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Rebirth of the cursed drug Thalidomide

Thalidomide was once a dreaded name in the Pharmaceutical industry. It was initially marketed in some European countries nearly 5 decades back as a sedative and after millions of pregnant women took it for morning sickness it had devastating results on the babies. The babies were born with flippers instead of limbs a condition known as phocomelia. Since then it has been under strict control.

5 Apr 2010

Are Australians popping too many pills?

These reports have emerged from a Daily Telegraph investigation. Australian Medical Association vice president, GP and former Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee member Dr Steve Hambleton said the resons for these trends may include the increasing population of the aged, newer medicines as well as a rise in chronic lifestyle ailments like diabetes and high blood pressure.

5 Apr 2010

Flu vaccine shortage in New Zealand

The overwhelming demand for the flu vaccine has been seen as the biggest cause for its shortage in New Zealand. Despite 530,000 doses of the vaccine being distributed last month, there are some medical practices where the supply is woefully inadequate to meet the demand. This has resulted in the Ministry of Health bringing in shipments of 95,000 more doses.

5 Apr 2010

New report assesses optimal future for REMS

Two years after the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 gave FDA new powers to require Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies for higher risk drugs and biologics, a new report concludes that an optimal future for REMS is possible if the agency adopts a systems approach when designing REMS programs and takes advantage of new technologies -- from electronic medical records to genetic testing -- that are changing the way medicine is practiced.

5 Apr 2010

NHS cancer patients to receive latest and best treatments available

Cancer patients on the National Health Service may soon be offered expensive life extending drugs which are currently denied to them. David Cameron has proposed on behalf of the Conservatives that the drugs that are licensed and prescribed by the health consultant of the patient should be made available to the cancer patient, irrespective of the NHS rationing.

5 Apr 2010

Fireside chat: BioSante's LibiGel and GVAX cancer vaccines portfolio

BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that a BioSante presentation and corporate discussion are available at http://www.rodm.tv/video1269553400.

3 Apr 2010

Purity profile of Pharmaceutical Grade fish oil

Dr. Dave Woynarowski MD is a nationally renowned fish oil expert who has been studying and using fish oil himself and in his practice for over a decade.

3 Apr 2010

SE5-OH with Natural S-equol supplement appears to be safe for pre- and post-menopausal women

Healthy pre-and post-menopausal Japanese women who took a supplement of SE5-OH containing Natural S-equol, a novel soy germ-based ingredient under development for the management of menopausal symptoms, had measures of reproductive hormones that stayed within normal limits throughout the study.

3 Apr 2010

Growing problem of prescription drug abuse

Prescription painkiller abuse is a rapidly growing and widespread problem, recently coming into full view due to high profile stories and tragic celebrity deaths.

3 Apr 2010

Prescription drug spending up in 2009

Prescription drug spending in the United States rose 5.1 percent in 2009, acording to a new report from IMS Health., a data collection company.

3 Apr 2010

Petition to impose anti dumping duties on glyphosate imports from China: Aceto comments

Aceto Corporation, a global leader in the sourcing, quality assurance, regulatory support, marketing and distribution of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, specialty chemicals and crop protection products, today issued the following comment regarding the petition brought before the U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. International Trade Commission to impose anti dumping duties on imports of glyphosate from China.

3 Apr 2010

Verizon charges $970 million due to the health care bill

The recent health care reform bill has shown its impact on corporate tax structure this Thursday when Verizon Communications Inc. a phone company announced it will record a related $970 million non-cash charge in the first quarter.

2 Apr 2010

Premature fall in the swine flu vaccination rates worries health officials

Last fall there was a mad rush for the HINI vaccine for the deadly swine flu that had gripped countries across the world. H1N1 flu has killed about 12,000 Americans and put 265,000 into the hospital in the last pandemic. This year has seen a few signs of seasonal flu, which kills about 36,000 people in the United States each year and puts 200,000 in the hospital.

2 Apr 2010

Renhuang Pharmaceuticals' Siberian Ginseng capsule patent application passes preliminary SIPO review

Renhuang Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer, manufacturer and distributor of botanical products, bio-pharmaceuticals and traditional Chinese medicines ("TCM"), today announced that on March 28, 2010, the Company's patent application for its proprietary Siberian Ginseng (Acanthopanax) Total Glucosides Total Flavonoids Soft Capsules and related formulation method passed a preliminary review conducted by the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China ("SIPO").

2 Apr 2010

Elsevier adds extensive FDA Advisory Committee content to new PharmaPendium

PharmaPendium, Elsevier announces a new release that adds extensive FDA Advisory Committee content to the online resource for authoritative preclinical, clinical and post-market drug information. These documents provide preclinical and clinical drug development and regulatory affairs departments with a substantial collection of comparative scientific and regulatory data that may not be included in final FDA Approval Package documents.

2 Apr 2010

No doughnut hole in global mail-order pharmacy

Thanks to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act signed into law by President Obama on March 23, 2010, Medicare enrollees who enter the dreaded "doughnut hole" -- the Medicare Part D coverage gap that has made seniors responsible for all their drug costs between $2,830 and $6,440 -- will save $250 in 2010. But Betterthanmedicare.com is already saving seniors thousands of dollars, because the global mail-order pharmacy has no doughnut hole.

2 Apr 2010

Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals' abstracts on cell cycle inhibitor drugs selected for presentation at AACR meeting

Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that six abstracts highlighting translational and preclinical data for Cyclacel's cell cycle inhibitor drugs have been selected for presentation at the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting, being held from April 17-21, 2010, in Washington, DC.

2 Apr 2010

Pfizer shares details of financial relationships with U.S. healthcare professionals and researchers

Pfizer Inc. today released detailed information about how and why the company works with a range of healthcare professionals and researchers to advance patient care and develop lifesaving medicines. The information reflects payments or exchanges of value received by licensed U.S. healthcare professionals who consulted with Pfizer about the development and marketing of new medicines and helped to educate other healthcare professionals about the safe and appropriate use of its products.

2 Apr 2010

Scientists identify potential new method for treating sleeping sickness

Scientists have identified a potential new approach to treat human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), commonly known as sleeping sickness, which afflicts "tens of thousands of people in sub-Saharan Africa" annually, IRIN reports. By targeting an enzyme the sleeping sickness parasite needs in order to survive, researchers say they can kill it without causing harm to the patient (4/1).

2 Apr 2010

U.S. Court upholds validity of Eli Lilly's Gemzar compound patent

Eli Lilly and Company today announced that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has upheld the validity of the company's compound patent on Gemzar® (gemcitabine HCl for injection). This decision maintains Lilly's U.S. exclusivity for Gemzar through November 15, 2010.

2 Apr 2010