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AMS enters 10-year contract to supply radiation therapy services at Hospital Santa Paula, Brazil

AMERICAN SHARED HOSPITAL SERVICES, a leading provider of turnkey technology solutions for advanced radiosurgical and radiation therapy services, announced today that it has entered into a ten-year contract to supply radiation therapy services at Hospital Santa Paula (HSP) in São Paulo, Brazil. AMS will place an advanced technology linear accelerator with IMRT capabilities at HSP, and is expected to begin treating patients in early 2012 in conjunction with the expected completion of a new comprehensive cancer center to be built by the hospital.

30 Aug 2010

Trius commences oral torezolid phosphate Phase 3 clinical study for ABSSSI

Trius Therapeutics, Inc. announced that the first patient has been dosed in its Phase 3 clinical study of the oral dosage form of torezolid phosphate for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI). The double-blind, active control, pivotal study is designed to compare the efficacy and safety of once-daily oral administration of 200 milligrams of torezolid phosphate for six days of treatment with the efficacy and safety of twice-daily oral administration of 600 milligrams of linezolid (Zyvox®) for 10 days of treatment.

30 Aug 2010

Meda signs agreement to acquire Alaven

Meda has signed an agreement to acquire the US specialty pharmaceutical company Alaven. The acquisition will significantly enhance Meda's marketing capabilities in the US and expand the therapeutic focus to include both gastroenterology and women's health; areas that Meda already operates in outside of the US.

30 Aug 2010

Patient Home Monitoring releases Reverse Take Over third quarter 2010 results

Patient Home Monitoring, a new company focused on in-home cardiology healthcare services, today released its post Reverse Take Over third quarter financial results, which primarily represent the period from the RTO on June 2, 2010 to June 30, 2010.

30 Aug 2010

Selective lowering of heart rate reduces risk of death and hospitalization: Study

The results of a major international study presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Stockholm and published simultaneously in The Lancet show, for the first time, that selectively lowering heart rate with a novel medication, ivabradine, significantly reduces risk of death and hospitalization for patients with heart failure. This also resolves a longstanding debate about whether lowering heart rate itself can actually lower the risk of heart disease progression.

30 Aug 2010

Covidien completes sale of Sleep Therapy CPAP, Bi-level products to PH Invest

Covidien, a leading global provider of healthcare products, today announced that it has completed the previously announced sale of its Sleep Therapy continuous positive airway pressure and Bi-level products to PH Invest, a privately held company located in Luxembourg. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

30 Aug 2010

RLY5016 potassium binder helps to regulate hyperkalemia in heart failure patients

Results from a recent phase 2b clinical trial may provide a new approach to managing excess potassium levels in patients with heart failure and heart failure with chronic kidney disease.

30 Aug 2010

Latest achievements in brain research and treatment for mental disorders

Mental disorders, such as depression, anxiety disorders, addiction and schizophrenia are the core challenge of most health care systems around the world. In the EU alone, each year 27% of the total adult population - this corresponds to 83 Million citizens - suffer from mental disorders. Depression alone affects almost 20 million ranking in the EU as the most disabling disorder of all diseases.

30 Aug 2010

Study finds bone marrow stem cell therapy improves efficacy in chronic heart failure

Bone marrow stem cell therapy improves ventricular performance, quality of life and survival in patients with chronic heart failure, according to results from the STAR-heart study.

30 Aug 2010

23rd ECNP Press conference on impact of circadian rhythms on human brain

All humans are synchronised to the rhythmic light-dark changes that occur on a daily basis. Rhythms in physiological and biochemical processes and behavioural patterns persist in the absence of all external 24-hour signals from the physical environment, with a period that is close to 24 hours

30 Aug 2010

Pediatric catastrophic disease treatment affects appetite: Study

Treatments for childhood cancer and other pediatric catastrophic diseases can affect appetite. At St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a team of dietitians work with patients to ensure proper nutritional care.

