Tag Archives: pharma

STUDY: Viagra May Be Effective Against Alzheimer’s

Science Alert reports: Usage of the medication sildenafil – better known to most as the brand-name drug Viagra – is associated with dramatically reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s disease, new research suggests. According to a study led by researchers at the Cleveland Clinic, taking sildenafil is tied to a nearly 70 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s compared to non-users. That’s …

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Study: J&J Vaccine Effective As Mix-And-Match Booster

USA Today reports: A new study found that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine serves as an effective booster on top of full vaccination from the Pfizer vaccine. A J&J booster, administered six months after two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, increased antibody and T-cell responses, according to the study, demonstrating potential benefits of mix-and-match boosters. “There is early evidence …

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FDA Panel Approves Merck’s COVID Treatment Pill

NBC News reports: A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted Tuesday to recommend Merck’s experimental antiviral pill to treat Covid-19 for emergency use authorization, paving the way for the agency to clear the first oral drug for the disease. Members of the agency’s Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee voted 13-10 in favor of the treatment, called molnupiravir, for use in …

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CVS To Close 900 Stores As Pandemic Upends Traffic

CNBC reports: CVS Health said Thursday that it will close about 900 stores over the next three years, as it adjusts to shoppers who are buying more online. The company announced in a news release that it will focus more of its efforts on digital growth and turning its stores into destinations that offer a range of health-care services, from …

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US To Buy 10M Courses Of Pfizer COVID Pill In $5B Deal

Reuters reports: Pfizer Inc has signed a $5.29 billion deal with the U.S. government to deliver 10 million courses of its COVID-19 oral antiviral drug starting this year, the drugmaker said on Thursday. Pfizer on Tuesday filed for U.S. authorization of the drug, Paxlovid, and said it expects to manufacture 180,000 treatment courses by the end of next month and …

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Pfizer To Waive Overseas Royalties On Its COVID Pill

The Washington Post reports: Drugmaker Pfizer Inc. has signed a deal with a U.N.-backed group to allow other manufacturers to make its experimental COVID-19 pill, a move that could make the treatment available to more than half of the world’s population. In a statement issued Tuesday, Pfizer said it would grant a license for the antiviral pill to the Geneva-based …

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US To Buy Another $1B Worth Of Merck Treatment Pill

Reuters reports: The U.S. government will buy another $1 billion worth of the COVID-19 pill made by Merck & Co Inc and partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, the companies said on Tuesday. The government in June agreed to buy 1.7 million courses of molnupiravir for $1.2 billion and is now exercising options to buy 1.4 million more. That brings the total secured …

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Pfizer Says Its COVID Treatment Pill Is Highly Effective

CNBC reports: Pfizer said Friday that its easy-to-administer Covid-19 pill, used in combination with a widely used HIV drug, cut the risk of hospitalization or death by 89% in high-risk adults who’ve been exposed to the virus. It’s now the second antiviral pill behind Merck’s to demonstrate strong effectiveness for treating Covid at the first sign of illness. If cleared …

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Schumer: Dems Have Deal On Lower Prescription Prices

The Hill reports: Democratic lawmakers have reached a deal on legislation to lower prescription drug prices to be included in President Biden’s social spending package, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday. The agreement is less far-reaching than earlier Democratic proposals, but still represents progress on an issue the party has campaigned on for years. The agreement would allow …

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Merck To License COVID Pill Globally Royalty-Free

NPR reports: U.S.-based pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. said it will license drugmakers worldwide to produce its potentially lifesaving antiviral pill for treatment of COVID-19 in adults. The drug, known as molnupiravir, has shown promise in treating the disease, and the agreement to license its production could help millions of people in the developing world gain access to it. Merck …

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FDA Panel Okays Pfizer Vax For Children Ages 5-11

The New York Times reports: A key advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration voted overwhelmingly to recommend the use of Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine in 5- to 11-year-olds, bringing the vaccine a big step closer to about 28 million children. Shots could be offered as early as next week. The panel endorsed giving the age group one-third of the …

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STUDY: Moderna Vaccine Effective In Kids Ages 5-11

NPR reports: Moderna says a study in kids 6 to 11 found two doses of the company’s COVID-19 vaccine given 28 days apart produced a strong antibody response. The study, conducted in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, used shots containing a 50 microgram dose of the vaccine, half the dose of the Moderna shots authorized for adults. More …

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STUDY: Pfizer Vaccine 91% Effective In Kids Ages 5-11

ABC News reports: Kid-size doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine appear safe and nearly 91% effective at preventing symptomatic infections in 5- to 11-year-olds, according to study details released Friday as the U.S. considers opening vaccinations to that age group. The shots could begin in early November — with the first children in line fully protected by Christmas — if regulators …

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Merck Seeks FDA Approval For Oral COVID Treatment

Bloomberg News reports: Merck & Co. and its partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics LP sought emergency use authorization in the U.S. for molnupiravir, moving the pill closer to becoming the first oral antiviral treatment for Covid-19. An application was submitted with the Food and Drug Administration for molnupiravir to treat mild-to-moderate Covid-19 in adults at risk of developing a severe illness that …

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Merck To Seek Authorization For Oral COVID Treatment

CNBC reports: Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics plan to seek emergency authorization for their oral antiviral treatment for Covid-19, after the medicine showed “compelling results” in clinical trials. The drug, molnupiravir, reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by around 50% for patients with mild or moderate cases of Covid-19, the companies announced on Friday. Molnupiravir is administered orally and works …

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Pfizer Begins Study Of Oral COVID-19 Preventive

Reuters reports: Pfizer Inc said on Monday it has started a mid-to-late-stage study testing its investigational oral antiviral drug for the prevention of COVID-19 infection among those who have been exposed to the virus.  The company and its rivals, including Merck & Co Inc and Roche Holding AG, have been racing to develop the first antiviral pill for COVID-19. Pfizer …

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Anti-Smoking Drug Chantix Recalled Over Cancer Risk

USA Today reports: Pfizer is voluntarily recalling all lots of its popular anti-smoking drug Chantix for high levels of nitrosamine, which can increase the risk of cancer. According to the notice posted on the Food and Drug Administration website, the recall is for all lots of 0.5 mg and 1 mg varenicline tablets. The recall notice says that long-term ingestion …

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STUDY: Pfizer Vax Is Highly Effective In Children 5-11

The New York Times reports: The Pfizer-BioNtech coronavirus vaccine has been shown to be safe and highly effective in young children aged 5 to 11 years, the companies announced early Monday morning. The news should help ease months of anxiety among parents and teachers about when children, and their close contacts, might be shielded from the coronavirus. The need is …

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Oxy-Peddling Sackler Family Given Civil Immunity

The Washington Post reports: More than two decades after Purdue Pharma launched its blockbuster pain pill OxyContin, preceding a deadly overdose crisis, a judge approved a bankruptcy plan Wednesday that will resolve thousands of lawsuits against the drugmaker and grant sweeping legal immunity to its billionaire owners. Negotiated until the 11th hour, the final terms of the settlement confirmed by …

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Moderna: Booster Candidate “Robust” Against Delta

CNBC reports: Moderna said its Covid-19 vaccine booster shot produced a “robust” antibody response against the highly contagious delta variant, according to details of a study released Thursday with the company’s second-quarter earnings report. In a phase two trial, Moderna is testing a 50-microgram dose of three vaccine booster candidates in previously vaccinated individuals. The booster shots produced a promising …

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