Pharma Marketletter articles from July 2004

Pharma Marketletter archives from July 2004

Zeltia opens up for drug investment.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Spain's Zeltia Group is to free up capital from one of its pharmaceutical subsidiaries to fund new drug R&D. The firm reportedly intends to offer a 24.5% stake in Neuropharma, which specializes in the development of new drugs for the treatment...

Ranbaxy UK in generic drugs price row.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Ranbaxy UK and Generics UK, respective subsidiaries of India's Ranbaxy Laboratories and Germany's Merck KGaA, are facing legal action brought by the UK authorities for allegedly overcharging the National Health Service on sales of the antiulcer...

Actelion's Tracleer to benefit from new law?(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... According to a report by Lehman Brothers, details on recent changes to Medicare legislation regarding oral drug reimbursement in the USA support the view that there could be an upside to sales of Swiss drugmaker Actelion's Tracleer (bosentan),...

Sanofi confirms full-year forecasts at AGM.(Sanofi-Synthelabo)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... French drugmaker Sanofi-Synthelabo has reaffirmed full-year 2004 financial guidance at its annual general meeting held in Paris, France, on June 24. The firm's chief financial officer, Marie-Helene Laimay, said: "Sanofi-Synthelabo's...

Need for new approaches to big pharma challenges: study.
July 5, 2004... Pharmaceutical companies will have to strive harder to juggle successfully the conflicting demands they encounter in the global health sciences market, warns Progressions, Ernst & Young's Global Pharmaceutical Report for 2004. Despite a...

Poor response to Spain's new MoH.(Ministry Of Health)
July 5, 2004... New Spanish Health Minister Elena Salgado received a cold shoulder from her opposition-party health deputies last week when many did not appear for the first Inter-regional Council policy meeting, held in Bilbao. Calling the Bilbao agenda...

EFPIA seeks to strengthen dialogue, cooperation and competitiveness in China.(European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations)
July 5, 2004... A high-level delegation of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations met with Chinese authorities on June 24 in China's capital, Beijing, to review progress and exchange views on a series of issues of mutual interest...

Emerging health care market in Saudi.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Saudi Arabia is emerging as a major health care and medical equipment market, accounting for about 60% of total sales in the Gulf region, according to officials at Arab Health, the Middle East's health care exhibition and conference. ...

GSK puts out multi-language hep B education materials.(GlaxoSmithKline Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... GlaxoSmithKline in the USA says it has released new educational materials that address the causes, symptoms and risks associated with chronic hepatitis B. The video, Hepatitis B: Facing the Challenge, is now available to health care...

AP Pharma completes $12.5M share sale.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... AP Pharma, a US specialty pharmaceutical company, has completed the sale of approximately 4.2 million shares of its common stock at a price of $3.00 per share to various institutional investors, for gross proceeds of around $12.5 million. ...

A third of Americans living with loss of bladder control.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Although 32% of American men and women aged 30-70 have experienced some degree of bladder control loss, the vast majority have not been diagnosed by a health care provider and are therefore less knowledgeable about their condition, less...

Generex enters $25M Oralin deal.(partners with Sejong Capital)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Canadas Generex Biotechnology, a leader in the area of buccal drug delivery, announced today that it has signed a letter of intent for the establishment of a joint venture with Sejong Capital, a diversified Koran holding firm. Under the...

Chromium picolinate supp may reduce some key symptoms of atypical depression.
July 5, 2004... New data presented at a conference of the National Institutes of Mental Health New Clinical Drug Evaluation Unit in Arizona, USA, show that daily supplementation with chromium picolinate significantly reduces some of the key symptoms associated...

Mustard oil protects against heart attacks.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Diets that include mustard oil and leafy green vegetables can help lower the risk of heart attack, according to a study conducted in eight hospitals in India by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA, the All India...

Sanofi to sell Aventis' Campto to Pfizer.
July 5, 2004... In response to requests from competition authorities relating to the proposed merger of France's Sanofi-Synthelabo and Franco-German drugmaker Aventis, the former has announced the signing of an agreement with world drug leader Pfizer for the...

Lilly's Alimta gets positive opinion in EU.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US drug major Eli Lilly says the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has issued a positive opinion for dual oncology indications for its Alimta (pemetrexed). The company expects to receive approval by the European Commission...

Cardiome's oxypurinol for gout faces delay.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The US Food and Drug Administration has issued an approvable letter to Cardiome Pharma for use of its heart failure drug oxypurinol in the treatment of allopurinol-intolerant hyperuricemia (gout). The agency said in the letter that, prior to...

