Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
U.S. may speed approval of ”breakthrough” drugs
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Experimental drugs that show a big
effect early in development for treating serious or
life-threatening diseases would get a faster and cheaper path
to U.S. approval, under a proposal likely to become law this
year. U.S. drug regulators would be able to label such
treatments ”breakthrough” therapies, and work with companies to
speed up clinical trials, for example by testing the drugs for
a shorter time or enrolling fewer patients.
Probe finds collusion between India’s drug regulator,
pharma firms
NEW DELHI/MUMBAI (Reuters) – Officials of India’s drug
regulator have been colluding with pharmaceutical firms to
speed up approval procedures, allowing some drugs that are not
permitted in other countries to go on sale, according to an
18-month investigation by lawmakers. The parliamentary panel’s
78-page report names a number of major international drug
companies and Indian firms.
GSK goes hostile with $2.6 billion Human Genome offer
LONDON (Reuters) – GlaxoSmithKline
will take its
$2.6 billion bid for long-time partner Human Genome Sciences
direct to shareholders this week, after its takeover
offer was rejected last month by the U.S. biotech group’s
board. The decision to go hostile with the $13-a-share cash
tender offer sets up GSK for a potentially lengthy battle with
those Human Genome investors who believe it is not offering
enough.
World disease fund gets added $1.6 billion shot in arm
GENEVA (Reuters) – The Global Fund, a leading financier in
the struggle against AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, expects to
have an additional $1.6 billion to fund projects in 2012-2014,
its new chief said on Wednesday, a turnaround from a funding
freeze last year. ”It’s a positive outlook where we did not
have a positive outlook before,” the Fund’s General Manager
Gabriel Jaramillo told Reuters.
Anti-obesity program doesn’t help teen girls: study
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – An intensive obesity-prevention
program for Australian girls didn’t lead to any improvements in
their diet, physical activity or body weight a year later,
according to a new report. Findings from the school-based
intervention, which involved exercise sessions and nutrition
workshops for lower-income girls, are the latest disappointment
in a slew of research attempting to head-off adult obesity —
and the disease risks that come with it.
Deep belly fat may increase after liposuction
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – A new study suggests that women
who have liposuction to trim their tummies may gain some fat
deeper within the abdomen — a type of fat that’s particularly
unhealthy. Brazilian researchers found that within months of
abdominal liposuction, there may be an increase in the
so-called ”visceral” fat that surrounds the abdominal organs.
Two proposed changes dropped from psychiatric guide
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Two proposed psychiatric diagnoses
failed to make the last round of cuts in the laborious process
of revising the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders — an exhaustive catalog of symptoms used by doctors
to diagnose psychiatric illness. Gone from the latest revision
are ”attenuated psychosis syndrome,” intended to help identify
individuals at risk of full-blown psychosis, and ”mixed anxiety
depressive disorder,” a blend of anxiety and depression
symptoms. Both performed badly on field tests and in public
comments gathered by the group in its march toward the May 2013
publication deadline.
U.S. government urged to fight fat at school
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A coalition of health advocacy
groups on Wednesday urged the U.S. government to put more
resources into school-based efforts to improve health and fight
obesity among youth. The recommendations by the Healthy Schools
Campaign and Trust for America’s Health were backed by more
than 70 groups including the American Cancer Society and the
National Education Association.
U.S. FDA advisers back Pfizer arthritis drug
SILVER SPRING, Maryland (Reuters) – Pfizer Inc won
support from a U.S. advisory panel on Wednesday for its
arthritis drug, which the world’s top drugmaker hopes will give
it a major boost after a wave of patent expiries. A panel of
outside experts to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration voted
8-2 to recommend approval of tofacitinib, a treatment for
patients with rheumatoid arthritis who have not had success
with at least one other drug for the disease.
Kids’ TV time tied to unhealthy food choices
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Kids and teens who watch a lot
of television are less likely to get their fruits and veggies
and more likely to snack on candy or drink soda every day,
according to a new survey of close to 13,000 U.S. students. The
link to poor eating habits remained even after researchers took
into account how much exercise kids typically got as well as
how often they snacked while in front of the tube.
