Health News Roundup: J&J says drug combo contains lung cancer from spreading for longer duration; Philips settles one category of U.S. claims over respirator recall and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Pfizer, Valneva say 'positive' result for Lyme disease vaccine candidate booster

Pfizer and French pharmaceutical peer Valneva announced on Thursday that a phase 2 study for its VLA15 Lyme disease vaccine candidate showed a "strong immune response" in both children and adolescents a month after a booster shoot. "The Phase 2 booster results emphasize the vaccine candidate’s potential to provide immunity against Lyme disease in paediatric and adolescent populations," the two companies said in a statement.

Explainer-Do I need to worry about COVID again?

New data from scientists and vaccine makers Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech suggests that a newer, highly mutated variant of the virus that causes COVID-19 is not as alarming as some experts had feared when it was first detected several weeks ago.

Nicknamed "Pirola" on social media, the BA.2.86 Omicron subvariant is being tracked by both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Philips settles one category of U.S. claims over respirator recall

Philips said on Thursday it has reached a settlement to resolve one category of legal claims against it following a major recall of the Dutch medical equipment maker's sleep apnea and respiratory devices. The company said it has struck a deal to settle U.S. class action "economic loss" claims. Philips will make an initial payment of $479 million to a fund to cover payments claimants covered by the settlement, which will vary depending on the type of device they had.

Insulet shares slump on concerns of sales hit from new diabetes drugs

Insulet Corp's shares hit an over three-year low on Thursday on concerns that strong demand for a new class of diabetes drugs that also aid in weight loss could hit sales of its insulin pumps. CEO James Hollingshead said at the Wells Fargo Healthcare Conference that GLP-1 drugs, which are used to treat type-2 diabetes and obesity, could delay the onset of insulin dependency in diabetes patients.

Astellas withdraws lawsuit challenging Medicare drug price negotiation plans

Japan-based Astellas Pharma on Wednesday withdrew a lawsuit filed against the U.S. government, days after its prostate cancer drug was spared from the first list of drugs that will be subject to Medicare price negotiations. The U.S. government, late last month, selected the first 10 drugs, including the top-selling blood thinner Eliquis from Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer, which will face price negotiations as part of President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.

J&J says drug combo contains lung cancer from spreading for longer duration

Johnson & Johnson said on Wednesday its combination drug helped increase the duration of no progress in a type of non small-cell lung cancer in patients. The therapy met the main goals of the study that tested a combination of antibody treatment Rybrevant and experimental drug lazertinib against chemotherapy in patients with a more common mutation in EGFR protein that causes rapid cell growth.

Israeli scientists create model of human embryo without eggs or sperm

Scientists in Israel have created a model of a human embryo from stem cells in the laboratory, without using sperm, eggs or a womb, offering a unique glimpse into the early stages of embryonic development. The model resembles an embryo at day 14, when it acquires internal structures but before it lays down the foundations for body organs, according to the team at Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science.

Britain's Superdrug says Wegovy received is "very small fraction" of waiting list

British health and beauty chain Superdrug said on Thursday that the amount of weight-loss drug Wegovy it has so far received is "a very small fraction" of what would be needed to fulfil its swelling waiting list. More than 20,000 people had registered an interest in buying Wegovy from Superdrug even before Novo Nordisk launched the drug in Britain on Monday, and the waiting list has increased since then, a spokesperson told Reuters.

Bristol Myers accused of illegal tactics to keep Pomalyst monopoly in lawsuit

Bristol Myers Squibb has been accused in a new lawsuit of using fraudulent patents and other illegal tactics to maintain its monopoly on blockbuster blood cancer drug Pomalyst for years after it should have faced generic competition. In a complaint filed on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana said the company violated U.S. antitrust law and had caused purchasers of the drug to overpay "by many hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars."

Alnylam's gene-silencing drug cuts blood pressure in mid-stage trial

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals said on Thursday its experimental gene-silencing therapy helped significantly reduce high blood pressure in patients in a mid-stage trial. The therapy, zilebesiran, helped reduce the average systolic blood pressure - which builds up in arteries as the heart beats - by 15 mmHg (millimeters of mercury) over a 24-hour period in the third month of the study.

(With inputs from agencies.)