Amgen files palifermin BLA with FDA.(Food and Drug Administrations)(Biologics License Application)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US biotechnology giant Amgen has submitted a Biologics License Application to the US Food and Drug Administration for palifermin, a recombinant human keratinocyte growth factor. The product is indicated for the reduction of the incidence,...

Medicines Co's Angiox on track in EU.(The Medicines Co.)(Bivalirudin)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has adopted a positive opinion recommending approval for The Medicines Company's direct thrombin inhibitor Angiox (bivalirudin) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary...

Lou Gehrig's disease may be treated or even prevented?(amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... 63 years after the death, in June 1941, of US baseball legend Lou Gehrig of the eponymously-named progressively-degenerative, invariably fatal disease (also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), researchers at the University of Massachusetts...

Bayer donates Kogenate to hemophilia federation.(Bayer HealthCare AG)(Kogenate FS)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Bayer HealthCare's Biological Products division is donating more than 12.2 million units of Kogenate FS (antihemophilic factor [recombinant], formulated with sucrose) to the World Federation of Hemophilia for distribution in developing...

Integrated Bio seeks halt to Berlin bourse trading.(Integrated BioPharma)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... USA-headquartered Integrated BioPharma says that it discovered late June 25 that its common stock had been listed without its knowledge, consent or authority on a German exchange known as the Berlin-Bremen Stock Exchange, by persons not yet...

B-MS expects to raise legal reserves by $40M.(Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US drug major Bristol-Myers Squibb has said that it expects to increase its reserves for liabilities related to previously-disclosed legal matters by approximately $400 million. These reserve will likely be reflected as pretax charges to the...

Angiotech enrolls in pivotal vascular wrap study.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Canada's Angiotech Pharmaceuticals has completed the enrollment of its pivotal vascular wrap study and exceeded its target of total patient entry. On June 9, Angiotech announced the expansion of its original European safety study into a...

Alteon raises $12.8M in stock offer.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Alteon of the USA has entered into agreements with new and existing institutional investors to sell 8 million shares of common stock at $1.00 per share, for net proceeds after expenses and fees of approximately $7.6 million. The company also...

Vernalis lifted by deal with Biogen Idec to develop agents for Parkinson's disease.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... UK-based Vernalis and the USA's Biogen Idec have entered into an agreement to advance the former's adenosine A2A receptor antagonist program, which focuses on Parkinson's disease and other central nervous system disorders. Under the terms...

GSK and Millennium sign Integrilin accord.(GlaxoSmithKline)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... UK drug major GlaxoSmithKline and USA-based Millennium Pharmaceuticals say they have entered into an agreement under which the former which exclusively market the latter's blood-clotting agent Integrilin (eptifibatide) in Europe. In return,...

Priority review for Biogen/Elan's Antegren.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Biogen Idec and Elan Corp's Biologics License Application for Antegren (natalizumab) has been designated for priority review and accelerated approval by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. The BLA...

USA "already losing biogenerics race," Senate panel told, "but it is not too late".
July 5, 2004... The US Congress should design a fast-track process for approving generic versions of biologic therapies, but only if it is based on sound science and the generics are safe and effective, help prevent shortages and provide less expensive yet...

Organon's gepirone rejected in the USA.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Dutch pharmaceutical company, Organon, a division of Akzo Nobel, says that the US Food and Drug Administration has determined that its New Drug Application for the antidepressant gepirone ER is not approvable. The amended NDA was submitted...

Gedeon Richter signs price pact with govt.(Hungarian National Health Insurance Fund)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Hungarian drugmaker Richter Gedeon has entered into an agreement with the government regarding the prices of its drugs, creating a more transparent environment in the country's pharmaceutical industry as well as reducing the amount of any...

Norwood raises L5.8M with AIM listing.(Alternative Investment Market)(Norwood Immunology Ltd)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Norwood Immunology Ltd has raised L5.8 million ($10.7 million) from a placing of 15.4 million ordinary shares, at 38 pence per share, on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange. Market capitalization at the issue price...

GPC Biotech announces price of rights offering.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Frankfurt, Germany-heaquartered GPC Biotech has set the subscription price for up to 7,152,047 new shares for sale in its rights offering at 12.50 euros per share. The planned offering will be managed by a syndicate of banks, led by Goldman,...

Vectura gains L20M from IPO.(Initial public offerings)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... UK-based pharmaceutical firm Vectura Group has raised L20 million ($36.6 million) in an initial public offering on London's Alternative Investment Market at 56 pence a share, valuing the company at L60 million. An aggregate of 35,848,310...

