Reuters - Health Report

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Tuesday, August 22, 2017

Philip Morris International CEO cheers U.S. FDA tobacco proposal

(Reuters) - The chief executive of Philip Morris International said he was "extremely encouraged" by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent proposal to lower nicotine levels in cigarettes and nudge smokers toward less harmful alternatives such as e-cigarettes.

J&J ordered to pay $417 million in trial over talc cancer risks

(Reuters) - A California jury on Monday ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $417 million to a woman who claimed she developed ovarian cancer after using the company's talc-based products like Johnson's Baby Powder for feminine hygiene.

AstraZeneca ups investment in messenger RNA drugs with Ethris deal

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - AstraZeneca has stepped up its investment in messenger RNA drugs, a promising approach in genetic therapy, by spending more than 25 million euros ($29 million) on a research alliance with German biotech start-up Ethris.

Parents still failing to put babies to sleep on their backs

(Reuters Health) - Fewer than half of U.S. infants always sleep on their backs, the position doctors recommend to avoid sleep-related injuries and deaths, a study suggests.

American surgeons poorly prepared for humanitarian operations

(Reuters Health) - A Haitian physician taught American-trained vascular surgeon Dr. David Kuwayama how to perform C-sections in a Caribbean clinic, and a Congolese surgeon taught him other basic surgical procedures in an African war zone.

Smokers hospitalized for heart attacks often don't get cessation drugs

(Reuters Health) - Few smokers hospitalized for heart attacks and other serious complications of cardiac disease get medication to help them quit smoking, a U.S. study suggests.

Belgian biscuit maker recalls products amid contaminated eggs scare

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian biscuit maker Lotus Bakeries said it had recalled some of its products in Belgium as they could contain eggs that were contaminated with insecticide fipronil.

U.S. study revives argument over mammogram screening

(Reuters Health) - Yearly mammograms starting at age 40 would prevent the most deaths from breast cancer, U.S. researchers reported on Monday in a challenge to more conservative recommendations that take into account both the harms and the benefits of screening.

Britain's Creo receives speedy FDA approval for its endoscopic device

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Creo Medical Group said its device to remove cancerous lesions in the bowel during an endoscopy had received U.S. approval much quicker than it planned, shaking up a timetable that had been focused on a European launch.

New Novartis drug takes aim at tough-to-treat malaria

LONDON (Reuters) - Novartis is taking aim at drug-resistant malaria – a growing global problem – by launching clinical trials of the first new antimalarial medicine for many years in nine countries across Africa and Asia.