Category Archives: Parkinson’s Treatment

NOKOMIS, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The market for effective new treatments for Parkinsons disease and other degenerative neurological disorders is strong and projected to grow sharply in coming years. Thats good news for Rainbow Coral Corp.s (RBCC) biotech subsidiary, Rainbow Biosciences, as it closes in on a deal with Amarantus Biosciences, Inc. (AMBS) The increasing market potential for Parkinsons therapies is what initially attracted RBCCs attention to Amarantus work. The Parkinson's Disease Foundation estimates that as many as one million Americans suffer from Parkinson's disease, and 60,000 new patients are diagnosed each year. Medication costs per person are believed to be around $2,500 each year and the total economic impact is estimated to be around $25 billion in the U.S. alone. Most encouraging of all, the market for Parkinsons drugs could grow to a value of $3.75 billion by 2015, according to a report last year by Visiongain. Growth in the Parkinson's treatment market is being driven by new breakthroughs, and RBCC is working to help advance the timeline for a cure for the debilitating disease. RBCC is currently negotiating a potential definitive agreement with Amarantus, a company that could be on the verge of promising new diagnostic and therapeutic tools for … Continue reading →

EMERYVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- KineMed, Inc. (www.kinemed.com) announced today the publication of a novel discovery in biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases from a study funded by The Michael J. Fox Foundation. The absence of meaningful biomarkers has remained a roadblock in the development and clinical application of treatments for neurological disorders. The publication describes in detail a unique class of biomarkers that measure the transport efficiency of key cargo molecules through neurons in the living human brain. Biomarkers of this pathogenically causal process may be used for the development of drugs to treat Parkinsons disease. The study published in the current edition of the Journal of Clinical Investigation (J Clin Invest. doi: 10.1172/JCI64575 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22922254) extends the use of KineMeds proprietary heavy water (2H2O)/protein dynamics mass spectrometric platform that provides real-time measurements of the flow of molecules through specific biochemical pathways in vivo. Researchers, led by Dr. Patrizia Fanara at KineMed, Inc., and Dr. Marc Hellerstein at the University of California, Berkeley and KineMed, Inc., working with collaborators at the University of California San Francisco and the University of Osnabruck, Germany, used the 2H2O labeling approach to specifically track, for the first time, the movement of cargo proteins that rely on axonal transport … Continue reading →

Three days after arriving at Carleton University on a full-ride scholarship, Kristina Pliskevicius was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Thats when the nightmare began, Brian Rivait said as he described the experiences of his 30-year-old daughter-in-law. Pliskevicius was 25 at the time of her diagnosis. For us, everybody saw ovarian cancer as being a disease of older women and it just became really important that we needed to get that message out, that age is not a determinant of this disease, Rivait said Sunday during the 2012 Windsor Ovarian Cancer Canada Walk of Hope at Malden Park. Rivait said Pliskevicius is still in active treatment and is an inspiration to everybody. Rivait and his family joined the walk six years ago when Pliskevicius was diagnosed. They now help organize the event that draws hundreds of families, survivors and friends who have been affected somehow by ovarian cancer. Rivait said they were expecting to raise more than $100,000 this year. The money finances Ovarian Cancer Canadas support, awareness and education programs as well as ovarian cancer research. Rivait said the walk was started seven years ago by a family that lost a loved one to ovarian cancer. He said 25 people walked … Continue reading →

Sept. 6, 2012, 10:06 a.m. Despite the restrictions that Parkinsons Disease brings, John Coppens has adapted so that he can still do the things he enjoys. Coppens was diagnosed with Parkinsons 12 years ago at the age of 46 while working as a fitter at the steelworks. The first indication of the disease was a sore shoulder, followed by dyskinesia - involuntary movements. Its a hideous disease, Coppens says, sitting in his Corrimal lounge room with wife Anna. He relies on a walker to get around and carries a pump and tube that works all day to deliver Duodopa intestinal gel which controls the severe involuntary movements of advanced Parkinsons. Luckily, the Duodopa is being provided as part of a medical trial otherwise, Coppens says, it would cost about $76,000 a year to stay on the medication. Because the effectiveness of medication used to treat the disease wears off over time, Coppens has been through a myriad of treatments, including Apomorphine which requires 12 injections each day. Even now, with the intestinal gel, once Coppens turns off the pump at 10pm he can only sleep for about two hours before the movements increase and wake him up. And the medication … Continue reading →

In the U.S., approximately one million people are living with Parkinsons disease. Its a disease that affects one-and-a-half times more men than women. Marcie Fraser reports. To view our videos, you need to enable JavaScript. Learn how. install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now. Then come back here and refresh the page. Parkinsons is a neurological disease that can cause different parts of the body to tremble or shake. It's caused by the loss of certain nerve cells in the mid brain resulting in a shortage of dopamine. "People that have the shortage of dopamine in that area will have the typical tremors, stiffness in the muscles," said Dr. Jim Storey, a neurologist. Patients can have problems with walking and speaking. It's most often associated with old age, but there is a form of the disease that affects people as early as age 30. Symptoms are different for each patient, and can change day by day or even hour by hour and sometimes get confused with Alzheimer. "It is recognized that people with Parkinsons may have memory problems but the patterns of it are different then the memory patterns that you see with people with Alzheimer, said Dr. Storey. … Continue reading →

