Category Archives: Drugs

Bust ... police with marijuana plants in Melbourne last month. Photo: Jason South The war on drugs has raged for decades with organised crime the only winner. Catherine Armitage reports. Retired Salvation Army officer Brian Watters was startled to see Mick Palmer's name on the recent Australia21 think tank report which declared the war on drugs a failure and called for a national debate on ending drug prohibition. When Major Watters was made prime minister John Howard's key adviser on combating illicit drugs, Palmer, then Australian Federal Police commissioner, was his deputy. Heading the Australian National Council on Drugs from 1998, the two men fought side by side to implement Howard's ''tough on drugs'' policy. Palmer, then part way through what was to be a seven-year stint as head of the AFP, was responsible for implementing many of its beefed-up law enforcement measures. Advertisement: Story continues below Still hardline ... Major Brian Watters backs the tough approach. Photo: Lee Besford "He was just as strongly supportive of the [tough on drugs] approach as myself," said Watters this week. "If he went down the line with the stuff that was put out by Australia21, I would be be very, very surprised." … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -05/14/12)- Biotech companies are looking to cash in on the anti-obesity drug market. The race to bring the first weight-loss pill to the market is heating up as Arena Pharmaceuticals weight-loss pill (Lorcaserin) recently gained the backing of an FDA advisory panel. The Paragon Report examines investing opportunities in the Biotech Industry and provides equity research on VIVUS, Inc. (VVUS) and Roche Holding Ltd. (RHHBY.PK). Access to the full company reports can be found at: http://www.ParagonReport.com/VVUS http://www.ParagonReport.com/RHHBY Arena is currently competing with Vivus and Orexigen Therapeutics to bring the first anti-obesity drug to the market in nearly 13 years. All three of the companies' drugs were previously turned down by the FDA. FDA advisers last week voted 18-4 that the benefits of Arena's Lorcaserin outweigh the health risks. According to recent numbers from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention over 78 million adults in the U.S. are obese. Obesity significantly raises the risks for health problems such as diabetes, heart attacks, and strokes. It is estimated that obesity costs the U.S. economy $147 billion a year in medicals costs and lost productivity. Paragon Report releases regular market updates on the Biotech Industry so investors can stay … Continue reading →

Doctors usually give breast cancer patients several cancer drugs; they claim that these drugs produce better results than treatment with just a single drug. Now researchers have found that two powerful drugs can cure breast cancer. Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT)have discovered thaterlotinib and doxorubicin have the capability to kill a particularly malignant type of breast cancer cells. Researchers had been studying complex cell-signalling pathways that control cells' behaviour: how much they grow, when they divide, when they die. In cancer, the cells grow uncontrolled and abnormally in the body. Researchers believed that the only way to switch a cancerous cell into a less malignant state is by using different combinations of cancer drugs. They tested different combinations of 10 DNA-damaging drugs and a dozen drugs that inhibit different cancerous pathways, using different timing schedules. Like us on Facebook Of all combinations they tried, they saw the best results with pretreatment using erlotinib followed by doxorubicin, a common chemotherapy agent. To prove that erlotinib and doxorubicin could kill cancer cells, the researchers conducted an experiment on mice that had tumours. A group of mice was given erlotinib and doxorubicin in different durations. Another group was given only chemotherapy … Continue reading →

EMPLOYERS in Circular Head have had trouble with drugs in the workforce, according to Mayor Daryl Quilliam. His comments come in the wake of a $300,000 cannabis bust at Smithton. "We have people that are wanting to employ people and drugs are not always an issue, but they're an issue often and people get really frustrated not knowing what to do," he said. "People employ people and they try to stress that they don't want drugs in the workforce, then a bit later they find that some of these people are on drugs. "A lot of guys that work on farms, it's an issue there. "I would think it's everywhere though to be quite honest." Cr Quilliam said it was an issue that affected most regional areas, but wasn't spoken about much. "I think drugs here are a bit like other places, they are far more prevalent than I'd like to think they would be," he said. "We're certainly concerned and would rather not have drugs involved with young people at all. "It's a shocking thing, there's no doubt about that. Excerpt from: `Drugs an issue in CH workforce' … Continue reading →

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The transition from discovery and development to drug commercialization requires an entirely different set of skills, as both large and small pharmaceutical and biotech companies have found. And the costs of successfully planning and executing a global drug launch must now cover more regions and more functional groups than ever before, according to findings from consulting firm Cutting Edge Information. Complex pieces of the global launch puzzle such as regulatory submission, managed markets planning, and launch sequencing must be coordinated carefully. Each piece has a large impact on initial market reception and can drag down or drive up revenue results. These commercial steps require expertise quite different from earlier clinical trial phases; trying to shoehorn clinical experience into commercial needs invites disaster. Licensing and co-development deals can bridge the gap. Cutting Edge Informations recent study, Business Development and Licensing: Strengthening Pipelines and Managing Relationships, profiles how a development-oriented company with a promising compound primed for market, but without commercialization infrastructure, can leverage another companys experience to continue preparing the new product for launch. Collaborating with a company that has deep experience with regulatory submission and launch in major and emerging markets will save time and … Continue reading →