Watson lowers 2nd-qtr forecasts; refocuses strategy.
July 5, 2004... USA-based Watson Pharmaceuticals has revised its total net revenue and earnings forecast for the second quarter of 2004. Revenue for the period is estimated to be around $400 million, due to lower-than-expected sales of women's health and...

US appeals court rules in favor of Xechem in B-MS antitrust case.(Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Xechem International and Xechem have reported that the initial decision of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois to dismiss their law suit against Bristol-Myers Squibb, which sought treble damages in connection with B-MS'...

Berlex acquires 16-acre site for manufacturing.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Berlex, the USA-based affiliate of German drugmaker Schering AG, has entered into a purchase and sale agreement with Opus Northwest for a 16-acre site in its Northpointe Corporate Center in South Snohomish County, Washington, USA. The company...

PhRMA agenda "must be about helping people".(Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association)
July 5, 2004... Medicines today must be more than life-enhancing and life-saving - they must also be accessible and affordable, according to Miles White, chief executive of Abbott Laboratories and incoming chairman of the Pharmaceutical Research and...

US Rx lottery ahead of Medicare benefit.
July 5, 2004... Ahead of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, due to start in 2006, the US government is to run a lottery for seniors and disabled people to take part in a demonstration program which will offer significant savings on the costs of drugs for...

Italian govt acts on soaring drug spending.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... With Italian drug spending currently soaring over 2003 levels, the Council of Ministers has, under pressure from Health Minister Girolamo Sirchia, urgently put in place a new regulation aimed at bringing expenditures within bounds and avoiding...

Wales cuts Rx charges.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The Welsh Assembly has voted to cut prescription charges in October to L5.00 ($9.14) from L6.00, at which it has been frozen for the last four years. The Labour government has pledged to abolish the charges altogether by 2007.

German doctors slam Rxing "pressure".(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Drugmakers are "pressurizing" doctors to prescribe in an irresponsible way, says the German panel doctors' federation, the KBV, whose deputy head, Leonhard Hansen, says the industry lobby is forming alliances with patient groups. This...

Italy: antihistamines are fully-reimbursable.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... In Italy, antihistamine allergy drugs which have, up to now, been paid in full by the patient have now been reclassified as fully-reimbursable. Their prescribing is limited to patients with moderate or severe allergic conditions requiring...

French govt clash on health/Rx spending.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Ahead of a detailed examination of the French government's health service reform proposals in the National Assembly, Health Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy has called estimates by the Economics Ministry's forecasting section, the DP, of a 15...

Spanish drug prices down.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Consumer prices of pharmaceutical and medical products in Spain were unchanged in May compared with April and 2% lower than in May 2003, the National Statistics Institute has reported. In comparison, the monthly and annual increases in Spain's...

MabThera on track for first-line use in NHL.(European Union Committee for Human Medicinal Products)(Non-Hodgkin's lymphomas)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The European Union's Committee for Human Medicinal Products has issued a positive opinion for the first-line use of Roche's MabThera (Rituxan; rituximab) as a treatment for indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in combination with conventional...

Adolor completes filing of Entereg NDA.(Adolor Corp.)(New Drug Application )(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Adolor Corp of the USA says it has submitted the complete New Drug Application to the US Food and Drug Administration for Entereg (alvimopan). The product is indicated for the management of postoperative ileus. The filing was made under...

Amgen's GDNF fails in PD Phase II trial.(Amgen Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US biotechnology giant Amgen says that a Phase II trial of its recombinant glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), for the treatment of advanced Parkinson's disease, did not meet its primary objectives. The randomized,...

BioXell gets further rights to BXL 628.(BioXell SpA)(Roche Holding Ltd.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Italy's BioXell has purchased additional indications from Swiss drug major Roche for BXL 628 which, under the original deal, was licensed to the former for benign prostatic hyperplasia, secondary hyperparathyroidism, transplant rejection and...

Columbia starts MRP in EU for Striant SR.(Columbia Laboratories Inc.)(Mutual Recognition Procedure)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US firm Columbia Laboratories has initiated the European Union's Mutual Recognition Procedure for its Striant SR, a testosterone replacement therapy for men with primary or secondary hypogonadism. The UK is the reference member state for the...

UPDATE: EFPIA seeks to strengthen dialogue, cooperation and competitiveness in China.(European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations)
July 5, 2004... In what became a second visit of its kind, a high-level delegation of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations met with Chinese authorities on June 24 in China's capital, Beijing, to review progress on previous...

Virogenomics spins-off technology into Artielle; raises $11M.(Virogenomics Inc.)(Artielle ImmunoTherapeutics)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Virogenomics of the USA says it has spun-off its autoimmune disease technology into a new company, Artielle ImmunoTherapeutics, and has raised $11 million in venture capital funding for the new unit. Sanderling Ventures of San Mateo,...

