Biotech Stocks Facing FDA Decision In May

(RTTNews) - The bench to bedside journey of drugs is fraught with challenges. It is estimated that only 5 in 5,000 compounds that enter preclinical testing make it to human testing, and out of those 5, only 1 may pass through all the regulatory hurdles needed to reach pharmacy shelves.

2015 was a record year for new drug approvals, with 56 drugs being greenlighted by the FDA, topping the old record of 53 new drug approvals in 1996, according to a report by Express Scripts. The number of novel drugs, i.e., the drugs classified as new molecular entities, approved in 2015 was 45 compared to 41 in 2014.

The FDA decisions on drugs can send some biotech stocks soaring or crashing.

Here's the list of biotech stocks that await a ruling from the FDA or FDA panel this month.