50% of Patients Seizure-Free After Trying First Anti-Seizure Drug By Salynn Boyles WebMD Health News Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD May 9, 2012 -- Half of all epilepsy patients who are initially started on one anti-seizure drug remain seizure-free for at least a year, a new study confirms. Among patients followed for as long as 26 years, initial response to drug treatments strongly predicted future seizure control. Yet less than 1% of patients who failed to respond to three anti-seizure drug regimens achieved adequate seizure control on subsequent drug treatments even though some were treated with as many as nine different drugs or drug combinations. The findings make it clear that epilepsy patients who are candidates for surgery or other non-drug treatments should be considered for these procedures earlier rather than later, says neurologist Patricia E. Penovich, MD, of the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Epilepsy Group in St. Paul. "These patients don't have to wait until they have failed five or six different drug regimens," she tells WebMD. "If their seizures are not controlled by the first few medications it is reasonable to consider surgery." Roughly 2.7 million Americans have epilepsy, and about 1 in 10 people … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, May 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue: http://www.reportlinker.com/p0849622/Commercializing-Pancreatic-Cancer-Drugs-The-Faster-Route-to-Consider-Your-Options-and-Position-of-Others.html#utm_source=prnewswire&utm_medium=pr&utm_campaign=Drug_and_Medication This report will excel your competitive awareness and decrease your decision making time in managing pancreatic cancer drug development. Find out whether you are number one, two or further down the ladder in this highly competitive market. Locate the right drugs to benchmark against and see were others may have succeeded or failed before you. This report comprises defined and up to date development strategies for 247 pancreatic cancer drugs within the portfolio of 158 companies world-wide, from Ceased to Marketed. The report extensively analyses their 197 identified drug targets, organized into 163 drug target strategies, and assesses them in pancreatic cancer. BioSeeker has applied its unique drug assessment methodology to stratify the pancreatic cancer drug pipeline and discern the level of competition in fine detail. Major Findings from this report: * The identified competitive landscape of pancreatic cancer drugs is split between the half which have unique drug target strategies and the other half which have head-to-head target competing drugs in 37 different clusters. The latter has a competing ratio which is more than two times higher than … Continue reading →

11 May 2012 Last updated at 06:02 ET India has more than 10,500 drug makers with a domestic turnover of nearly $9bn. Yet, something is rotten with the way drugs are tested and sold in the country. A parliamentary panel investigation has found serious issues with the way approvals for foreign drugs are given and clinical trials are being carried out. Here are some of the startling findings: This is not all. The panel expresses concern over the continued sale of potentially harmful drugs in India years after such products were banned or withdrawn in developed countries and the prevalence of "sub-standard" - 7-8% of total sales - in the market. Is India condemned to becoming a dumping ground for drugs? PS: The government has now announced an investigation into the workings of India's main drug regulator, days after the panel's report. Three experts have been appointed to "look at the scientific basis of approving new drugs without clinical trials" and recommend ways of improving the way the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSO) works. One report says that global drug makers could also face new US scrutiny following this damning 78-page report. The rest is here: Is India a … Continue reading →

By Aruna Viswanatha WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Global drugmakers could face new U.S. scrutiny after a report from lawmakers in India alleged abuses in that country's drug approval process, lawyers familiar with such investigations said. A parliamentary panel on Wednesday said officials of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) had been colluding with pharmaceutical companies to speed up approval procedures, allowing some drugs that are not permitted in other countries to go on sale. The U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are conducting extensive inquiries into nearly every major drug and medical device manufacturer for potential violations of a U.S. law that bars bribes to officials of foreign governments, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Many of those probes focus on accusations of bribery in emerging markets, such as China and Latin America, but dealings in India have yet to come under major scrutiny. "If the Indian parliament issued a report condemning practices, then I'm sure my clients will be getting calls from the DOJ pretty soon," said one lawyer who works with pharmaceutical companies on such investigations. The lawyer spoke on condition of anonymity, as did others who represent drugmakers in FCPA cases. Other experts familiar with … Continue reading →

Large dogs with police trainers walked through hallways and locker rooms at two Elgin middle schools Thursday, checking for drugs as part of School District U-46's random search program, which officials say serves as a deterrent to teenagers. As they sniffed along the lockers and floors at Abbott and Kimball middle schools, neither of the dogs indicated they smelled marijuana or other illegal drugs. About a year and a half ago, the Elgin-based district started random dog searches in its high schools after an increase in suspensions because of drugs, Safety Coordinator John Heiderscheidt said. This school year, middle schools were added to the rotation after officials noticed the same trend. Although actually finding drugs is rare, many times dogs indicate they smell drugs, which usually means the scent is on clothing inside a locker, Heiderscheidt said. If drugs are found, the student is disciplined and parents are called. Parents are also called if a dog just detects a smell, he said. "We know drug use is on the rise," Heiderscheidt said, adding that the district's data show most out-of-school suspensions are associated with drug use. If students know drugs could be detected in lockers or in the parking lot … Continue reading →