30 Aug 2010

Promising skin cancer drug in the near horizon

A new drug has been developed to combat a deadly form of skin cancer – melanoma. The drug, PLX4032, was tested on 32 melanoma patients who had a key mutation in their tumors. 26 of these patients responded favorably says the study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

30 Aug 2010

Study finds BMI, thrombogenic factor increases cardiovascular risk

Although having a high body mass index (BMI) is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, researchers are only beginning to understand how BMI affects the physiological processes involved in the development of the disease. Now, a study of a subset of women in the Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study (KEEPS), suggests that as BMI increases, so do platelet reactivity and thrombogenic microvesicles and activated protein C in the blood-all of which contribute to the formation of atherothrombosis and associated cardiovascular events.

30 Aug 2010

Transcatheter heart valve replacement recipient celebrates 102nd birthday

When Doris Snyder celebrated her 102nd birthday on August 10, she was that much closer to the expected birth of her first great-granddaughter who's due to arrive early September. She is very excited about the milestone, which might not have been possible were it not for a cutting-edge, experimental procedure that replaced one of Doris' heart valves weeks earlier when she was 101. The valve had been rendered useless by aortic valve stenosis—hardening from calcium deposits that restrict the flow of blood from the heart.

27 Aug 2010

FDA approves Novartis' Tekamlo for treatment of high blood pressure

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Tekamlo™ (aliskiren and amlodipine) tablets, a single-pill for the treatment of high blood pressure combining the only approved direct renin inhibitor, Tekturna® (aliskiren), with the widely used calcium channel blocker amlodipine. Tekamlo is approved as initial therapy for patients who are likely to need multiple drugs to achieve their blood pressure goals, and as replacement therapy for patients whose blood pressure is not adequately controlled with either aliskiren or amlodipine alone.

27 Aug 2010

KemPharm broadens protection for LAT prodrug technology platform for ADHD with second patent

KemPharm, Inc. announced today that it has received a Notice of Issuance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for its patent application entitled "Non-Standard Amino Acid Conjugates of Amphetamine and Processes for Making and Using the Same", U.S. Patent No. 7,776,917 B2. This patent, combined with KemPharm's recently issued U.S. Patent No. 7,772,222, provides broad protection of the Company's Ligand Activated Therapy (LAT) prodrug technology platform and its application to the treatment of Attention Deficit – Hyperactivity Disorder.

27 Aug 2010

World's tallest man undergoes Gamma Knife surgery

Much of Sultan Kosen's eight feet, two-inch stature rose up in an 17-year period starting at age 10, when the benign tumor in his brain's pituitary gland highjacked the organ, causing it to secrete massive amounts of growth hormone, making Mr. Kosen's body grow fast and grow without ceasing. He will need to wait several months to find out if his Gamma Knife® surgery last Thursday at the University of Virginia (UVA, Charlottesville, Va.) has inactivated the tumor and he has reached his final height, but his physicians are optimistic.

27 Aug 2010

'Molecular Diagnostics Europe' conference debuts at BIOTECHNICA 2010

BIOTECHNICA, Europe's Leading Exhibition for Biotechnology and Life Sciences, is broadening its portfolio to include a new conference and special display on molecular diagnostics. Produced by the Cambridge Healthtech Institute, a leading organizer of biomedical conferences in the United States, the "Molecular Diagnostics Europe" (MDxEU) conference is making its debut this year. The main focus will be on new methods for molecular diagnostics, particularly with regard to cancer and infectious diseases.

27 Aug 2010

Shire receives European marketing approval for VPRIV therapy to treat type 1 Gaucher disease

Shire, the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, announced today that the European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for VPRIV(R) (velaglucerase alfa), a human cell line derived enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) for the long-term treatment of type 1 Gaucher disease.

27 Aug 2010

Increase in regeneration of nerve cells can alleviate or prevent memory loss

Production of new nerve cells in the human brain is linked to learning and memory, according to a new study from the University of Florida. The research is the first to show such a link in humans. The findings, published online and in an upcoming print issue of the journal Brain, provide clues about processes involved in age- and health-related memory loss and reveal potential cellular targets for drug therapy.

27 Aug 2010