April 24, 2010 - Metformin (an Inexpensive, Generic Diabetes Medication) May Improve Chemotherapy Effectiveness in Hormone-Resistant Prostate Cancers.
MedPage Today (4/24, Susman) reported on a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research. Researchers reported that "combining metformin with bicalutamide significantly reduces prostate cancer cell colony formation rates more effectively than either drug in monotherapy."
April 26, 2010 - Experts Tout Benefits Of Exercise For People Taking Antidepressants.
USA Today (4/26) reports on a “third choice,” other than medication or counseling for patients who are depressed. Psychologist Jasper Smits says, "It's become clear that this is a good intervention, particularly for mild to moderate depression." And, psychiatrist Michelle Riba, of the University of Michigan, "prescribes exercise to depressed patients as part of a long-term plan for healthier living that includes sleep, eating and, in many cases, weight loss. Exercise can be especially important, she says, for patients taking antidepressant medications that cause weight gain."
April 27, 2010 - Loss of Tax Breaks for Retiree Drug Benefits Could Hurt Companies' Earnings.
The New York Times (4/27, Pear) reports, "at least 40 companies have taken charges against earnings that total $3.4 billion since the [health insurance reform] law was signed." Some, including Verizon and Caterpillar, say the loss of tax breaks on prescription benefits for retirees could cause companies to this coverage for employees.
April 27, 2010 - Oral Chemotherapy Drug Access is Impeded by Reimbursement System.
Kaiser Health News (4/27, Boodman) reports that “patients are being denied access to newer oral chemotherapy drugs or are required to shoulder hefty out-of-pocket costs, sometimes thousands of dollars a month, for cancer pills with annual price tags of more than $75,000." This results from a “reimbursement system that covers IV chemotherapy as a medical benefit but considers less-invasive oral chemotherapy to be part of a patient's drug plan, which tends to be far less generous."
April 27, 2010 - AstraZeneca To Pay More Than a Half Billion Settling Charges of Illegal/Off-label Seroquel Promotion.
The New York Times (4/27, B3, Wilson) reports, AstraZeneca will pay $520 million to settle federal investigations into the marketing Seroquel [quetiapine] for unapproved uses in children and the elderly without evidence of safety and effectiveness, and allegations of kickbacks to prescribers. While acknowledging that these efforts may have jeopardized the health and safety of individual patients and cost the Federally-supported health coverage programs, the Justice Department will not pursue criminal charges. The Dow Jones Newswire (4/28, Kendall, Loftus), The Financial Times (4/28, Jack), Reuters (4/28, Pelofsky) and the AP (4/28, Yost) also covered the story.
April, 28, 2010 - Vitamin E Pills May Benefit Steatohepatitis Patients Without Diabetes.
The Los Angeles Times (4/28, Maugh) "Booster Shots" blog reported "Vitamin E may help people with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine, "enrolled 247 adults with the disease but without diabetes, dividing them into three groups." Each group received either vitamin E, the diabetes drug pioglitazone, or a placebo. Two years later, investigators noted that "liver function improved in 43 percent of those in the vitamin E group, compared with 19 percent in the placebo group," Also noted was that those taking Actos [pioglitazone] improved to a lesser degree and with an average 10 pound weight gain.
April 28, 2010 - FDA Approves Novel Asthma Treatment.
HealthDay (4/28, Roberts), MedPage Today (2/28, Petrochko), and the AP (4/29) reported that the FDA has approved the "first non-drug asthma treatment." According to the developer of the Alair System, Asthmatx, the procedure known as "bronchial thermoplasty" would "only be appropriate for about two million adults with severe asthma who don't get relief from existing drugs." The device "delivers radiofrequency energy directly to the airways, heating and reducing the thickness of lung tissue and improving users' ability to breathe, the agency said in a news release." Importantly, “as a condition of approval," the manufacturer "must conduct additional studies to evaluate the product's long-term safety and effectiveness…" Medscape (4/28, Waknine) also covered the approval.
April 29, 2010 - Risk Of Rehospitalization For MI Nearly Doubled In Patients Treated With Both PPI And Clopidogrel.
According to research published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, "the risk of rehospitalization for MI or stent placement increased by 64% in those who took both drugs [clopidogrel and a proton pump inhibitor], compared with patients who received clopidogrel alone." MedPage Today (4/29, Bankhead) also reported a doubling of rehospitalization risk, and near doubling of risk for myocardial infarction (MI) in patients treated with both a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) and clopidogrel (Plavix) after acute MI or coronary stent deployment."
April 30, 2010 - J&J Will Pay More Than $81 Million For Promotion Of Topamax for Psychiatric Conditions.
Bloomberg News (4/30, Voreacos) reports that Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay more than $81 million settling claims relating to illegal promotion of the epilepsy drug Topamax [topiramate] for psychiatric uses, including as a “mood-stabilizer” for bipolar disorder. Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical admits that from 2001 to 2003 it promoted Topamax 'for certain uses not approved' by the FDA..” The Boston Herald (4/30, Grillo), the NPR (4/29, Hensley) "Shots" blog, Dow Jones Newswire (4/30, Kendall) and MedPage Today (4/29, Frieden) also covered the story
