|
 According to doctors, at least £100m of NHS money and almost
£2bn worldwide is being wasted each year on indigestion drugs.
In 2006 alone, expenditure on proton pump inhibitors (PPIs)
was £425m in England and £7bn globally.
Yet in up to 70% of cases there was no indication for the
prescription, claim the King's College London...
 |
|
|
 According to government regulators, recent studies highlight
the potential fatal danger of anemia drugs sold by Johnson & Johnson and
Amgen when used in certain cancer patients.
The Food and Drug Administration said it is considering
taking "additional action" to increase the safe use of Amgen's Epogen
and Aranesp...
|
|
|
 Going now into its first
human trials, a vaccine that could help to control a flu pandemic has shown
encouraging results.
The vaccine, made by
Acambis, based in Cambridge, should protect against all strains of influenza A,
the type responsible for pandemics. Unlike existing vaccines it does not have
to be reformulated each year...
|
|
|
 Doctors are being warned not to routinely give people with
learning disabilities anti-psychotic drugs to curb aggressive behavior.
An Imperial College London study of 86 patients found the
drugs were no more effective than being given none at all.
Researchers said it was more important to address the
underlying causes.
In...
|
|
|
 According to a U.S. study in which nearly half of the doctors
surveyed said they had doled out a dummy pill at some point placebos are a
surprisingly common prescription.
Researchers at the University of Chicago said on Thursday
the study raises ethical questions and suggests a need for greater recognition
and understanding of...
|
|
|
 Health officials say that the first over-the-counter
slimming pill to go on sale in Britain could be available in pharmacies as
early as next year. The drug, which has been marketed in the US under the name
Alli since June, is a half-strength version of a pill called Xenical that is
currently only available in Britain under...
|
|
|
 According to health officials, more than 3,000 people have
died in the past three years after suffering serious side-effects or allergies
to their medication.
More than 13,000 others in the same period had an
"adverse drug reaction", but survived with hospital treatment.
The statistics, obtained by the Liberal...
|
|
|
 According to Genentech Inc., the company has resolved a
dispute with doctors over the use of its cancer drug Avastin, a much less
costly alternative to the biotech company's Lucentis for macular degeneration.
Avastin works similarly to Lucentis, which was approved last
year to treat wet, age-related macular degeneration and quickly...
|
|
|
 A study presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium
has shown researchers that a test has
been created with which doctors could determine weather a woman is likely to
benefit from the commonly prescribed breast cancer drug Tamoxifen depending on
her genetic makeup.
Researchers presented data that revealed women who...
|
|
|
 In an attempt to stop Merck & Co Inc's latest bid to
sell a cholesterol-lowering drug without a prescription, a U.S. advisory panel
urged the government on Thursday to reject the proposition.
The committee voted 10-2, with one abstention, against
recommending over-the-counter sales of Merck's cholesterol fighter Mevacor.
Most...
|
|
