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Roche announces Health Canada approval for ACTEMRA to treat RA

Roche today announced that Health Canada has approved ACTEMRA(TM) (tocilizumab) to treat patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic, progressive inflammatory disease of the joints and surrounding tissues that is associated with intense pain, irreversible joint destruction and systemic complications, such as fatigue and anemia.

4 May 2010

Synta Pharmaceuticals reports net loss of $9.3 million for first-quarter 2010

Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing small molecule drugs to treat severe medical conditions, today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2010.

4 May 2010

Chances of surviving lung cancer much lower in England than in Norway or Sweden: Scientists

The chances of surviving lung cancer are much lower in England than they are in Norway or Sweden, scientists at King's College London have found.

4 May 2010

Positive results from Phase 2 clinical trial of TAKSTA in patients with ABSSSI

Cempra Pharmaceuticals today announced positive results from its Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and tolerability of the novel front loading dosing regimen of TAKSTA (CEM-102, sodium fusidate), the company's oral, anti-methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus antibiotic.

4 May 2010

Consumer Reports Health lays out next steps for consumers in variety of situations

With health reform now the law of the land, Consumer Reports Health lays out next steps for consumers in a variety of situations - those who are currently insured; Medicare and Medicaid recipients; people with pre-existing conditions; parents of children with pre-existing conditions; parents of uninsured young adults; and people who develop serious illnesses.

4 May 2010

Alnylam Biotherapeutics presents new data on RNAi technologies at Cell Culture Engineering XII

Alnylam Biotherapeutics, a division of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today the presentation of new data at the Cell Culture Engineering XII conference held in Alberta, Canada from April 25 - 30, 2010. Alnylam Biotherapeutics was formed by Alnylam to develop RNAi technologies for application in manufacturing processes for biotherapeutic products, including recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies.

4 May 2010

UCLM researcher explores employment status of HIV-positive individuals in Spain

Juan Oliva, a researcher at the University of Castilla-La Mancha explores the relationship between the employment status of Human Immunodeficiency Virus -positive individuals and socioeconomic characteristics in Spain between 2001 and 2004. The study finds that gender is a "statistically significant" variable when predicting employment status.

4 May 2010

AIDS 2010 to explore latest developments in HIV science

Organizers of the XVIII International AIDS Conference announced today that President Bill Clinton, founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, and South African Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi will be among 19 high-level speakers who will address an estimated 25,000 conference attendees in Vienna this summer.

4 May 2010

Novel combined immunotherapy promising for treatment of malignant brain tumors

A new Phase I clinical trial conducted at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute in Los Angeles shows that two innovative treatment approaches may safely be combined to treat patients with highly aggressive, malignant brain tumors called gliomas. The results suggest that combining the two therapies might boost their effectiveness and supports the pursuit of additional studies on this approach to treating these tumors.

4 May 2010

Updated list of emergency medications and equipment for dental providers

Best practices for managing medical emergencies in dental clinics have evolved over the past decade to account for advances in knowledge and the development of new medications and medical equipment. Morton Rosenberg, DMD, of Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and an expert on dental anesthesiology, integrated existing guidelines with new information to create an updated list of emergency medications and equipment for dental providers, including an emergency preparedness checklist.

4 May 2010

Johns Hopkins researchers identify a key protein that triggers sarcoidosis

Lung researchers at Johns Hopkins have identified a possible protein trigger responsible for sarcoidosis, a potentially fatal inflammatory disease marked by tiny clumps of inflammatory cells that each year leave deep, grainy scars on the lungs, lymph nodes, skin and almost all major organs in hundreds of thousands of Americans.

4 May 2010

Natural plant extract could help treat COPD and inflammatory disorders

A widely and safely used plant extract acts as a novel anti-inflammatory agent that may one day be used for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, as well as other inflammatory conditions.

4 May 2010

Maternal smoking during pregnancy increases risk of psychiatric problems in children

It is well-known that maternal smoking during pregnancy can have long-term effects on the physical health of the child, including increased risk for respiratory disease, ear infections and asthma. New research shows that prenatal smoking also can lead to psychiatric problems and increase the need for psychotropic medications in childhood and young adulthood.

4 May 2010

Sucampo Pharmaceuticals presents Phase 2 cobiprostone clinical trial data at DDW 2010

Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today presented results of a phase 2 clinical trial of cobiprostone, an investigational drug, for the prevention of gastric ulcers and other gastrointestinal injuries in patients treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). These data were presented at the Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2010 conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the distinguished abstract plenary session.

4 May 2010

Obese men more likely to have low testosterone than non-obese men: HIM study

Obesity, a condition linked to heart disease and diabetes, now appears to be associated with another health problem, but one that affects men only -- low testosterone levels.

4 May 2010

Medtronic completes enrollment in first of two CURE-AF clinical trials

Medtronic, Inc., today announced completion of patient enrollment in the first of two studies in the company's CURE-AF (Concomitant Utilization of Radiofrequency Energy for Atrial Fibrillation) clinical trial.

4 May 2010

Statins may improve longevity of hip replacement surgery

The use of statins - drugs commonly prescribed to help lower cholesterol levels - may play an important role in decreasing complications among patients undergoing total hip replacement (THR), according to a study published in the May 2010 issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS).

4 May 2010

TB Alliance, AstraZeneca sign research collaboration agreement to develop drugs against tuberculosis

The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development and AstraZeneca announced today at the 2010 BIO International Convention that they have entered into a research collaboration agreement to accelerate the discovery, development and clinical use of drugs against tuberculosis, including drug resistant strains of the disease.

4 May 2010

Array BioPharma reports 18.4M revenue for third-quarter fiscal 2010

Array BioPharma Inc. today reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2010.

4 May 2010

Health care practitioners call for national database to crack down on prescription drug abuse

The Associated Press reports on efforts in California, where "a state online drug database went into effect last year to thwart addicts who bounce from doctor to doctor to feed a habit or make a small fortune peddling meds" and efforts to set up a national program "to snare so-called doctor shoppers and curb drug abuse.

3 May 2010