Know how good is Lebanese cannabis, Kala Pharma's eye pain drug

A new AstraZeneca inhaler for chronic lung disease has proved worse than a rival GlaxoSmithKline product in a clinical trial, a result AstraZeneca said was inconsistent with earlier findings.

AstraZeneca inhaler lags GSK drug in lung disease trial

A new AstraZeneca inhaler for chronic lung disease has proved worse than a rival GlaxoSmithKline product in a clinical trial, a result AstraZeneca said was inconsistent with earlier findings. Bevespi Aerosphere - a combination of two kinds of drugs known as LAMA and LABA - was as good as GSK's Anoro in improving peak breathing levels when patients exhaled but it failed to match Anoro on trough measures, AstraZeneca said on Thursday.

How good is Lebanese cannabis? Scientists seek herbal remedies

Locked away safely in an academic's study in Lebanon is a plant that researchers hope to transform from one of the country's most notorious exports into a lucrative pharmaceutical. Cannabis is cultivated openly, but illegally, in parts of Lebanon, especially the Bekaa Valley where a Roman temple in the ancient city of Baalbek bears an engraving of a cannabis leaf. Today, Lebanon is third after only Morocco and Afghanistan as a global supplier of cannabis resin, U.N. figures show.

China's Zhejiang province to cull 1,332 hogs after African swine fever outbreak

Authorities in China's Zhejiang province said it will cull 1,332 hogs after an African swine fever outbreak was reported in the city of Yueqing, the city government said in a post on its official Weibo account on Thursday. Authorities have sealed off an area within 3 km (1.8 miles) from the pig farming community where the deadly disease was found, according to the statement.

FDA approves Kala Pharma's eye pain drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved Kala Pharmaceuticals Inc's treatment for reducing inflammation and pain following an eye surgery. The company said it expects to launch the drug, Inveltys, at the beginning of 2019, with Wedbush Securities estimating peak sales of about $271 million in 2027.

FDA approves Shire drug for the rare swelling disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved a first of its kind drug from Shire Plc to treat patients aged 12 and older suffering from a rare hereditary disease that causes swelling. The drug, Takhzyro, is expected to bring in blockbuster sales for the Shire and is important to Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, which plans to buy the Dublin-based rare disease specialist for $62 billion.

Firms stop kid-friendly packaged e-cigarette liquids sales after FDA push

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday that all 17 companies that were warned by the regulator have stopped marketing e-cigarette liquids packaged similarly to child-friendly products such as juice boxes, candy or cookies. The warning in May was a part of the FDA's sweeping actions taken to prevent sales of tobacco products to kids.

UPDATE: As a result of warning letters issued by FDA in May, all 17 companies have stopped selling e-liquids that resemble kid-friendly food products such as juice boxes, candy or cookies. https://t.co/GIKZifJke2 https://t.co/2yoy5leOjP

— FDA Tobacco (@FDATobacco) August 23, 2018

Bayer's Monsanto faces 8,000 lawsuits on glyphosate

The number of U.S. lawsuits brought against Bayer's newly acquired Monsanto has jumped to about 8,000, as the German drugmaker braces for years of legal wrangling over alleged cancer risks of glyphosate-based weedkillers. Bayer had previously disclosed 5,200 such lawsuits against Monsanto, which it acquired in a $63 billion deal completed in June.

Oklahoma Medicaid tests new tactic to curb U.S. drug costs

A new front in the battle over the cost of expensive medicines in the United States is opening up in Oklahoma, the first state where the government's Medicaid program is negotiating contracts for prescription drugs based on how well they work. In June, Oklahoma received approval from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to factor how effective a prescription medicine is into the price it pays to the manufacturer.

NY health officials investigating illnesses linked to McDonald's outlet

New York State health officials said on Thursday they were investigating reports of multiple illnesses potentially associated with a McDonald's Corp restaurant in Jamestown, NY. The state health department and the Chautauqua County Health Department said 22 individuals reported symptoms of nausea, vomiting or diarrhea and on being interviewed 15 said they had eaten various breakfast sandwiches at the McDonald's outlet between August 4-21.

The resurgence of crippling black lung disease seen in U.S. coal miners

Since the 1990s, annual numbers of U.S. coal miners with new, confirmed cases of an advanced form of so-called black lung disease known as progressive massive fibrosis have been steadily rising, according to a new study. The resurgence is particularly strong among central Appalachian miners in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia, the study authors note.

(With inputs from Reuters)