Reuters - Health Report

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Thursday, May 18, 2017

EU to propose 10-year license renewal for weed killer glyphosate

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission will propose extending by 10 years its approval for weed-killer glyphosate, used in Monsanto's Roundup, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

WHO: Congo Ebola cases present high national but low global risk

LONDON (Reuters) - An outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo involving up to 20 people is in an extremely remote area and presents a high risk at a national level, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday.

Michigan Senate votes to outlaw female genital mutilation

(Reuters) - The Michigan Senate approved legislation on Wednesday making genital mutilation of girls a state felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison, both for doctors who perform the procedure and parents who transport a child to undergo the surgery.

Pfizer drug from Medivation deal shows promise in breast cancer: study

(Reuters) - A breast cancer drug that Pfizer Inc acquired with its $14 billion purchase of Medivation showed promising anti-tumor activity following prior treatments and a modest ability to hold the disease in check, according to data from a mid-stage study released on Wednesday.

U.S. health officials warn of problems with Meridian lead tests

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. health officials on Wednesday warned that tests made by Meridian Bioscience Inc may underestimate lead levels in blood drawn from veins, sending the manufacturer's stock down 9 percent.

Bayer gets FDA priority review for blood cancer drug

FRANKFURT, Germany (Reuters) - German drugmaker Bayer won the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's priority review status for an experimental drug for a difficult to treat type of blood cancer, bolstering its development pipeline.

Merck says test shows Keytruda improves survival for bladder cancer patients

(Reuters) - Pivotal trial results for Merck & Co Inc's immunotherapy drug Keytruda show that it lengthened survival by three months, or nearly 40 percent, for patients with advanced bladder cancer who had stopped responding to chemotherapy.

Celgene leukemia drug extends survival in early stage trial

(Reuters) - Nearly 20 percent of patients with an aggressive form of leukemia experienced complete remission along with prolonged survival from treatment with an experimental Celgene Corp drug, according to data from an early-stage study released on Wednesday.

Merck, Incyte immunotherapy combination effective in lung cancer study

(Reuters) - A combination of the Merck & Co immunotherapy Keytruda and a different type of drug that also helps the immune system fight cancer from Incyte Corp led to a high rate of durable responses in a small, ongoing study of patients with advanced lung cancer, according to data released on Wednesday.

ImmunoGen drug moving ahead in single-agent, combination trials

(Reuters) - Latest results from a mid-stage trial of ImmunoGen Inc's experimental antibody-drug conjugate show that it shrinks or stabilizes tumors in nearly half of advanced ovarian cancer patients with at least medium levels of a key biomarker whose disease has become resistant to standard chemotherapy.