Pancreatitis News and Research

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Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas. The pancreas is a large gland behind the stomach and close to the duodenum—the first part of the small intestine. The pancreas secretes digestive juices, or enzymes, into the duodenum through a tube called the pancreatic duct. Pancreatic enzymes join with bile—a liquid produced in the liver and stored in the gallbladder—to digest food. The pancreas also releases the hormones insulin and glucagon into the bloodstream. These hormones help the body regulate the glucose it takes from food for energy.

Normally, digestive enzymes secreted by the pancreas do not become active until they reach the small intestine. But when the pancreas is inflamed, the enzymes inside it attack and damage the tissues that produce them.

Pancreatitis can be acute or chronic. Either form is serious and can lead to complications. In severe cases, bleeding, infection, and permanent tissue damage may occur.

New minimally invasive therapy shows promise for long-term reversal of Type 1 diabetes

What if instead of daily insulin injections or wearing pumps, just getting a shot every few months could reverse Type 1 diabetes for you - or your dog?

21 Aug 2018

Novartis' new drug combination receives positive CHMP opinion for treating stage III BRAF mutant melanoma

Novartis today announced the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency has adopted a positive opinion recommending approval of Tafinlar® in combination with Mekinist® for the adjuvant treatment of adult patients with stage III melanoma with a BRAF V600 mutation, following complete resection.

27 Jul 2018

CNDA approves KEYTRUDA for treatment of advanced melanoma

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced that KEYTRUDA, Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, has been approved by the China National Drug Administration for the treatment of adult patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma following failure of one prior line of therapy.

26 Jul 2018

Phase 3 study of KEYTRUDA monotherapy meets primary endpoint

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, announced today that the pivotal Phase 3 KEYNOTE-048 trial investigating KEYTRUDA, Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, for first-line treatment of recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, met a primary endpoint of overall survival as monotherapy in patients whose tumors expressed PD-L1.

25 Jul 2018

Ferring announces FDA approval of ZOMACTON for injection in four new pediatric indications

Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved ZOMACTON for injection in four additional pediatric indications

20 Jul 2018

Health burdens of very high risk drinking are potentially large, study reveals

In an Addiction Biology study, the estimated prevalence of very high risk drinking level (VHRDL, defined as drinking >100 g of ethanol per day) in 13 European Union countries was 0.74-0.85 percent, with a risk of disease or injury of 13.5 per 100 people with VHRDL per year.

18 Jul 2018

Merck announces FDA acceptance of supplemental Biologics License Application for KEYTRUDA

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for standard review a new supplemental Biologics License Application for KEYTRUDA, Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, as adjuvant therapy in the treatment of patients with resected, high-risk stage III melanoma and granted a Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or target action, date of February 16, 2019.

25 Jun 2018

Opdivo plus low-dose Yervoy shows promising results in treating renal cell carcinoma patients

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today announced patient-reported outcomes data from the Phase 3 CheckMate -214 trial in intermediate- and poor-risk patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma treated with the Immuno-Oncology combination Opdivo plus low-dose Yervoy versus sunitinib over a two-year follow-up period.

1 Jun 2018

Familial Chylomicronemia Syndrome: How HCP’s can Support Patients with Rare Diseases

Dr Robert Cramb gives an introduction to the rare disease FCS, and how HCP's can best advise and support patients with the condition.

15 May 2018

Gene therapy offers potential cure for patients with lipoprotein lipase deficiency

During the first 18 months after treatment with ali-pogene tiparvovec, a gene therapy recently approved in Europe to treat lipoprotein lipase deficiency (LPLD), the first patient to receive the treatment had no abdominal pain or episodes of pancreatitis, following a history of 37 pancreatitis attacks.

2 May 2018

Pancreatitis risk in minorities linked to alcohol, gallstones and high triglycerides

Pancreatitis in ethnic minorities is linked to very high levels of triglycerides and the risk is further increased by alcohol abuse and gallstones, according to a study published in the journal Endocrine Practice.

16 Apr 2018

Clinical study to find improved treatment for visceral leishmaniasis starts in eastern Africa

A new study to find a safer, efficacious and more patient-friendly treatment and improved diagnostic tools for people living with visceral leishmaniasis has begun in eastern Africa, within the new Afri-KA-DIA Consortium with funding from The European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership.

13 Apr 2018

FDA grants accelerated approval to leukemia drug for patients with MRD-positive ALL

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to Blincyto (blinatumomab) to treat adults and children with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) who are in remission but still have minimal residual disease (MRD).

30 Mar 2018

New review explores potentially safer therapies for treating chronic abdominal pain

An estimated 2 million people in the U.S. are addicted to prescription opioids- powerful doctor-prescribed medications for chronic or severe pain. The drugs are commonly prescribed to treat gastrointestinal pain caused by conditions such as Crohn's disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), raising the risk of addiction among this population.

29 Mar 2018

Researchers aim to to better predict future chronic opioid therapy in hospital patients

Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus are working to develop statistical models to better predict which patients will be prescribed opioid medications long-term following discharge from a hospital stay.

6 Mar 2018

New AGA guideline focuses on critical decisions made during initial management of acute pancreatitis

Management and treatment decisions made within the first 48 to 72 hours of hospital admission for acute pancreatitis patients can significantly alter the course of disease and duration of hospitalization.

11 Feb 2018

Alcohol related ER visits on the rise especially among women, finds study

According to a recent study, there is a steady rise in the number of individuals visiting the emergency rooms due to complications and problems associated with alcohol consumption over the last few years. The results of the new study appeared in the latest issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.

11 Jan 2018

Novartis announces FDA approval of its first and only CML therapy with TFR data in product label

Novartis announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the inclusion of Treatment-free Remission (TFR) data in the Tasigna® (nilotinib) US product label.

26 Dec 2017

Tgen And Baylor secure federal grant to develop early detection system for pancreatic cancer

A group of the nation's premier cancer researchers led by the Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute -- has secured a $5.13 million federal grant to develop an early detection system for pancreatic cancer, the nation's third-leading cause of cancer-related death.

11 Dec 2017

Specific protein negatively affects pancreatic cells and leads to cancer growth

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of cancer and is currently very difficult to treat. However, the last few years have seen advances in the scientific understanding of how this cancer develops at a molecular level.

6 Dec 2017