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Study examines how SMIP-016 drug kills CLL cells

A new study has identified a life-and-death signaling role for a molecule on the surface of the immune cells involved in the most common form of chronic leukemia. The finding could lead to more effective therapy for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), an as yet incurable cancer that occurs in more than 16,000 Americans annually.

31 May 2012

DHA prevents age-related vision loss in lab tests

An omega-3 fatty acid found in fish, known as DHA, prevented age-related vision loss in lab tests, demonstrates recently published medical research from the University of Alberta.

31 May 2012

Genetics can predict success of smoking cessation and need for medications

Genetics can help determine whether a person is likely to quit smoking on his or her own or need medication to improve the chances of success, according to research published in today's American Journal of Psychiatry. Researchers say the study moves health care providers a step closer to one day providing more individualized treatment plans to help patients quit smoking.

31 May 2012

TAU researcher develops new antibodies to target and destroy cancer cells

Because cancer cells grow very quickly, chemotherapy is designed to target cells whose numbers grow rapidly. But this treatment comes with a heavy price - many healthy cells essential for body functions are also targeted and killed by the toxin. This dangerous side-effect has prompted researchers to seek better and more selective ways to kill cancer cells inside the body.

31 May 2012

Trade officials at WIPO fail to make progress on proposals to improve access to generic medicines

Trade officials met last week at the U.N. World Intellectual Property Organization "to make progress on a proposal that would allow poor countries to provide inexpensive generic versions of lifesaving medications, rather than rely a single version of the same drugs under expensive patent monopolies," but the U.S. "remained steadfast in rejecting proposals aimed at lowering the prices of existing medicines in poor countries," the Huffington Post reports.

31 May 2012

Pfizer’s XALKORI now available in Canada

Pfizer Canada is pleased to announce that XALKORI (crizotinib) is now available in Canada. Recently approved with conditions by Health Canada, XALKORI is an oral monotherapy for patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

31 May 2012

Study shows how tafamidis drug works against amyloid disease

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute and Pfizer Inc. have published a new study showing how a new drug called tafamidis (Vyndaqel) works.

31 May 2012

Law aims to illuminate financial links between doctors and pharmaceutical companies

A Colorado School of Public Health researcher has found that laws designed to illuminate financial links between doctors and pharmaceutical companies have little or no effect on what drugs physicians prescribe.

30 May 2012

Researchers identify mechanism key in drug allergy

Adverse drug reactions are a major issue that cause harm, are costly and restrict treatment options for patients and the development of new drugs. A groundbreaking finding by researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology could lead to a new way to dramatically improve drug safety by identifying drugs at risk to cause potentially fatal genetic-linked hypersensitivity reactions before their use in man.

30 May 2012

Scientists solve 50-year mystery behind cholera

For 50 years scientists have been unsure how the bacteria that gives humans cholera manages to resist one of our basic innate immune responses. That mystery has now been solved, thanks to research from biologists at The University of Texas at Austin.

30 May 2012

Exelixis files NDA with FDA for cabozantinib to treat MTC

Exelixis, Inc. today announced that it has completed the filing of its rolling New Drug Application (NDA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for cabozantinib as a treatment for patients with progressive, unresectable, locally advanced, or metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.

30 May 2012

Studies outline dilemmas on new generic heart drugs, hormone replacement therapy

One heart drug's move to generic status has complicated treatment options for some patients and doctors, the Wall Street Journal reports. Also, another study raises concerns about hormone replacement therapy in women.

30 May 2012

First study to look at link between vitamin D and onset of new mobility disability in older adults

Older adults who don't get enough vitamin D - either from diet, supplements or sun exposure - may be at increased risk of developing mobility limitations and disability, according to new research from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

30 May 2012

ONPRC researchers discover new method to create safe and effective vaccines

While vaccines are perhaps medicine's most important success story, there is always room for improvement. Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University's Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC) appear to have done just that.

30 May 2012

Scientists show why leukemia often returns

The fight against cancer is not won in a single battle: Long after a cancer has been beaten into remission, it can return. The reason for this is under debate, and much is unclear. New research led by Weizmann Institute scientists shows that, at least for one type of blood cancer, the source of cancer recurrence is in a set of cells that do not proliferate as quickly as regular cancer cells, and thus able to survive chemotherapy.

30 May 2012

Endo, Watson reach agreement to resolve two LIDODERM patent infringement lawsuits

Endo announced today that it has reached an agreement with Watson Pharmaceuticals (Watson) resolving two patent infringement lawsuits related to LIDODERM.

30 May 2012

Cabazitaxel offers added benefit for men with metastatic prostate cancer

Cabazitaxel has been approved since March 2011 in men with metastatic prostate cancer who no longer respond to conventional therapy with hormone blockers and have already been pre-treated with the cytostatic drug docetaxel.

30 May 2012

PRS launches Global Regulatory Intelligence Database

Pharmaceutical Regulatory Services, Inc., a global provider of regulatory and pharmacovigilance support to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries, is pleased to announce the launch of GRID - Global Regulatory Intelligence Database.

30 May 2012

Scientists develop synthetic peptide that overcomes cancer cells’ survival defenses

Scientists at the Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center have developed an anti-cancer peptide that overcomes the stubborn resistance to chemotherapy and radiation often encountered in certain blood cancers when the disease recurs following initial treatment.

30 May 2012

Exendin-4 significantly minimizes damage in TBI animal models

Although the death toll is relatively low for people who suffer from traumatic brain injury (TBI), it can have severe, life-long consequences for brain function. TBI can impair a patient's mental abilities, impact memory and behavior, and lead to dramatic personality changes. And long-term medical treatment carries a high economic cost.

30 May 2012