaging and patient insight. Guest bio Hideki Garren is Senior Vice President and Global Head of Clinical Development, Neurology, Roche, appointed in September 2024. He brings extensive leadership experience across biotech and pharma, including senior roles at Roche, where he led global neuroimmunology development. Prior to this, Hideki served as Chief Medical Officer at Prothena Biosciences and held board and leadership roles at Coya Therapeutics, Novartis, and Bayhill Therapeutics, which he co-founded. He completed his neurology residency and postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University, where he also served as an adjunct clinical professor. Hideki holds a bachelor's degree from Caltech and an MD and PhD from UCLA.

This week, Isabel sits down with Hideki Garren, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Clinical Development, Neurology, Roche, to explore how our understanding of multiple sclerosis is changing and what that means for patients. *]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:a4937816-0c47-4273-9d15-60c7d4caba77-4" data-testid= "conversation-turn-10" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn= "assistant"> In Part 1, Hideki reflects on his path into neurology and explores the shift in how multiple sclerosis is understood, from relapses to ongoing progression. Guest bio Hideki Garren is Senior Vice President and Global Head of Clinical Development, Neurology, Roche, appointed in September 2024. He brings extensive leadership experience across biotech and pharma, including senior roles at Roche, where he led global neuroimmunology development. Prior to this, Hideki served as Chief Medical Officer at Prothena Biosciences and held board and leadership roles at Coya Therapeutics, Novartis, and Bayhill Therapeutics, which he co-founded. He completed his neurology residency and postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University, where he also served as an adjunct clinical professor. Hideki holds a bachelor's degree from Caltech and an MD and PhD from UCLA.

In the final episode of this series, Leslie Cho focuses on prevention. From lifestyle interventions and pregnancy-related risk to menopause, brain health, and cholesterol management, she shares practical strategies clinicians can use today to improve long-term cardiovascular outcomes for women.

Why does cardiovascular data so often fail women? In Part 2, Leslie Cho unpacks how trial design, symptom bias, and underdiagnosis of microvascular disease distort care for women, and what the evidence actually tells us about diagnosis, imaging, and treatment.

In Part 2 of the 2026 pharma forecast, the guests discuss the biggest unknowns for the year ahead and share a personal goal they're working towards in 2026. Speaker bios Dheepa Chari Vice President and Head of Global Scientific Communications, GSK Dheepa leads strategy and execution across oncology, vaccines, specialty care and general medicine, driving innovation in how scientific narratives are delivered. Emma Charles Senior Vice President of European Markets, BMS Emma oversees Bristol Myers Squibb's operations across 19 countries of Europe, bringing extensive global leadership experience spanning Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Yacin Marzouki  Omnichannel expert Within the pharmaceutical sector, Yacin specialises in shaping seamless customer journeys, driving content activation and aligning global strategies with local execution. Mary Stutts CEO, Healthcare Businesswomen's Association Mary leads a global organisation that advances representative leadership, strengthens the talent pipeline for healthcare and life sciences, and fuels business growth across the sector.

As 2026 gets underway, healthcare and life sciences face a year of both promise and pressure, with investment, innovation and equity all in sharp focus. In Part 1 of this year's pharma forecast, four leaders explore where real opportunity lies, from health investment to personalisation and women's health, alongside the key threats that could slow progress.  Speaker bios Dheepa Chari Vice President and Head of Global Scientific Communications, GSK Dheepa leads strategy and execution across oncology, vaccines, specialty care and general medicine, driving innovation in how scientific narratives are delivered. Emma Charles Senior Vice President of European Markets, BMS Emma oversees BMS operations across 19 countries, bringing extensive global leadership experience spanning Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Mary Stutts CEO, Healthcare Businesswomen's Association Mary leads a global organisation advancing the impact of women in healthcare, and is a prominent advocate for inclusive leadership, representative workforces and health equity.