drug | Common News Update

Sep262017 by adminNo Comments

We've had no help – epilepsy drug victims

Health

Families with children who have been harmed by the epilepsy drug sodium valproate are demanding a public inquiry and compensation, saying they have been left with no help. They voiced their anger outside a London hearing that is assessing if warnings for patients are adequate. It is thought thousands of children in the UK have been left with disabilities caused by valproate since the 1970s. Mum Emma Friedmann says she wasn't fully informed of the risks.Her son, Andrew, 18, has severe autism and other problems including hearing and sight problems. Emma was taking the drug when she got pregnant and carried on using it."I wasn't properly told about all the risks," says the 46-year-old from Leicester. "Andrew now needs full-time care, 24/7. Families like me need justice. We want a public inqu...

Aug272017 by adminNo Comments

A first: Drug lowers heart risks by curbing inflammation

Health

For the first time, a drug has helped prevent heart attacks by curbing inflammation, a new and very different approach than lowering cholesterol, the focus for many years. People on the drug also had surprisingly lower cancer death rates, especially from lung cancer. An anti-tumor effect is an exciting possibility, but it needs much more study because the heart experiment wasn't intended to test that. Doctors say the results on the drug, canakinumab (can-uh-KIN-yoo-mab), open a new frontier. Many heart attacks occur in people whose cholesterol is normal and whose main risk is chronic inflammation that can lead to clogged arteries. "We suddenly know we can address the inflammation itself, the same way we learned almost 25 years ago that we could address cholesterol. It's very exciting," sa...

Jul92017 by adminNo Comments

New drug for sickle cell disease approved by FDA

Health

FRIDAY, July 7, 2017 -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved the first new drug for sickle cell disease in nearly two decades.Endari, or L-glutamine oral powder, helps reduce severe complications associated with the blood disorder, the agency said.Sickle cell disease is an inherited disorder in which the red blood cells are shaped like a sickle, which limits the flow of vital oxygen to organs and tissues. In turn, this triggers severe pain and organ damage. Approximately 100,000 Americans, mostly minorities, have sickle cell disease, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health."Endari is the first treatment approved for patients with sickle cell disease in almost 20 years," said Dr. Richard Pazdur, acting director of the Office of Hematology and Oncology Product...

Jun302017 by adminNo Comments

Australian drug gang suspected of using drone to monitor police

World

June 30 (UPI) -- Police are increasingly using drones to monitor criminal suspects, but in Australia, the criminals are suspected of using drones to monitor the police.An international drug gang consisting of four Australians, one Briton and two Canadians were arrested by Australian police for smuggling in three large bags of cocaine from Panama with a estimated street value of $ 30 million, police said.The men were arrested in different locations during the course of several police raids around Melbourne and were subsequently charged with drug trafficking and money laundering.In addition to the $ 30 million in cocaine, police found cash worth approximately $ 446,000 in U.S. dollars.The suspected drug traffickers appeared to have worked hard to avoid getting caught and went so far as to us...