AspirinWorks signs up Diagnostyx Labs.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... AspirinWorks, a division of Creative Clinical Concepts (which provides products to enhance patient care and management), has announced that Diagnostyx Labs of Atlanta, Georgia, has joined its network of affiliated laboratories that offers its...

Nastech stock sale raises $12.5M.(Nastech Pharmaceutical Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... USA-based Nastech Pharmaceutical has raised $12.5 million through the sale of approximately 1.14 million shares of common stock at a price of $11.00 per share to an institutional investor. This represents a premium of 15% to Nastech's closing...

Drug-delivery technology; a $78B market by 2005?(Visiongain)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Advanced drug delivery accounts for 6% of the global pharmaceutical market and this figure is estimated to grow to 20% by 2005, according to a new report from Visiongain. The global market for drug-delivery technologies in 1998 reached $28...

Mylan settles for $37.5M from Schwarz.(Mylan Laboratories Inc.)(Kremers Urban Development Co.)(Schwarz Pharma)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Mylan Laboratories of the USA has settled out of court all disputes regarding its omeprazole patent battles with Kremers Urban Development Co and other US subsidiaries of German drugmaker Schwarz Pharma. Terms of the settlement require...

Medarex buys Ability Biomedical for $4.7M.(Ability Biomedical Corp.)(Medarex Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... USA-based biopharmaceutical company Medarex has entered into an agreement to purchase Canadian privately-held biotechnology firm Ability Biomedical Corp, including its IP-10-related intellectual property, for around $4.7 million in cash and/or...

aaiPharma 1st-qtr net loss rockets.(aaiPharma Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... USA-based drugmaker aaiPharma has posted a net loss for the 2004 first quarter, ended March 31, of $49.6 million, or $1.74 per diluted share, from a net loss of $2.5 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, for the year-ago period. Results...

Angiotech issues guidance for 2004-6.(Angiotech Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Canada's Angiotech Pharmaceuticals has issued revenue and earnings prospects for the years ending December 31, 2004, 2005 and 2006 at a meeting with analysts and investors held in New York, USA. The company has set a target for total sales...

AstraZeneca CEO warns Australia over PBS.(Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... AstraZeneca chief executive Sir Tom McKillop has warned that international investment in Australia's A$12 billion ($8.28 billion) pharmaceutical industry may be at risk unless the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is streamlined. AstraZeneca...

Australian PBS drug prices to rise 30%.(Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... After more than two years stalling the Australian government's plan to increase the price of medicines provided under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, the Labour opposition announced its support for the move, allowing the legislation to pass...

Drugs driving Canadian health spend rise: study.(Canadian Institute for Health Information)
July 5, 2004... 47.2% of the estimated C$16.0 billion ($11.89 billion) spent on prescribed drugs in Canada in 2003 was financed by the public sector, up from 42.5% in 1998, says the Canadian Institute for Health Information's latest annual report on drug...

Philippines to end Indian PIs.(parallel imports)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The Philippines is planning to end its contracts with Indian drugmakers for parallel imports and to work instead with domestic firms and local multinationals for lower prices. One such deal has already been agreed, said Department of Trade...

Lundbeck/Merck & Co extend gaboxadol deal.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Danish drugmaker Lundbeck and US major Merck & Co have expanded their exclusive development and commercialization agreement for the former's insomnia drug gaboxadol in the USA, signed in February this year, to include Japan. The new terms...

LSBC and Louisville Uni sign cancer accord.(Large Scale Biology Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The USA's Large Scale Biology Corp and the University of Louisville have entered into a jointly funded collaboration to co-develop and investigate new therapies for the prevention and treatment of diseases caused by human papillomaviruses. ...

IntraBiotics halts trial of iseganan on safety.(IntraBiotics Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Shares of USA-based IntraBiotics Pharmaceuticals dived over 72% to $4.15 as investors digested the news that it had stopped the pivotal trial of its anti-infective agent iseganan for the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia. The...

Cell Genesys' GVAX enters Phase II.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... San Francisco, USA-based Cell Genesys has initiated patient enrollment for a multicenter Phase II clinical study of its GVAX lung cancer vaccine in patients with advanced-stage bronchoalveolar carcinoma. Around 100 patients with BAC are...

Forest's Lexapro fails pediatric efficacy trial.(Forest Laboratories Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Forest Laboratories' Lexapro (escitalopram oxalate) has failed to meet its primary efficacy target in a placebo-controlled study of the agent in children and adolescents. Although Lexapro was well-tolerated at all dosing levels...

