Pfizer Inc today announced new, longer-term data from the Intergroup Exemestane Study (IES) showing that women who switched to AROMASIN® (exemestane tablets) after taking tamoxifen for two to three years experienced a significant reduction (18%) in the risk of disease-free survival (DFS) events. In addition, IES showed that AROMASIN prolonged overall survival (OS) in the ER+/unknown population with a 14% reduction in the risk of dying. These results demonstrate that the benefits of treatment are maintained in long term follow-up. These results were presented at the joint ECCO 15/ESMO 34 meeting in Berlin, Germany. [More]

Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited (MSD) announced today that ISENTRESS® (raltegravir) has been granted an expanded licence from the European Union Commission (Commission) for use in combination with other antiretroviral (ARV) medicinal products for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in adult patients, including adult patients starting HIV-1 therapy for the first time (treatment-naïve), as well as treatment-experienced adult patients. [More]

According to Dutch researcher Hanneke Later-Nijland, it may be possible to shorten the duration of treatment for tuberculosis. Due to the long duration of treatment, not every patient sees it through. Partly because of this, tuberculosis is one of the most lethal diseases in developing countries. [More]

The journal Lancet Infectious Diseases examines the worldwide spread of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB). Currently, about 500,000 of the 9 million new cases of TB that are identified each year are strains of XDR-TB. "Drug resistance is largely man-made - it is vitally important to review antibiotic treatment strategies and to ensure the Stop TB Strategy is fully applied to prevent further selection of drug-resistant mutants," Leonard Amaral of Universidade Nova de Lisboa said. [More]

The discovery of a large number of slow-growing Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, which cause tuberculosis (TB), in the lungs of TB patients could be an important step forward in the design of new anti-TB drugs. [More]

How 'molecular machines' inside cells swing into action to activate genes at different times in a cell's life is revealed in new research published in Molecular Cell. [More]

The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance) and sanofi-aventis announced today that they have entered into a collaboration agreement to accelerate the discovery, development and clinical use of drugs against tuberculosis (TB). The TB Alliance is a not-for-profit, product development partnership, whose goal is the development of new TB drugs. [More]

Patients receiving rifampicin-based anti-tuberculosis therapy are more likely to experience virological failure when starting nevirapine-based antiretroviral therapy, an HIV treatment that is widely used in developing countries because of lower cost, than when starting efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy, according to a study in the August 6 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on HIV/AIDS. [More]

Researchers have developed a new test which can quickly detect multi drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). [More]

People in low-resource countries who are ill with multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) will get a faster diagnosis -- in two days, not the standard two to three months -- and appropriate treatment thanks to two new initiatives unveiled today by WHO, the Stop TB Partnership, UNITAID and the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND). [More]

A changing population structure and ongoing migration have increased cases of drug resistant tuberculosis, according to a study published on bmj.com today. [More]

Health officials in Britain say they are dealing with the country's first case of a rare strain of tuberculosis (TB) which is almost untreatable. [More]

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) some forms of tuberculosis (TB) are a threat to the security and stability of global health. [More]

Hundreds of thousands of cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) can be prevented and as many as 134 000 lives saved through the implementation of a two-year response plan, published/launched today by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Stop TB Partnership. [More]

Extremely drug resistant TB, or XDR-TB, is a serious problem in India, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2007 International Conference, on Monday, May 21. [More]