Archive for October, 2007

Axitinib: great results for the new cancer drug

A phase II trial on axitinib, a new experimental drug for treating patients with cytokine-refractory, metastatic kidney cancer who have a poor response to more traditional drugs has shown promising results according to a new study published in the The Lancet Oncology.
Professor Olivier Rixe of the University of Paris, France, and colleagues assessed the activity [...]

Rates of high cholesterol problems among young people increase

Use of cholesterol and blood pressure medicines by young adults appears to be rising rapidly — at a faster pace than among senior citizens, according to an industry report being released Tuesday.
Experts point to higher rates of obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol problems among young people. Also, doctors are getting more aggressive with [...]

New research on Parkinson’s disease

Your brain is supposed to fire a “hold your horses” signal when faced with a tough choice. But a brain implant that stops the tremors of Parkinson’s disease may block that signal — a new explanation for why some Parkinson’s patients become hugely impulsive.
Scientists have long known that anti-Parkinson medications occasionally spark compulsions like pathological [...]

Viagra, Levitra, Cialis linked to hearing loss

The US Food and Drug Administration has decided to put more prominent warnings of potential hearing loss on impotence drugs Viagra, Cialis and Levitra.
An FDA statement said the goal was “to display more prominently the potential risk of sudden hearing loss, and to guide consumers on what to do if they experience sudden problems with [...]

Superbug causing ear infections

An emerging “superbug” that causes ear infections in children and is resistant to multiple antibiotics can only be treated with an adult medication, researchers report.
Two Rochester, N.Y., pediatricians report finding a multiple antibiotic-resistant strain of Streptococcus pneumoniae that caused ear infections in nine children in their practice over three years. The only antibiotic that was [...]

Some oral infant medicines are withdrawn from the market

Makers of OTC Cough and Cold Medicines Announce Voluntary Withdrawal of Oral Infant Medicines

Potential misuse of these infant medicines, not product safety, is driving the voluntary withdrawal

This withdrawal does not affect cough and cold medicines for children age 2 and older

Further evaluation of these oral cough and cold medicines for infants and children will occur [...]

Herbals for erectile dysfunction - be warned!

Researchers have warned about “herbal remedies” for erectile dysfunction sold over-the-counter in Hong Kong after most of them were found to contain untested variants of well-known anti-impotence drugs.
These variants, or “analogues,” are copies of controlled drugs but they are slightly modified in their chemical structure to escape patent and other drug-related laws.
Cranked out illegally, these [...]

Pfizer is #1 in research spendings. Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft and Ford are left behind

Pfizer Inc., the world’s largest drugmaker, is the world’s biggest spender on research, the European Commission said Friday.
That means it outranks rival Johnson & Johnson, software giant Microsoft Corp. and auto companies Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler AG.
Pfizer spent 5.8 billion euros ($8.18 billion) last year to take the top spot from Ford on the [...]