Columbia completes sale of OTC drugs to Lil' Drug Store.(Columbia Laboratories Inc.)(Lil' Drug Store)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Columbia Laboratories has completed the sale of its over-the-counter women's health care products to fellow US company Lil' Drug Store Products. Under the terms of the sale, Lil' Drug Store will buy the current US inventory of RepHresh...

Kyowa returns Asian rights to telomerase inhibitors to Geron.(Geron Corp.)(Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Company Ltd.)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Japanese drugmaker Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co has terminated its agreement with Geron Corp regarding telomerase inhibitors, returning all Asian territory development and marketing rights to the US firm. Kyowa says that it has concluded its...

Pfizer reshuffles its field force to meet NHS changes.(National Health Service)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... USA-headquartered drug giant Pfizer, the largest supplier of pharmaceuticals to the UK's National Health Service, has realigned its British field force to meet with the radical changes currently taking place in the health organization, it said....

Healthcare Tech signs term sheet with ImmvaRx.(Healthcare Technologies Ltd.)(ImmvaRx)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Healthcare Technologies signed a term sheet with ImmvaRx for the transfer by the latter of its allergy therapies business. ImmvaRx will be issued 350,000 shares of Healthcare, a two-year warrant to purchase up to 1,000,000 shares of the firm...

Salix signs Colazal deals for Australia/NZ and Puerto Rico.(Salix Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Pharmatel)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Salix Pharmaceuticals has signed an agreement with Pharmatel of Sydney, Australia, to market Colazal (balsalazide disodium) in Australia and New Zealand and also with Rimaco of Puerto Rico for that market. Pharmatel made a one-time...

J&J unit McNeil in deal with Icagen for ICA-17043.(ICAgen Inc.)(McNeil Consumer and Specialty Pharmaceuticals)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Johnson & Johnson's McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals has entered into a development and commercialization agreement with Icagen for ICA-17043, a novel once-a-day compound that is in late-stage clinical development for use in the...

Tokyo pharma stocks - week to june 28.
July 5, 2004... Tokyo saw extended strength in the week ended June 28 on active purchasing by domestic and international investors of high-technology stocks and banks. The Nikkei 225 advanced 2.4%, to close at the 11,800 level for the first time in two months,...

Pharma/biotech IPOs, and Bayer OTC outlook; Editor's views.(Bayer AG)
July 5, 2004... European pharmaceutical start-ups and biotechnology companies have complained for a while about the poor investment climate, particularly when compared with their US counterparts which seem to have no problems raising money to finance their...

Spanish biotech ind to grow 15% in 2004.
July 5, 2004... The Spanish biotechnology sector will grow "well over" 15% in 2004, fueled by a mushrooming number of start-ups and the growing use of the technology as a tool to boost business efficiency, says the industry association Asebio. The sector,...

Advances in the treatment of lung cancer and head and neck tumors; ASCO meeting.(American Society of Clinical Oncology)
July 5, 2004... More than 25,000 scientists from around the world gathered at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in New Orleans (Marketletters passim) to hear about the latest advances in cancer care, treatment and prevention. A...

Rx DTC ads "reaching prime audience".(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... US consumers who take action as a result of pharmaceutical advertising are, overall, in poorer mental and physical health and spend more on prescription medications than the general population, according to Consumer Health Sciences' annual...

PCMA files suit against Title II of Washington DC's new Drug Access Act.(Pharmaceutical Care Management Association)
July 5, 2004... The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association has filed suit in the US District Court for the District of Columbia to block enforcement of Title II of Washington DC's recently-enacted Access Rx Act of 2004. The PCMA stresses that other...

Erbitux cleared by EC for colorectal cancer.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Germany's Merck KGaA says the European Commission has approved the use of Erbitux (cetuximab), in combination with irinotecan, for the treatment of patients with epidermal growth factor receptor-expressing metastatic colorectal cancer after...

Priority review for Femara sNDA.(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The US Food and Drug Administration has granted priority review to Swiss drug major Novartis' supplementary New Drug Application for use of Femara (letrozole) in the extended adjuvant treatment of early breast cancer in postmenopausal women who...

EU probes genetic links to treat depression with new drugs.(European Union)(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... The European Union is funding a new research project aimed at helping to uncover the genetic factors linked to depression and develop new drug treatments. The Newmood project has received 7.2 million euros ($87.7 million) from the EU's...

60%+ of Rx antihistamine users "negative for allergic disease".(Brief Article)
July 5, 2004... Out of a total of 246 US managed-care patients diagnosed with allergies and prescribed low-sedating antihistamines, 159, or 64.6%, tested negative for allergy and, even among the 163 patients classified as frequent antihistamine users, 101...