Barry Sanders jukes out bad cholesterol at SXSW. Plus, the 2026 MM+M Transform preview

Episode Description

If you followed along with managing editor Jack O’Brien’s live blog from SXSW last week, you’ll know that he spoke with a number of key medical marketing leaders on the ground in Austin.

Those takeouts, including insights from Amgen, Marina Maher Communications and Compass Pathways, will be featured in next week’s podcast.

For this week’s pod, we have an important conversation further tying in pharma brands to the world of sports.

We’re joined by Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders, who serves as a spokesperson for Amgen in its campaign raising awareness about cardiovascular disease, namely LDL, or “bad” cholesterol.

Sanders, who suffered a heart attack in 2024, has partnered with the pharma giant to use his stature as the greatest living running back to raise awareness around LDL-C testing.

He has starred in The Making of a Heart Attack documentary sponsored by Amgen and also participated in a panel discussion about the issue at SXSW.

And for our Trends segment, you’ll hear from Jameson Fleming, Steve Madden, Lecia Bushak with a preview of the 2026 MM+M Transform conference scheduled for next Tuesday, March 31 in downtown Manhattan.