Reuters - Health Report

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Friday, December 15, 2017

Germany's Merck in fresh bid to enter U.S. MS pill market

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's Merck KGaA is reviving plans to bring an oral multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment to the U.S. market, hoping for blockbuster sales despite regulatory concerns about side effects having frustrated its ambitions almost seven years ago.

Cannabis ingredient holds promise as antipsychotic medicine

LONDON (Reuters) - An ingredient in cannabis called cannabidiol or CBD has shown promise in a clinical trial as a potential new treatment for psychosis, scientists said on Friday.

Thailand battles drug-resistant malaria strains that imperil global campaign

BO RAI, Thailand (Reuters) - Once a smuggling stop for Cambodia's Khmer Rouge guerrillas, Thailand's border town of Bo Rai finds itself on the frontline of a new battle against drug-resistant strains of malaria that could frustrate global attempts to stamp out the disease.

Perrigo lines up bid for Merck's consumer health unit: sources

LONDON/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Generic drugmaker Perrigo has decided to enter the fray for Merck KGaA's consumer health unit, sources told Reuters, and is preparing an indicative offer for the $4.7 billion business ahead of a deadline on Friday.

U.S. less generous than European nations with development assistance

(Reuters Health) - The U.S. contributes more than any other nation in development assistance for health to low- and middle-income countries, but its generosity falls short when compared in terms of size and wealth, a new study found.

Merck's Keytruda fails pivotal gastric cancer trial

(Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc said on Thursday a key late-stage trial testing its blockbuster drug, Keytruda, failed to meet its main goal of extending lives of patients with a type of gastric cancer.

Pfizer's Xeljanz gets FDA nod as joint disease treatment

(Reuters) - U.S. drugmaker Pfizer Inc said on Thursday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved two doses of its drug Xeljanz for treatment of a joint disease.

With no deal on children's health plan, U.S. states scramble for Plan B

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - For Nancy Minoui of Portland, Oregon, and Crystal Lett of Dublin, Ohio, Congress' failure to fund the Children's Health Insurance Program is not some distant tale of political wrangling.

Investors call on Sanderson, Denny's, McDonald's to cut antibiotics

(Reuters) - An investor coalition that presses for corporate responsibility is calling on U.S. food companies McDonald's Corp, Denny's Corp and Sanderson Farms Inc to stop buying or producing meat raised with medically important antibiotics.

Former Philippine President defends controversial dengue program

MANILA (Reuters) - Former Philippine President Benigno Aquino defended on Thursday his decision to implement a controversial immunization program using a new dengue vaccine in 2016, saying it was justified with millions of people at risk of being infected by the virus.