Health News Roundup: EU has agreed supply of 20,000 additional doses of Remdesivir; Bristol Myers' Opdivo succeeds in late-stage lung cancer trial and more

As some companies close in on unveiling their initial findings - with Canadian and European regulators already reviewing early data on some vaccines - the following is what we know about the race to deliver vaccines to help end the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed over a million lives: Six U.S. states report record COVID hospitalizations, new restrictions in place Six states reported record numbers of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including Wisconsin, where officials on Tuesday issued a new order limiting the size of indoor public gatherings.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

EU has agreed supply of 20,000 additional doses of Remdesivir

The European Commission said on Wednesday it had agreed with U.S. company Gilead the supply of more than 20,000 additional doses of its COVID-19 drug Remdesivir, in a bid to tackle shortages of the medication in European countries. A spokesman for the EU executive said Brussels had agreed with Gilead last Friday the supply of nearly 20,300 additional doses for the treatment of about 3,400 patients.

Q&A: Where are we in the COVID-19 vaccine race?

Drugmakers and research centers around the world are working on COVID-19 vaccines, with large global trials of several of the candidates involving tens of thousands of participants well underway. As some companies close in on unveiling their initial findings - with Canadian and European regulators already reviewing early data on some vaccines - the following is what we know about the race to deliver vaccines to help end the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed over a million lives: Six U.S. states report record COVID hospitalizations, new restrictions in place

Six states reported record numbers of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including Wisconsin, where officials on Tuesday issued a new order limiting the size of indoor public gatherings. The surge of COVID hospitalizations and new cases in some states coincides with U.S. President Donald Trump and several members of his White House staff testing positive for the novel coronavirus. Trump's doctors on Tuesday said he was not displaying any acute symptoms after he left the Walter Reed Medical Center, where he was treated for three days.

Bristol Myers' Opdivo succeeds in late-stage lung cancer trial

Bristol Myers Squibb Co said on Wednesday its cancer drug Opdivo plus chemotherapy helped more patients with a form of lung cancer become free of the disease versus chemotherapy alone in a late-stage trial. Significantly more non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving Opdivo and chemotherapy before surgery showed no evidence of cancer cells in their resected tissue, the company said. The combination of Britol's Opdivo and Yervoy is already approved for treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer.

UK PM Johnson says COVID cases rising but lockdown approach correct

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday that COVID-19 infections were rising in London and elsewhere, but that his government's approach to controlling the spread of the virus was still the right one. "The local and regional approach combined with the national measures remains correct," Johnson told parliament, when asked why infections continued to rise in areas where local lockdown measures have been put in place.

Exclusive: OxyContin maker Purdue nears guilty plea agreement in U.S. criminal probe - sources

Purdue Pharma LP, the OxyContin maker controlled by members of the wealthy Sackler family, is nearing an agreement to plead guilty to criminal charges as part of a broader deal to resolve U.S. Justice Department probes into its alleged role in fueling the nation's opioid crisis, six people familiar with the matter said. Purdue lawyers and federal prosecutors are brokering a plea deal that could be unveiled as soon as within the next two weeks and include billions of dollars of financial penalties, four of the people said. They stressed that talks are fluid and that some of the terms could change as discussions continue.

Eli Lilly applies for FDA emergency use authorization for COVID-19 treatment

Eli Lilly and Co said on Wednesday it had submitted a request to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for emergency use of its experimental antibody treatment for COVID-19. Separately, the U.S. drugmaker said data from a new study showed a combination of two of its antibody treatments helped reduce hospitalization and emergency room visits for COVID-19 patients.

Fauci says White House COVID-19 infections could have been prevented

Top U.S. infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, whose advocacy of public health guidelines to fight the coronavirus has conflicted with President Donald Trump's downplaying of the pandemic, said on Tuesday the recent rash of infections at the White House could have been prevented. Several close aides to Trump and senior Republican politicians have tested positive for the coronavirus since the Republican president announced on Friday that he and first lady Melania Trump had contracted the virus.

UK's COVID-19 testing system hit by Roche supply problems

Britain's COVID-19 testing system, already struggling with a surge in new cases, was facing more disruption on Wednesday after Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche said problems at a new warehouse had delayed the dispatch of some products. Roche is one of the main suppliers of diagnostic tests to Britain's National Health Service (NHS) Test and Trace programme, which only days ago was hit by a technical glitch that delayed the reporting of 15,000 positive results.

Busy Damascus cemetery points to higher pandemic death toll in Syria

The sprawling Najha cemetery outside Damascus, resting place for thousands of dead from Syria's wars, is struggling to cope with a surge in victims from the country's latest conflict - the largely unacknowledged battle with COVID-19. Official data put the national death toll from the pandemic at 20‮9‬, but throughout the summer burial notices were posted on city walls and social media almost daily as professional groups mourned lost doctors, academics, lawyers and politicians.