Category Archives: Drugs

As expected, the FDA recently announced approval of a second drug for obesity within a month, Vivus Qnexa, now renamed Qsymia. This approval is less of a surprise, as the data appeared somewhat stronger than that for Arenas lorcaserin (Belviq). What was rather curious is that USA Today broke news of the drugs approval before the FDA had announced their decision. The FDA is responding to the growing crisis of obesity. As noted in my post, A Glut of Obesity Drugs? the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has established that more than one-third of adults in the United States are obese, defined as having a Body-Mass Index of > 30. In the U.S. alone, 78 million U.S. adults are obese; another 34% of adults are overweight > 25-29. So 70% of US adults have a problem with weight. This results in an estimated 300,000 deaths per year. And the burden of obesity is increasing, expected to rise to 42% by 2030, with an additional 11% prevalence of severe obesity (BMI >40, or ~80+ lbs overweight). Obesity is the second cause of preventable deaths, after smoking. The costs of obesity are also staggering, and may be as high as $147 … Continue reading →

Drugs operation at Newton Abbot prison 9:14am Friday 3rd August 2012 in News Police have carried out a drugs operation aimed at disrupting the drugs supply to Channings Wood Prison at Newton Abbot. The operation was held on Thursday, July 26 and was designed to target visitors and prevent them carrying any drugs into the prison. Local Police officers, assisted by Prison staff, were on site between 1100 hours and 1500 hours to coincide with the visiting hours. Units from the ANPR team, the Tactical Police Team and the Special Constabulary, together with drugs dogs ensured that every visiting car was identified, stopped and searched. A 22-year-old woman from Taunton was arrested and street bailed on suspicion of possessing a Class B drug - Mephedrone, while a 58-year-old woman from Cardiff was issued a police warning for being caught in possession of cannabis. Both women were also refused their visits by the prison. A 27-year-old man from Cardiff was found to be wanted on warrant from South Wales and was arrested and detained to appear in court See the article here: Drugs operation at Newton Abbot prison … Continue reading →

St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital study shows how compounds blocking an enzyme universal to all influenza viruses may allow development of new antiviral drugs that also avoid the problem of drug resistance Newswise (MEMPHIS, Tenn. August 2, 2012) Scientists at St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital have reported details of how certain drugs can precisely target and inhibit an enzyme essential for the influenza virus replication. Since all strains of the virus require the same functioning enzyme, researchers believe their findings will yield drugs that can effectively treat new strains of the virus, which may be resistant to current antiviral treatments. When new strains of influenza emerge, it can take many months for a vaccine to be developed. Experts are concerned that the emergence of any highly virulent strains could result in large numbers of people being hospitalized, and if the strain is or becomes resistant to current treatments, the impact could be catastrophic. The researchers findings may lead to the ability to develop drugs that not only treat influenza but impede the ability of the virus to develop drug resistance. The study appears online in the August 2 issue of PLoS Pathogens. St. Jude scientists tested drugs aimed at blocking … Continue reading →

(CBS News) More than one-third of Americans are now considered obese. Experts now say we may be entering a new era in the battle to lose weight after the Food and Drug Administration recently approved two new diet drugs. Belviq and Qysmia should be on the market this fall. Larger waist size may be bad news for men's sexual and urinary health Obesity to affect 42% of Americans by 2030 with $550 billion in costs, say researchers To qualify for the medications, people have to be at least 30 pounds overweight, according to Dr. Louis Aronne, director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Program at New York Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center. "This is not medication for someone who wants to lose the last 10 pounds." Belviq, which is just one medicine, can help the average person lose five to 10 percent of their body weight. Qsymia is more effective because it's two medicines together, Aronne said. The average person loses 10 to 15 percent of their body weight with the drug, which he said is "very, very good weight loss." Dr. Christine Ren, chief of Bariatric Surgery at NYU Langone Medical Center, who also appeared on "CTM," said these drugs … Continue reading →

Blame it on the drugs. That is essentially the message that Cavan Redmond, new CEO for health information services provider WebMD Health (Nasdaq: WBMD) , gave in the company's earnings conference call following poor quarterly results. Redmond, hired away from Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) just two months ago, had the unenviable task in his inaugural earnings call of explaining why WebMD's revenue and earnings declined sharply during the second quarter. He pointed primarily to reduced advertising spending by major biopharmaceutical customers due to expiring drug patents. Is this really the main cause of WebMD's woes? Let's take a look. Fading brands Mr. Redmond certainly makes a good point about many heavy-hitter drugs going off patent. Pfizer lost exclusivity for Lipitor and Protonix in 2011. The two drugs combined for $6 billion in U.S. sales in 2010. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) lost its U.S. patent protection for antibiotic Levaquin and ADHD/ADD drug Concerta. These two accounted for over $2.2 billion in sales. Several blockbuster drugs lose patent protection in 2012 as well. Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) says goodbye to exclusivity for Plavix, which topped $7 billion in sales last year. Merck (NYSE: MRK) loses protection for Singulair. The asthma drug brought … Continue reading →

