EMPHASIS HF: Study shows epleronone to reduce atrial fibrillation
The aldosterone antagonist eplerenone (Inspra, Pfizer) significantly reduced the development of new onset atrial fibrillation and flutter (AFF) in patients with class 2 heart failure, concludes a...
View ArticleAntibody-guided drug works against acute lymphoblastic leukemia
An antibody packaged with a potent chemotherapy drug to selectively destroy acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cells eradicated or greatly reduced the disease for 61 percent of 46 patients in a phase...
View ArticleClinical study of epilepsy drug may have been purely promotional
Yale School of Medicine researchers have found that a clinical trial of the epilepsy drug gabapentin may have been a "seeding trial" used by a pharmaceutical company to promote the drug and increase...
View ArticleFaulty gene connected to ovarian cancer risk
In a new study published in Nature Genetics researchers say that women who possess a fault in a gene named RAD51D have a greater risk of developing ovarian cancer than women who do not have this fault...
View ArticleSoviet-era pill from Bulgaria helps smokers quit
(AP) -- A pill developed in Bulgaria during the Soviet era shows promise for helping millions of smokers cheaply and safely kick the habit, the first big study of it shows.
View ArticleFDA: studies do not tie Chantix to mental problems
(AP) -- Federal health officials said Monday that Pfizer's anti-smoking drug Chantix did not increase psychiatric problems like depression and suicidal thoughts in two studies, though the findings are...
View ArticlePfizer maneuvers to protect Lipitor from generics
(AP) -- Lipitor is so valuable that its maker, Pfizer Inc., is practically paying people to keep taking the blockbuster cholesterol medicine after generic competition hits the U.S. market this week.
View ArticlePfizer's blockbuster drug Lipitor goes generic
Pfizer's patent on the best-selling drug of all-time, the cholesterol-lowering medication Lipitor, expired on Wednesday, opening the path to generic competitors for America's most popular medication.
View ArticleUS approves India's Ranbaxy to make generic Lipitor
Indian pharmaceutical giant Ranbaxy won US regulatory approval to make the first generic version of cholesterol lowering drug Lipitor, a Pfizer product whose patent expired Wednesday.
View ArticleFDA panel backs Pfizer drug for kidney cancer
(AP) -- A panel of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration voted Wednesday that the benefits of a Pfizer kidney cancer drug outweigh its risks, according to a company spokeswoman.
View ArticleWith new generic rivals, Lipitor's sales halved
Sales of cholesterol blockbuster Lipitor plunged by half barely a week after the world's top-selling drug got its first U.S. generic competition, new data show.
View ArticleFDA clears Pfizer drug for advanced kidney cancer
(AP) -- The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new Pfizer drug for patients with advanced kidney cancer that has spread to other parts of the body despite treatment with at least one previous...
View ArticleIndia's global pharmacy role threatened by EU pact
(AP) -- Efforts by India and the European Union to strengthen trade are threatening India's ability to deliver lifesaving medicines to the world's poorest, analysts say as the two sides push through...
View ArticleSmoking is an independent risk factor for psoriasis
(HealthDay) -- Smoking is an independent risk factor for psoriasis, with particularly strong associations for heavy smokers and those who have smoked for many years, according to research published in...
View ArticleFDA links once-promising pain drugs to bone decay
Some of the world's largest drugmakers will face an uphill battle next week in their bid to revive a class of experimental arthritis drugs that have been sidelined by safety concerns for nearly two...
View ArticleGene-based test identifies poor-prognosis colon cancers
(HealthDay) -- A sensitive and specific gene-based classifier can be used to identify BRAF mutant colon cancer tumors and a subpopulation of BRAF wild-type tumors with poor prognosis, according to a...
View ArticleFDA panel to weigh second chance for new class of painkillers
(HealthDay) -- A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel on Monday will weigh the wisdom of allowing new clinical trials of a class of powerful painkillers for osteoarthritis. The drugs may...
View ArticleFDA panel supports continued testing of pain drugs
(AP) -- A panel of arthritis experts has recommended that the federal government allow continued testing of an experimental class of pain drugs for arthritis, despite links to bone decay and joint failure
View ArticleUS Pfizer, India's Biocon scrap insulin pact
India's largest biotechnology firm, Biocon, and US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer said Tuesday they would scrap a joint plan to sell insulin products, sending Biocon's shares plunging.
View ArticleS. Korea to approve Viagra generics
Three South Korean pharmaceutical firms will soon be allowed to produce generic versions of the anti-impotence drug Viagra despite a row over patents, officials said Wednesday.
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