After announcing Wednesday morning that it has completed enrollment of its latest Phase 3 Pimavanserin trial, dubbed the -020 study, Acadia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD - News) gained 4% for the day, and is up 3% in early trading Thursday. Pimavanserin is an oral treatment for Parkinson's Disease Psychosis, for which there is no FDA approved treatment available in the U.S. Psychosis is often triggered by Parkinson's treatments themselves, which elevate dopamine levels in the brain to improve motor control but create detrimental neurological side effects like hallucinations and delirium. Pimavanserin has the opportunity to fill a large unmet medical need in the growing field of Parkinson's treatment, over half a million people domestically and if approved for other pursued indications, as many as 5 million people according to Acadia. But the product has faced setbacks in development, as detailed in a March 2012reportfrom Zack's. The drug failed an earlier Phase 3 study (-012) after a high placebo response rate did not show proof of efficacy for Pimavanserin. The company discontinued another Phase 3 trial (-014) and adjusted protocol, trial sites, and dosage before initiating trial -020 which the company believes will more accurately reflect Pimavanserin's effectiveness. Top-line data from the -020 … Continue reading →

Sept. 6, 2012, 10:06 a.m. Despite the restrictions that Parkinsons Disease brings, John Coppens has adapted so that he can still do the things he enjoys. Coppens was diagnosed with Parkinsons 12 years ago at the age of 46 while working as a fitter at the steelworks. The first indication of the disease was a sore shoulder, followed by dyskinesia - involuntary movements. Its a hideous disease, Coppens says, sitting in his Corrimal lounge room with wife Anna. He relies on a walker to get around and carries a pump and tube that works all day to deliver Duodopa intestinal gel which controls the severe involuntary movements of advanced Parkinsons. Luckily, the Duodopa is being provided as part of a medical trial otherwise, Coppens says, it would cost about $76,000 a year to stay on the medication. Because the effectiveness of medication used to treat the disease wears off over time, Coppens has been through a myriad of treatments, including Apomorphine which requires 12 injections each day. Even now, with the intestinal gel, once Coppens turns off the pump at 10pm he can only sleep for about two hours before the movements increase and wake him up. And the medication … Continue reading →

JOIN Queensland Reds and Wallabies player, Jake Schatz, and former Australian butterfly champion living with a chronic brain disorder, Ian Findlay, for Parkinson's Queensland's fourth annual Unity Walk on Sunday, September 9 in Brisbane. To commemorate the final day of Parkinson's Awareness Week (September 2 - 9, 2012), support the 16,200 Queenslanders living with Australia's second most common neurological disorder, by strolling from New Farm Park, along the Brisbane River, to Teneriffe and back, to raise community awareness and much-needed funds for Parkinson's disease. Jake, who was named in the 30-man Wallabies squad last month, said it's a terrific way to spend Sunday morning supporting a great cause. "The event will be jam-packed with live entertainment, a sausage sizzle, face painting and balloon art for the kids," he said. >>Video - Striking a chord with complex Parkinson's Ian Findlay, Australian butterfly champion in the early 1980s and a representative at the 1992 Pan Pacific Games, will be joined by his close-knit family to walk for the cause this week. "People from all walks of life are encouraged to celebrate Parkinson's Awareness Week by joining the Parkinson's Queensland Unity Walk to support and honour those living with, or affected by Parkinson's," … Continue reading →

Tom and Carol Reid of Plum began their journey to help people with Parkinson's disease 15 years ago. Mr. Reid was an in-house attorney for Koppers Co. Inc. in Pittsburgh, when he began to have symptoms of Parkinson's, such as drooling and watering eyes. His wife said family members noticed he had developed a masklike, expressionless face, another symptom of Parkinson's. He also fell off a ladder, and he broke a rib after he couldn't stop while running downhill. "We knew something was wrong," Mrs. Reid said. Mr. Reid went to his family doctor soon after the symptoms began, but it took two years to get a diagnosis. When Mr. Reid retired, the couple moved to their former vacation home in Ligonier, where they became active in the Westmoreland County Parkinson Support Group in Greensburg and helped to start a support group at Forbes Regional Hospital. Now, the Reids will be honored for their volunteer work to help those with Parkinson's. They will receive the Local Hero Award at a symposium on Parkinson's disease Sept. 15 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown. The Reids have helped to raise awareness of the National Parkinson Foundation of Western Pennsylvania, volunteer … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Sep. 3, 2012) A study that used a Utahgenealogic database and a statewide cancer registry to examine the relationship between Parkinson disease (PD) and cancer suggests an increased risk of prostate cancer and melanoma in patients with PD and their relatives, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Neurology, a JAMA Network publication. Neurodegenerative diseases, in particular PD, may share common pathogenic mechanisms with some cancers, according to the study background. "Identifying a genetic relationship between PD and cancer is critical to understanding underlying pathophysiologic changes in both diseases. Understanding this relationship could allow clinicians to provide proper assessment of cancer risk in patients with PD and might also have implications for the counseling of relatives of patients," the authors note in the study background. Seth A. Kareus, M.D., and colleagues from the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, estimated relative risks (RRs) for cancer in individuals with PD listed on their death certificate, and in their relatives. The study identified 2,998 patients with PD listed as their cause of death from 1904 to 2008 and also included information from the Utah Cancer Registry on 100,817 patients diagnosed with cancer. To validate their observed associations, researchers … Continue reading →