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Alexion 2010 third quarter revenue increases from $102.6 to $141.6 million

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2010.

21 Oct 2010

Patients' right to be involved in own medical care

Twelve years ago, then 28-year-old graduate student Brian Zikmund-Fisher was forced into the toughest choice of his life: Die from a blood disorder within a few years or endure a bone marrow transplant that could cure him or kill him in weeks.

29 Sep 2010

bluebird bio publishes LentiGlobin gene therapy clinical trial data results

bluebird bio an emerging leader in the development of innovative gene therapies for severe genetic disorders, today announced publication in the journal Nature of its promising Phase 1/2 data highlighting positive results of LentiGlobin gene therapy treatment in a young adult with severe beta-thalassemia, a blood disorder that is one of the most frequent inherited diseases.

16 Sep 2010

FDA approves Alexion's Rhode Island manufacturing facility as commercial supply source for Soliris

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Alexion's Rhode Island manufacturing facility (ARIMF) in Smithfield, Rhode Island as a second source of commercial supply for Soliris® (eculizumab).

23 Aug 2010

International conference to discuss research, unresolved issues of sickle cell disease

Carlton Haywood Jr., Ph.D., an associate faculty member of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, will mark the 100-year anniversary of the discovery of sickle cell anemia on Wednesday, Aug. 4, with a talk on the impact that race has had on the history of research and treatment of the inherited blood disorder.

4 Aug 2010

Long term decline in hemoglobin may announce onset of colorectal cancer

Anemia, a common blood disorder characterized by low hemoglobin levels, has long been associated with those suffering from colorectal cancer. But researchers at Tel Aviv University have discovered that, more than a symptom of active disease, low hemoglobin levels can actually indicate a potential for colon cancer years before it's diagnosed.

4 Aug 2010

Taoist Tai Chi internal arts of health celebrates 40 years

Dimitri Granovski, a Russian immigrant to Canada, says that after 20 years of chronic migraines, he's become painkiller-free by practising these arts for only three months. Samantha Albert of Stratford, Ontario, says they help her deal with the effects of a critical blood disorder called amyloidosis. Helen Gaunt a wine producer in Margaret River, Australia, attributes her smooth recovery from thyroid and breast cancer to their practice.

31 Jul 2010

New drug to treat chronic pain in SCD patients

A University of Minnesota Medical School research team led by Kalpna Gupta, Ph.D., has discovered that cannibinoids offer a novel approach to ease the chronic and acute pain caused by sickle cell disease.Using a mouse model of SCD, Gupta and University of Minnesota colleagues studied the pain mechanisms by observing animals that exhibited both musculoskeletal pain and temperature sensitivity, symptoms similarly experienced by humans with SCD. The team compared two classifications of drugs in their ability to manage pain sensed by the animals, the traditionally prescribed classification of drugs, opioids, with a new therapeutic approach, cannabinoids, a synthetic compound based on marijuana derivatives. Currently, the only approved treatment for management of severe pain in SCD is opioids.

23 Jul 2010

Alexion second-quarter non-GAAP net income increases 56% to $36.9 million

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2010.

22 Jul 2010

The Children's Hospital, UCH to jointly establish new center for advanced maternal fetal medicine

The Children's Hospital and the University of Colorado Hospital have finalized an agreement to jointly establish a center for advanced maternal fetal medicine offering state-of-the-art care for high-risk pregnant women and their babies. The two leading academic medical centers have individually provided such services for more than three decades, and by building on already existing adult and pediatric expertise, they together will be able to provide unparalleled care and treatment for the region's most at-risk moms and babies.

16 Jul 2010

Gene therapy represents safe alternative to current cures for blood disorder β-thalassemia

Italian scientists pioneering a new gene transfer treatment for the blood disorder β-thalassemia have successfully completed preclinical trials, claiming they can correct the lack of beta-globin (β-globin) in patients' blood cells which causes the disease. The research, published in EMBO Molecular Medicine, reveals how gene therapy may represent a safe alternative to current cures that are limited to a minority of patients.

14 Jul 2010

Qualaquin for treatment of night time leg cramps leads to serious side effects, FDA warns

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today warned that the unapproved use of the malaria drug Qualaquin (quinine sulfate) to treat night time leg cramps has resulted in serious side effects and prompted the manufacturer to develop a risk management plan aimed at educating health care professionals and patients about the potential risks.

9 Jul 2010

Pennsylvania Department of Health announces new study on blood disorder Polycythemia vera

The Pennsylvania Department of Health today announced a new, federally-funded study on the blood disorder Polycythemia vera, or PV, in Bedford, Blair, Cambria and Somerset counties.

3 Jul 2010

Masimo granted FDA clearance for Pronto-7 noninvasive hemoglobin spot-check testing device

Masimo, the inventor of Masimo Rainbow Pulse CO-Oximetry™, Masimo Rainbow Acoustic Monitoring™, and Masimo SET® Measure-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, today announced FDA 510(k) clearance for the Pronto-7™—a new handheld device designed for quick and easy noninvasive hemoglobin (SpHb®) spot-check testing, along with SpO2, pulse rate, and perfusion index, in virtually any environment.

28 Jun 2010

Masimo announces limited market release of Pronto-7 handheld hemoglobin spot-check testing device

Masimo, the inventor of Rainbow Pulse CO-Oximetry™, Rainbow Acoustic Monitoring™, and Masimo SET® Measure-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, today announced the international limited market release of Masimo Pronto-7 -- a new handheld device designed for quick and easy noninvasive hemoglobin (SpHb®) spot-check testing in virtually any environment.

23 Jun 2010

Alexion's Soliris may benefit patients with thrombotic microangiopathy from uncontrolled complement activation

Researchers reported today that Soliris® (eculizumab), a first-in-class terminal complement inhibitor developed by Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., may provide clinical benefits to patients with thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) resulting from uncontrolled complement activation. TMA, the formation of blood clots in capillaries and small arteries, can lead to life-threatening damage in multiple organs including kidney failure, thrombocytopenia (abnormally low platelet count) and anemia.

15 Jun 2010

New research evaluating substantial disease burden of PNH presented at European Hematology Association

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced new research evaluating the substantial disease burden of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, an ultra-rare blood disorder, in patients worldwide. The International PNH Registry, involving 580 patients from 99 sites in 14 countries as of May 2010, found that the debilitating symptoms and life-threatening complications of PNH are similar across patient populations around the world.

14 Jun 2010

Alexion Pharmaceuticals plans to launch Soliris in Japan for patients with PNH

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Alexion Pharma International Sàrl today announced that the launch of Soliris (eculizumab) as a treatment for patients with PNH in Japan will begin in the third quarter of 2010, approximately three months earlier than previously expected.

2 Jun 2010

Americans who travel abroad could use extra health coverage

A report by The Associated Press describes the importance of travelers' insurance for those planning trips outside of the country. "Thousands of American travelers each year are flown home with medical assistance because of health emergencies. Car accidents and heart attacks are among the most common reasons.

11 May 2010

New study reinforces urgent need for life-saving vaccines in Africa

A new study released this week in The Lancet Infectious Diseases finds that African children who contract pneumococcus - a bacterial infection that causes pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis - are 36 times as likely to have sickle-cell disease, a blood disorder prevalent in African children that increases the risk for infectious diseases and early death.

29 Apr 2010