Health News Roundup: Moderna shares fall after judge sides with Arbutus in patent fight; Costco offering members access to weight-loss programs including medication

The agreement, which still needs to be finalized, will resolve most of the lawsuits against the French pharmaceutical company in U.S. state courts, with the exception of Delaware where the majority of the cases are pending. FTC seeks more information on Boston Scientific's $3.7 billion Axonics deal Boston Scientific said on Thursday the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has requested additional information from the medical device maker related to its $3.7 billion deal to buy Axonics.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Moderna shares fall after judge sides with Arbutus in patent fight

Shares of Moderna fell 4% on Wednesday after a U.S. judge issued an order that strengthened Arbutus' arguments in a patent infringement lawsuit related to Moderna's blockbuster COVID-19 vaccines. Roivant's shares gained 4% in afternoon trading, while its subsidiary Arbutus rose more than 17%.

Costco offering members access to weight-loss programs including medication

Costco Wholesale will offer its members access to weight-loss programs, including prescription drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, from online healthcare services provider Sesame, as the companies expanded their partnership. The wholesale retailer's members can subscribe to Sesame's weight-loss program for $179 for three months, compared with $195 for non-members, Sesame said in a blog post on Tuesday.

UK watchdog says Theramex-Viatris deal raises competition concerns

Britain's competition watchdog said Theramex's purchase of European rights to two of Viatris' women's healthcare products ranges could lead to higher prices and fewer options for hormone replacement therapies (HRT). The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said its phase 1 probe found the deal could reduce options in an already concentrated HRT market, lead to price hikes and pose a threat to entry of new products.

Sanofi to settle 4,000 Zantac cancer lawsuits in US state courts

Sanofi has reached an agreement in principle to settle 4,000 U.S. lawsuits linking the discontinued heartburn drug Zantac to cancer, the company said on Wednesday. Sanofi did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. The agreement, which still needs to be finalized, will resolve most of the lawsuits against the French pharmaceutical company in U.S. state courts, with the exception of Delaware where the majority of the cases are pending.

FTC seeks more information on Boston Scientific's $3.7 billion Axonics deal

Boston Scientific said on Thursday the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has requested additional information from the medical device maker related to its $3.7 billion deal to buy Axonics. In a regulatory filing, Boston Scientific said Axonics has also received a request for additional information from the FTC and both the companies expect to respond promptly.

Study finds mercury contamination in Brazil's Yanomami people

Indigenous people from nine villages in Brazil's Yanomami territory were found to be contaminated by mercury, with those living closer to illegal gold mining sites presenting higher levels of contamination, a study released on Thursday found. The study by Brazil's state-run Fiocruz institute collected hair samples from about 287 Indigenous people in October 2022. They all tested positive for contamination by mercury, with around 11% of the samples presenting high levels of the heavy metal, which is used by wildcat miners in Brazil to separate gold from ore and earth.

Mitsui and Rohto to buy $594 million Chinese medicines company Eu Yan Sang

Japan's Mitsui & Co said on Thursday it had teamed up with Rohto Pharmaceutical Co to buy Eu Yan Sang International in a deal valuing the Singapore-based traditional Chinese medicines firm at S$800 million ($594 million). Mitsui said in a statement that a special purpose company jointly owned by Mitsui and Rohto would acquire around 86% of Eu Yan Sang from Righteous Crane Holding.

Amylyx Pharma to remove ALS drug from US, Canada markets

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals will withdraw its amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) drug - its only product in the market - from the U.S. and Canada after the treatment failed in a key late-stage trial. The drugmaker on Thursday also announced a 70% reduction in its workforce. It had 384 full-time employees at the end of 2023.

Bird flu hits Texas dairy cows, hens, human as ducks migrate

Migratory waterfowl are to blame for widening avian-flu outbreaks in Texas cows and poultry, and wild birds carrying the virus should be heading north soon, state Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said. The U.S. government since last week has reported cases of the disease in seven dairy herds in Texas and one person who had contact with cows, making it the state most affected by the country's first-ever outbreaks in cattle. Texas is the biggest U.S. cattle producer.

Drugmaker seeks approval for China's first biosimilar Ozempic

A drugmaker in China has developed a biosimilar version of Novo Nordisk's popular diabetes drug Ozempic and applied for approval to sell it there, in a potential challenge to Novo's expansion plans in the country. Hangzhou Jiuyuan Gene Engineering said on Wednesday in a post on its official social media account that it was seeking approval to sell the drug, which it calls Jiyoutai, to control blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes.

(With inputs from agencies.)