Health News Roundup: 1/3 of Healthcare costs go to bureaucracy, U.S.; Merck's Keytruda shows mixed results in phase 3 trial and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

More than a third of U.S. healthcare costs go to bureaucracy

U.S. insurers and providers spent more than $800 billion in 2017 on administration, or nearly $2,500 per person - more than four times the per-capita administrative costs in Canada's single-payer system, a new study finds. Over one-third of all healthcare costs in the U.S. were due to insurance company overhead and provider time spent on billing, versus about 17% spent on administration in Canada, researchers reported in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Merck's Keytruda shows mixed results in phase 3 trial for small cell lung cancer

Merck & Co said a phase 3 trial of cancer drug Keytruda in combination with chemotherapy showed an increase in the number of time patients lived with small cell lung cancer without it getting worse, but did not extend overall survival. While the blockbuster drug showed improvement in overall survival for patients treated with Keytruda in combination with chemotherapy, it did not meet statistical significance, the company said on Monday.

Analysis of commercial DNA tests finds inconsistent coverage

Once strictly the domain of research labs, tests that sequence large swaths of the human genome called the exome have become increasingly popular among medical specialists as a way to understand the genetic causes of rare disease. But a sampling of a dozen tests from each of three commercial laboratories has found they often fail to adequately analyze large segments of DNA that could be contributing to disease, researchers report this week in the journal Clinical Chemistry.

Few doctors can legally prescribe opioid-addiction drug

Fewer than one in 10 primary care providers in the U.S. can prescribe the opioid-addiction medication buprenorphine, and access is even more scarce in rural counties hardest hit by overdoses, a new study suggests. Since 2000, physicians have been able to seek waivers from the federal government to prescribe buprenorphine, seen as an alternative to methadone dispensed at federally approved clinics, said study co-author Ryan McBain of the RAND Corporation in Boston. More recently, nurse practitioners and physician assistants have been allowed to seek waivers, too, helping to drive a four-fold increase in the number of clinicians nationwide able to prescribe buprenorphine.

Teen drinking, drug use tied to other risky behaviors

Teens who binge drink or abuse prescription opioids may be more likely to engage in other risky behaviors, too, two new studies suggest. Adolescents who binge drink are more likely to drive drunk or ride with drivers who are under the influence in early adulthood, and they're also more apt to become extreme binge drinkers who experience blackouts, one of the studies suggests.

Apellis' drug better than Soliris in improving hemoglobin levels in trial

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday its experimental drug for a blood disorder showed greater improvement in patients' hemoglobin levels than market leader Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc's Soliris. Apellis tested its drug, pegcetacoplan, in 80 paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) patients who remained anemic despite taking Soliris. About half of them were even dependant on blood transfusions to maintain optimal hemoglobin levels.

Largest study yet offers no clear talc link to ovarian cancer

U.S. researchers who conducted the largest study yet into whether applying powder to the genitals increases a woman's risk of ovarian cancer was unable to definitively put to rest the issue that has prompted thousands of lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson and other companies. Overall, the study did not find a significantly increased risk of ovarian cancer, but there appeared to be a heightened risk among certain women who used the products.

Drug developers take fresh aim at 'guided-missile' cancer drugs

Dozens of drugmakers are conducting human trials for a record 89 therapies that pair antibodies with toxic agents to fight cancer, evidence of renewed confidence in an approach that has long fallen short of its promise, an analysis compiled for Reuters shows. These antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs, from companies including AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline, are described by researchers as "guided missiles" packing a powerful anti-cancer punch.

(With inputs from agencies.)