Editor's Note: This story is one in a series Behind the Badge: Yuma Police Department that looks behind the scenes at issues facing the YPD. Sgt. Marty Raebel is a realist. Drugs will always be around, even with police officers like himself specifically assigned to go after them. Some of what's out there, like heroin, has been used for generations. But newer designer, synthetic drugs like Spice and other products that mimic marijuana, or bath salts and the similar glass cleaner, which are stimulants keep police officers, especially drug interdiction specialists like Raebel, on a steeper learning curve. Raebel heads up the Narcotics Street Crimes Unit for the Yuma Police Department. Along with four detectives and an analyst, the crew keeps tabs on day-to-day drug activity within the city. It's hard to put a number on how many criminal cases have a drug connection, Raebel said. Statistics don't really tell the story because they're not collected on drugs as an aggravating factor for example, in an assault carried out by somebody high on meth, or in a burglary committed by somebody who wanted to fence the loot for crack. And ultimately, a burglary is prosecuted the same whether the perpetrator … Continue reading →

COURT: George Peauafi Palelei. Source: The Courier-Mail A YEAR 12 graduate trafficked drugs to high school leavers during last year's Gold Coast Schoolies festivities to raise money to avoid being evicted from his family home, a court has been told. The Brisbane District Court was told US-born teenager George Peauafi Palelai committed a string of criminal offences between November 9 and 27 last year in the hope of raising money to help out his cash-strapped dad. The court was Palelai, as part of his criminal fundraising enterprise, trafficked marijuana to Schoolies revellers at Surfers Paradise over an eight day period. Palelai, 19, was today handed a two year wholly suspended jail term after pleading guilty to a charge of drug trafficking. He was also sentenced to 18 months probation and 80 hours community service for a string of other offences including two burglaries. Prosecutor Jennifer O'Brien said Palelai, of Moorooka, was found in possession of 150 grams of marijuana, $88 in cash and a sales "tick sheet'' when arrested. She said the drugs had been found in 112 ready-for-sale plastic clip-sealed bags. The court was told Palelai admitted he had been given the drugs, by an unnamed third party, and … Continue reading →

Six men have been charged after police seized drugs and $1 million in cash at Sydney Airport. New South Wales Police Force detectives tipped off the Australian Federal Police and the Custom and Border Protection Service that a group of men was heading to the airport yesterday to fly to Bangladesh. Four men were stopped and searched by officials at the airport yesterday morning, allegedly uncovering a quantity of steroids and just under $1 million in cash. The men, aged between 25 and 56, have all been charged with Commonwealth proceeds of crime offences and possession of a restricted substance. They were held in custody overnight, but three of the men were granted bail when they faced court today. State Drug Squad detectives subsequently raided two units in the city's inner west at Ashfield, where they allegedly seized more steroids, another $70,000 in cash and a quantity of the drug ice. Two men arrested at the units, aged 33 and 37, have been charged with supplying a prohibited drug and having goods in custody. They have been released on bail to face court later this month. Police say their investigation is continuing. See the original post: Drugs and $1m cash … Continue reading →

1 August 2012 Last updated at 11:50 ET A drug addict facing cannabis and amphetamine charges is more likely to gain access to new supplies in jail than outside, the High Court has heard. Sean Kelly's barrister played down the chances of him overcoming his habit while on remand at Maghaberry Prison. The 25-year-old, of The Old Fort, Londonderry, faces charges of possessing Class B drugs and two counts of possession with intent to supply. He was arrested after police searched his home on 25 July. Officers found four grams of herbal cannabis and 180 grams of suspected amphetamines with an estimated street value of between 1,800 and 5,400, according to the prosecution. The range in potential valuation was due to some batches of speed currently being laced with cocaine, a judge was told. Digital scales, packaging and cash were also seized during the swoop. Kelly, who was said to be clearly under the influence of drugs when police entered, denied any involvement in selling or supplying drugs. Opposing his bail application, Kate McKay, prosecuting, told the court he claimed to be a drug addict who took between 18-24 grams of speed daily. Read more here: Drugs 'easier to get … Continue reading →

Published: Aug. 2, 2012 at 2:00 AM CHICAGO, Aug. 2 (UPI) -- Combining two drugs normally given as single agents significantly extended the lives of women with metastatic breast cancer, U.S. researchers say. Dr. Kathy Albain, a breast cancer specialist at Loyola University Medical Center near Chicago, and colleagues found women who initially took the drugs anastrozole and fulvestrant together at the same time lived more than six months longer than women who took anastrozole alone, with fulvestrant given later when the disease progressed. "This study is the first to show that combination hormonal therapy alone without chemotherapy improves survival in advanced breast cancer," Albain said in a statement. "This most likely will change the standard of care for how we treat these patients." First author Dr. Rita Mehta of the University of California at Irvine, said anastrozole, or Arimidex, is a pill that is taken daily -- a class of medications called aromatase inhibitors. It works by decreasing the amount of estrogen the body makes -- estrogen fuels breast cancer. Fulvestrant, or Faslodex, is given by injection and binds to estrogen receptors, blocking the effect estrogen has on cancer cells, Mehta said. The study involved 707 post-menopausal women who … Continue reading →