A new report from Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) found that five opioid manufacturers paid nearly $9 million to 14 outside groups between 2012 and 2017, alleging that the advocacy groups often “amplified messages favorable to increased opioid use.” The groups—many of which work on chronic…
Canagliflozin (Invokana, Janssen Pharmaceutical) significantly reduced the risk of cardiovascular death or hospitalization for heart failure in patients with type-2 diabetes at high cardiovascular risk in an exploratory analysis from the CANVAS clinical program, according to a presentation at the American…
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP says it has cut its sales force in half and will stop promoting opioids to physicians following widespread criticism of the ways that drug makers market addictive painkillers, Reuters reported. The drug maker is informing doctors that its sales representatives will no…
The FDA has granted accelerated approval to blinatumomab (Blincyto, Amgen) to treat adults and children with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) who are in remission but still have minimal residual disease (MRD). MRD refers to the presence of cancer cells below a level that can be seen…
Researchers have found that temporarily increasing the dosage of inhaled steroids when asthma symptoms begin to worsen does not effectively prevent severe flare-ups and may be associated with slowing a child’s growth, challenging a common medical practice involving children with mild-to-moderate asthma.…
A first-in-class medication being developed to treat back-of-the-eye diseases achieved positive results in the pivotal phase 3 PEACHTREE trial, the developer has announced. Among patients with macular edema associated with noninfectious uveitis, 47% of those treated every 12 weeks with suprachoroidal…
More than nine in 10 physicians (92%) say that prior authorizations programs have a negative impact on patient clinical outcomes, according to a new physician survey released by the American Medical Association (AMA). The survey results further bolster a growing recognition across the entire health…
African-American men lowered their high blood pressure to healthy levels when aided by a pharmacist and their barber, according to a study from the Smidt Heart Institute. The findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented as a late-breaking clinical trial at the American…
Urgent action must be taken to address the dramatic rise of cancer drug prices and to better align prices with value, according to a report released by the President's Cancer Panel. The panel's report, Promoting Value, Affordability, and Innovation in Cancer Drug Treatment, found that while some cancer…
Seven public health and medical groups have filed a lawsuit challenging an FDA decision that they said would allow e-cigarettes to remain on the market for years without regulatory review, Reuters reports. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland, argued the FDA in August improperly…
The Justice Department is seeking court permission to participate in settlement negotiations aimed at resolving lawsuits by state and local governments against opioid manufacturers and distributors, according to a Reuters report. The Justice Department said in a brief that it wanted to participate in…
A federal judge in New York on Monday ordered Martin Shkreli, the former drug company executive convicted of defrauding investors, to forfeit $7.36 million in assets, which could include a Picasso painting and a one-of-a-kind album by the Wu-Tang Clan. U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto in Brooklyn…
The FDA has issued warning letters to all three duodenoscope manufacturers for failing to comply with requirements of federal law under which they were ordered to conduct postmarket surveillance studies to assess the effectiveness of reprocessing the devices. As part of an ongoing effort to prevent…
Roche’s immunotherapy atezolizumab (Tecentriq) has racked up a third trial win in combination with other cancer drugs, a boost for the Swiss drug-maker as it seeks to muscle in on space dominated by Merck and Bristol-Myers Squibb, according to a Reuters report. A late-stage study, called IMpower131,…
Generic antiplatelet drugs seem to work as well as a brand-name drug for heart patients, according to research published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. When a Canadian health system switched from prescribing brand-name Plavix (clopidogrel bisulfate, Bristol-Myers Squibb/Sanofi)…
